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Virginia Basketball: Keys for Cavaliers to become a contender in 2019-20

By Jacob Zinkula

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - APRIL 08: Head coach Tony Bennett of the Virginia Cavaliers celebrates with his team after the 85-77 win over the Texas Tech Red Raiders in the 2019 NCAA men's Final Four National Championship game at U.S. Bank Stadium on April 08, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - APRIL 08: Head coach Tony Bennett of the Virginia Cavaliers celebrates with his team after the 85-77 win over the Texas Tech Red Raiders in the 2019 NCAA men's Final Four National Championship game at U.S. Bank Stadium on April 08, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /
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MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA – APRIL 08: Kihei Clark #0 of the Virginia Cavaliers handles the ball on offense against the Texas Tech Red Raiders in the second half during the 2019 NCAA men’s Final Four National Championship game at U.S. Bank Stadium on April 08, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA – APRIL 08: Kihei Clark #0 of the Virginia Cavaliers handles the ball on offense against the Texas Tech Red Raiders in the second half during the 2019 NCAA men’s Final Four National Championship game at U.S. Bank Stadium on April 08, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /

Kihei Clark

Clark was the initiator of Diakite’s aforementioned Elite 8 shot against Purdue. Like Diakite and Key, Clark’s strength is on the defensive end. The 5-9 guard provided stingy defense on opposing ball handlers and notably did so without fouling (176th in fewest fouls per 40 minutes).

He was at times maligned by Virginia fans last season as he we went through freshmen growing pains and was limited on the offensive end. Clark averaged 4.5 points in 26.8 minutes, and although he should provide some playmaking, it’s tough to imagine his scoring average reaching double-digits. His 34.1% (29-85) 3-point shooting last season was encouraging, however, and his scoring should increase with some additional long-range attempts.

He might not be overly efficient from the field overall, but his ball-handling responsibilities will inevitably lead to a fair number of shot attempts (and thus points). His size won’t make it easy for him to finish around the basket, but Clark has showcased a floater that could help mitigate this.

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Scoring average output lost: 48.0 points

Projected scoring boost by Clark: 5.0 points

Updated total projected scoring boost: 16.0 points

Help fill 3-point void?: Yes. Clark already shot a solid percentage last season. He’ll need a fellow ball-handler (questionable who this will be) to create some spot-up looks for him, but it’s still hard to imagine him not getting more attempts than last season’s 2.2 per game).

Jay Huff

The 7-1 Huff played a limited role last season, averaging 9.3 minutes and 4.4 points per contest. He was a strong defender on the interior when on the court, posting a 10.5% block rate that would have put him at 21st nationally if he played enough minutes to qualify (played 20.7% of minutes, need 60.0% to qualify on KenPom). A potential lineup with Huff and Diakite would be quite the shot-blocking duo.

Huff doesn’t seem capable of scoring in high volumes, but in moderation he’s capable of being very efficient. His size makes him solid at finishing around the basket (67.7% inside arc), and he even showcased a solid 3-point shot on limited attempts last season (14-31, 45.2%). Put these together, and Huff posted a 67.7% effective field goal percentage that would have ranked 9th nationally if he had the qualifying minutes.

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Huff’s 3-point efficiency and an elevated role will surely earn him more than the 0.9 long range attempts he averaged last season. Increased minutes will also earn him some extra easy buckets.

Scoring average output lost: 48.0 points

Projected scoring increase average increase by Huff: 4.0 points

Total projected scoring average increase: 20.0 points

Help fill 3-point void?: Yes. He shot a great percentage last season. Even if this regresses a bit, Huff will be part of the solution.

Virginia has three newcomers that have a good chance of being contributors this upcoming season. The trio provides offensive abilities that will be much needed with Virginia’s defensive-minded roster.

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