The reigning national champions experienced a difficult offseason with the departure of many star players. Kyle Guy, Ty Jerome, and De’Andre Hunter all departed for the NBA and Jack Salt was lost to graduation. As a result, the Cavaliers will look a lot different during this coming campaign…or at least there will be new faces. Head coach Tony Bennett does an exceptional job implementing his system year in and year out so it is reasonable to assume that UVA will actually look quite similar to years past despite suffering heavy losses.
The two returners poised to lead the way during this campaign will be Kihei Clark and Mamadi Diakite, the duo that combined to create the most spectacular five seconds of Virginia’s championship run. With Guy and Jerome gone, the 5-foot-9 Clark will be tasked with running the offense this season for Coach Bennett. He was not much of a scorer last season, but can knife into the lane with some consistency and is a decent threat from beyond the arc as well. The key for him will be becoming more assertive as a scorer. He is already a hard-nosed and pesky defender at the point.
His fellow key returner, Mamadi Diakite, might be more poised for a breakout into stardom. Diakite averaged 7.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks per game last season and will now become one of the team’s core offensive options. He brings plenty of size at 6-foot-9 and can stretch the floor out to three. Diakite is also a standout defender.
Those two returners are locks for the starting lineup as are Braxton Key and Jay Huff. The two forwards saw relatively substantial roles last season but will be featured starters this time around. Key is a do-it-all forward while Huff looks poised for a major breakout. The 7-foot-1 junior averaged 18.9 points, 9. rebounds, and 3.2 blocks per 40 minutes last season on .604/.452/.667 shooting.
This leave one available starting spot in the backcourt and highly-touted freshman Casey Morsell looks poised to snag that spot. Morsell is a physical 6-foot-3 scorer with the ability to fill it up at all three levels. Coach Bennett does not normally task his freshmen with carrying a big load but Morsell will be thrust into that role right away. He should absolutely thrive in UVA’s offensive scheme, though, as he is an intelligent cutter and strong shooter.
Speaking of strong shooters, that is exactly what Virginia will be bringing off the bench in JUCO transfer Tomas Woldetensae. An elite sniper from beyond the arc, Woldetensae shot 47.6% at the JUCO level last year and that should translate quite well. He also brings plenty of size at 6-foot-5.
Filling out the other bench spot in Coach Bennett’s presumed seven-man rotation will be Kody Stattmann, a 6-foot-7 sophomore. It might also be worth mentioning the potential for freshmen big men Kadin Shedrick (No. 68 recruit) and Francisco Caffaro (redshirt) to crack the rotation.
Virginia will have a lot of new faces this year but the results will likely be the same. The Cavaliers have a great system and the players needed to succeed. As long as the talent fits the scheme, which it does this year, UVA will be just fine.