Virginia Basketball Recruiting: The Search for UVA’s Next Point Guard
by
Who will be Virginia’s next point guard?
Courtesy of Matt Riley/Virginia Athletics
Tony Bennett’s success at the helm of the Virginia men’s basketball program has been fueled by strong play at the point guard position. From London Perrantes to Ty Jerome, from Kihei Clark to Reece Beekman, a talented floor general has been the driving force behind UVA’s exceptional run in the ACC over the past decade. With the recruiting calendar peaking for the class of 2023 this summer, Tony Bennett and company are fervently seeking Virginia’s point guard of the future.
Kihei Clark’s five-year career at Virginia will come to an end after this season and Reece Beekman will be a senior next season. The Cavaliers will need another point guard waiting in the wings to succeed him.
Tony Bennett and the UVA coaching staff thought they had secured such a player in four-star London Johnson (Norcross, Georgia), whose commitment to Virginia was apparently guaranteed in April. Three months later, Johnson’s recruiting saga isn’t over yet. After delaying his engagement three times this spring, reports surfaced that Johnson was no longer considering a commitment to UVA. Recruiting experts now predict that Johnson, the 31st prospect in the class of 2023, will choose to turn pro over play college basketball.
With Johnson out of the picture, the Cavaliers have set their sights on an entirely new set of goals for point guards for 2023 this summer:
Freddie Dilione (Raleigh, North Carolina)
freddie dilione
Size: 6’4″, 185lbs
247 Sports Ranking: No. 1 in North Carolina, No. 15 combined guard, No. 72 nationally
Virginia offered Dilione on May 4, and he immediately scheduled a visit to Charlottesville for the following weekend. He has also taken officials to Tennessee and VCU and has plans to visit UConn in late July. Dilione, one of the top scorers on the Adidas 3SSB circuit, has seen his recruitment increase significantly this summer and now has offers from more than 20 programs. North Carolina and Kentucky are the latest major programs to show interest.
The good news: Virginia took over Dilione relatively early and has developed a good relationship with the UVA coaching staff. The bad news? This is what Dilione told On3 last week: “I like to play in a fast-paced system; whoever catches the ball, leaves. I like to play pick and roll and do reads.” Obviously, there is an incompatibility between Dilione and Virginia’s preferred styles. Unless Dilione changes his mind in favor of “embracing the rhythm,” UVA is unlikely to be the place for him.
Tony Bennett extended an offer to Jackson on June 23 and has been recruiting heavily ever since. UVA’s coaching staff has seen Jackson play numerous times during live judging periods this month, including twice on Thursday at the Under Armor event in Chicago. Jackson has offers from 27 schools and Maryland appears to be the favorite, but Bennett and company are certainly doing everything they can to change that.
Silas Demary Jr. (Charlotte, North Carolina)
Silas Demary Jr.
Size: 6’4″, 180lbs
247 Sports Ranking: No. 4 in North Carolina, No. 20 combined shooting guard, No. 115 nationally
Demary has yet to receive a scholarship offer from Virginia, but moves by UVA’s coaching staff in recent weeks suggest one could be coming soon. Following an impressive performance at Top 100 Camp earlier this month, several Virginia staff members saw Demary perform live multiple times at the Under Armor event in Georgia last week. That trend has continued through this week’s second live judging period, with Tony Bennett and Orlando Vandross watching Demary play twice in Chicago on Thursday.
Demary has offers from 14 schools, including the ACC NC State and Georgia Tech programs. It wouldn’t be surprising to see Virginia added to that list by the end of the week.
Trey Green (Branson, MO)
Courtesy of MOKAN Basketball
trey green
Size: 5’10”, 155lbs
247 Sports ranking: No. 3 in Missouri, No. 12 point guard, No. 96 nationally
Trey Green put himself on Tony Bennett’s radar with his impressive shooting and quickness at the Nike EYBL event in Kansas City in early July. Green has continued to appear so far at the Peach Jam in Augusta and Jason Williford of Virginia saw him perform live on Thursday.
Green already announced a top seven from Cincinnati, Nebraska, Xavier, Clemson, VCU, LSU and Virginia Tech on May 6, but it’s become commonplace for players to reconsider their options as their draft picks up and more offers roll in. That could be the case if Green were to accept an offer from the Hoos.
Vasean Allette (Scarborough, Ont.)
Vasean Allette
Size: 6’3″, 180lbs
247 Sports Rank: No. 1 in Ontario, No. 31 base
Ontario’s No. 1 player is one of the fastest-growing prospects in the class of 2023 this summer. Allette currently has a three-star rating, but that’s expected to change when the draft rankings are updated. He has displayed a fantastic set of offensive skills across the board, including the ability to shoot from deep, break down opposing defenses and make the right passes, and get to the rim and finish. Tony Bennett saw Allette perform live twice on Thursday.
Currently with offers from 13 schools, including St. John’s, VCU, Washington State, Georgia Tech, DePaul and Arizona State, Allette’s next offer could come from Virginia.
