The WAR ROOM is back and this edition is full of hoops recruiting scoop! After finding the point guard the staff felt like they had to have this spring, Virginia continues to scour the transfer market for one if not two more players. We'll get into the latest on the targets that the Wahoos are tracking, fill you in on UVa's point of view of those targets, and even drop a couple of new names to keep in mind as things continue to move forward this spring.
As always, what's said in the War Room, stays in the War Room. Let's go!
The existing transfer targets
It's been a busy week for UVa on the transfer front, as the staff locked up Nigel Johnson on his official visit last weekend. As we've been saying for week, "bucket-getting guard" was the top priority for Tony Bennett and his staff and in Johnson, they feel like they've hit an absolute home run. If you'll recall, one source told us this type of addition was "1A and 1B" in terms of their focus, so it's clear that Virginia feels very, very good about where things are.
Now is a good time to check the oil, so to speak, on where things go from here. Our sources remain clear that UVa wants to find one more transfer (a big man who can score in the post, i.e. "The A.G. Clone") and if possible an athletic wing, too. In both cases, we don't get the sense that grad transfers are what UVa is looking for, particularly with the bigs. The wing seems like the lesser priority by a wide margin but that's not to say that the staff is going to take guys just to take guys.
So, let's start with Noah Dickerson, the potential transfer from Washington who visited UVa last weekend. Word making the rounds is that the Georgia native is now looking to take a visit to Miami but that trip won't come until late this month. And if that's the case, as we've said on the board, we do not see UVa waiting around. Sure, if Dickerson decided at some point that he wanted in, the Hoos would take him but that's provided the spot was still available. There will be no slowing down specifically for him, per our source. But as of now, there still isn't much on the market that UVa feels ready to go all in on in the way they did in wrapping up Johnson. We got the sense that Dickerson has said enough to the staff to make them think they've got a legit shot but from the outside, we wouldn't advise anyone to get their hopes up. He left Charlottesville without a decision and now appears ready to drag this out. That's not a good sign for the Cavaliers in any discernible way.
So, if not Dickerson, then who? Well one name you've heard here has been UConn transfer Steven Enoch, and there appears to have been a bit of a fracture in the situation. Our sources indicated to us that UVa has all but moved on from the 6-foot-11, 258-pound forward. Why? Well, there's some concern on Enoch's part that he might be a high-level NBA prospect who can't afford to work into a bigger program for his last two years. Instead of going pro now, though, Enoch is talking about going to a lower level school where he can get the ball a great deal and then get out of there as quick as possible. That's obviously a non-starter at far as Virginia is concerned. Enoch does have a relationship with folks at Rutgers and he could certainly opt to stay closer to home to play at Seton Hall but in terms of UVa's interest, it appears the ship has sailed or is at least in the harbor, fully stocked and ready to ship off. Word we heard is that if Enoch or his people circle back and get in touch with UVa, the staff will certainly hear them out and go from there but it does not appear that they'll be chasing him any longer, especially after the Cavaliers were unable to get the family to lock in on an in-home visit previously.
The latest on Badocchi
So that brings us to the case of three-star Roeland Park (KS) Bishop Miege small forward Francesco Badocchi. At this point, our sources believe the visit is a go but, as we said on the board yesterday, that it will not happen until sometime mid-week. Yet at the same time, there's at least some potential for him not to come. For starters, word we heard is that he's got a visit to Illinois lined up first. The other issue? UVa really hasn't seen Badocchi against the type of competition that would give them total confidence in his game. They see him as an extremely athletic kid but their worry is that he might be 6-foot-5, which plays into the uncertainty of who he is and could develop into. As one source put it to us this week, UVa needs another Isaiah Wilkins in the worst way but by no means do they need a shorter Isaiah Wilkins. Virginia needs to have a version of Wilkins with more size, not less.
And this gets into an interesting question: Who are De'Andre Hunter and Jay Huff in a year and a half? Because the answer to those questions is going to have a dramatic impact on not just who UVa needs to recruit in the next couple of classes but also too who the Cavaliers are going to be as a team. Sure, we know they'll play the pack-line and we know Bennett likes the blocker-mover. But at no point in his time in Charlottesville has Bennett had the type of length and shooting acumen he could have in those two guys. Badocchi is an A+ athlete but that there are a number of unknowns both in terms of who he is and who he will become that give UVa some pause given the uncertainty (for lack of a better description) around who Hunter and Huff will be. On some level, you have to have things you can bank on. That's why Dickerson makes so much sense: His skillset is clearly what UVa needs.
If Dickerson were in the fold, UVa goes with an athletic wing transfer (sit one, play two or three) and then roles over the other scholarship to 2018. As much as UVa likes the idea of bringing in kids and letting them soak for a year, it makes more sense in some ways to go after a 2018 kid to fill the role that Badocchi might fit because of the unknowns at play.
Now, some of this becomes moot if he visits and the staff sees and hears what it needs. We'll just have to wait and see how it plays out. For now, though, the visit appears to be happening and there's clearly enough interest there for things to move forward.
New names for the transfer board?
With the Dickerson situation being what it is, who might the Cavaliers be looking at in the post? Truth be told, the staff hasn't liked too much of what's been out there so far, per sources, but one guy who could make some sense is Juwan Durham, the 6-foot-11 forward from UConn. A Tampa (FL) native who was a four-star recruit last year and the No. 47 overall player in the class of 2016, he only played 8.3 minutes per game as a freshman this past season in Storrs but did shoot 48.8 percent from the floor on limited attempts (20-for-41 shooting). He doesn't exactly fit the model of what UVa's looking for (someone like Anthony Gill who you can throw the ball to and let him go to work) but he's someone the staff is investigating, per a source.
And what about that athletic wing our sources keep bringing up? Malik Ellison, son of the great Pervis Ellison, is leaving St. John's and has two years to play after sitting one. The 6-foot-6, 215-pound Ellison, a former three-star recruit, averaged 7.4 points per game over his two years at St. John's and was a 33 percent 3-point shooter. He's got a good pedigree, obviously, and he's a good athlete with good ball skills. He doesn't have the nicest shot but that's something that can be worked on. Word is he's expected to visit Pitt this weekend and sources say the Cavaliers are keeping a toe in the water there.
Lastly, at least in terms of how it impacts 2018, if UVa uses three scholarships this spring (Johnson, the big, and the wing) then the plan will likely be to take three the next year: A point guard, another combo-type wing regardless of size, and an athletic, bouncy big. And the last scholarship available? The staff would likely roll that one over. In fact, in talking to sources since the end of the season, one constant theme has been that some of the transfers UVa has been dealing with have come largely from having filled all of the available spots in the past. The numbers being what they are now and what they will be down the line, we could absolutely see a scenario where the staff continues to leave one scholarship open each year.
That is it for this week, and as always, what's said here, stays here!
As always, what's said in the War Room, stays in the War Room. Let's go!
The existing transfer targets
It's been a busy week for UVa on the transfer front, as the staff locked up Nigel Johnson on his official visit last weekend. As we've been saying for week, "bucket-getting guard" was the top priority for Tony Bennett and his staff and in Johnson, they feel like they've hit an absolute home run. If you'll recall, one source told us this type of addition was "1A and 1B" in terms of their focus, so it's clear that Virginia feels very, very good about where things are.
Now is a good time to check the oil, so to speak, on where things go from here. Our sources remain clear that UVa wants to find one more transfer (a big man who can score in the post, i.e. "The A.G. Clone") and if possible an athletic wing, too. In both cases, we don't get the sense that grad transfers are what UVa is looking for, particularly with the bigs. The wing seems like the lesser priority by a wide margin but that's not to say that the staff is going to take guys just to take guys.
So, let's start with Noah Dickerson, the potential transfer from Washington who visited UVa last weekend. Word making the rounds is that the Georgia native is now looking to take a visit to Miami but that trip won't come until late this month. And if that's the case, as we've said on the board, we do not see UVa waiting around. Sure, if Dickerson decided at some point that he wanted in, the Hoos would take him but that's provided the spot was still available. There will be no slowing down specifically for him, per our source. But as of now, there still isn't much on the market that UVa feels ready to go all in on in the way they did in wrapping up Johnson. We got the sense that Dickerson has said enough to the staff to make them think they've got a legit shot but from the outside, we wouldn't advise anyone to get their hopes up. He left Charlottesville without a decision and now appears ready to drag this out. That's not a good sign for the Cavaliers in any discernible way.
So, if not Dickerson, then who? Well one name you've heard here has been UConn transfer Steven Enoch, and there appears to have been a bit of a fracture in the situation. Our sources indicated to us that UVa has all but moved on from the 6-foot-11, 258-pound forward. Why? Well, there's some concern on Enoch's part that he might be a high-level NBA prospect who can't afford to work into a bigger program for his last two years. Instead of going pro now, though, Enoch is talking about going to a lower level school where he can get the ball a great deal and then get out of there as quick as possible. That's obviously a non-starter at far as Virginia is concerned. Enoch does have a relationship with folks at Rutgers and he could certainly opt to stay closer to home to play at Seton Hall but in terms of UVa's interest, it appears the ship has sailed or is at least in the harbor, fully stocked and ready to ship off. Word we heard is that if Enoch or his people circle back and get in touch with UVa, the staff will certainly hear them out and go from there but it does not appear that they'll be chasing him any longer, especially after the Cavaliers were unable to get the family to lock in on an in-home visit previously.
The latest on Badocchi
So that brings us to the case of three-star Roeland Park (KS) Bishop Miege small forward Francesco Badocchi. At this point, our sources believe the visit is a go but, as we said on the board yesterday, that it will not happen until sometime mid-week. Yet at the same time, there's at least some potential for him not to come. For starters, word we heard is that he's got a visit to Illinois lined up first. The other issue? UVa really hasn't seen Badocchi against the type of competition that would give them total confidence in his game. They see him as an extremely athletic kid but their worry is that he might be 6-foot-5, which plays into the uncertainty of who he is and could develop into. As one source put it to us this week, UVa needs another Isaiah Wilkins in the worst way but by no means do they need a shorter Isaiah Wilkins. Virginia needs to have a version of Wilkins with more size, not less.
And this gets into an interesting question: Who are De'Andre Hunter and Jay Huff in a year and a half? Because the answer to those questions is going to have a dramatic impact on not just who UVa needs to recruit in the next couple of classes but also too who the Cavaliers are going to be as a team. Sure, we know they'll play the pack-line and we know Bennett likes the blocker-mover. But at no point in his time in Charlottesville has Bennett had the type of length and shooting acumen he could have in those two guys. Badocchi is an A+ athlete but that there are a number of unknowns both in terms of who he is and who he will become that give UVa some pause given the uncertainty (for lack of a better description) around who Hunter and Huff will be. On some level, you have to have things you can bank on. That's why Dickerson makes so much sense: His skillset is clearly what UVa needs.
If Dickerson were in the fold, UVa goes with an athletic wing transfer (sit one, play two or three) and then roles over the other scholarship to 2018. As much as UVa likes the idea of bringing in kids and letting them soak for a year, it makes more sense in some ways to go after a 2018 kid to fill the role that Badocchi might fit because of the unknowns at play.
Now, some of this becomes moot if he visits and the staff sees and hears what it needs. We'll just have to wait and see how it plays out. For now, though, the visit appears to be happening and there's clearly enough interest there for things to move forward.
New names for the transfer board?
With the Dickerson situation being what it is, who might the Cavaliers be looking at in the post? Truth be told, the staff hasn't liked too much of what's been out there so far, per sources, but one guy who could make some sense is Juwan Durham, the 6-foot-11 forward from UConn. A Tampa (FL) native who was a four-star recruit last year and the No. 47 overall player in the class of 2016, he only played 8.3 minutes per game as a freshman this past season in Storrs but did shoot 48.8 percent from the floor on limited attempts (20-for-41 shooting). He doesn't exactly fit the model of what UVa's looking for (someone like Anthony Gill who you can throw the ball to and let him go to work) but he's someone the staff is investigating, per a source.
And what about that athletic wing our sources keep bringing up? Malik Ellison, son of the great Pervis Ellison, is leaving St. John's and has two years to play after sitting one. The 6-foot-6, 215-pound Ellison, a former three-star recruit, averaged 7.4 points per game over his two years at St. John's and was a 33 percent 3-point shooter. He's got a good pedigree, obviously, and he's a good athlete with good ball skills. He doesn't have the nicest shot but that's something that can be worked on. Word is he's expected to visit Pitt this weekend and sources say the Cavaliers are keeping a toe in the water there.
Lastly, at least in terms of how it impacts 2018, if UVa uses three scholarships this spring (Johnson, the big, and the wing) then the plan will likely be to take three the next year: A point guard, another combo-type wing regardless of size, and an athletic, bouncy big. And the last scholarship available? The staff would likely roll that one over. In fact, in talking to sources since the end of the season, one constant theme has been that some of the transfers UVa has been dealing with have come largely from having filled all of the available spots in the past. The numbers being what they are now and what they will be down the line, we could absolutely see a scenario where the staff continues to leave one scholarship open each year.
That is it for this week, and as always, what's said here, stays here!
