Virginia’s basketball program has built something that matters just as much as banners: a real path to the pros.
That’s the currency college coaches trade in now. Winning still matters, of course, but so does development - the kind that turns a college stop into a launchpad.
With NIL money and direct payment reshaping the sport, the line between college and the professional game has blurred even more. Virginia has leaned into that reality, and both Tony Bennett and Ryan Odom have shown they can get players ready for what comes next.
The latest proof is already showing up. Four of the five players who arrived for the first version of Odom’s program and have now used up their eligibility are chasing professional careers.
Center Ugonna Onyenso was drafted by the NBA’s Detroit Pistons. Guard Malik Thomas is set to play for the Toronto Raptors’ summer league team this week in Las Vegas.
Guards Jacari White and Devin Tillis have signed with pro teams in Belgium and Finland, respectively.
None of those four came to Virginia with a guaranteed pro future. They were either role players at their previous schools or dominant pieces at smaller programs.
In one season under Odom and his staff, each took a clear step forward. Onyenso’s rise was the most dramatic - he went from backup center at Kentucky and Kansas State to an elite rim protector who could also score.
That kind of jump is exactly what players look for when they’re choosing where to go next, whether they’re coming out of high school or shopping the transfer portal. The question is simple: who can get me ready for the big leagues?
Virginia has been answering that question for a while. During Bennett’s 15 years in charge, the Cavaliers earned a reputation for defense, winning and player development, with former strength and conditioning coach Mike Curtis playing a major role before recently leaving for the Memphis Grizzlies.
By the end of the most recent season, Virginia listed 32 alumni as active professional basketball players. Seven - Ryan Dunn, Anthony Gill, Sam Hauser, Jay Huff, De'Andre Hunter, Ty Jerome, and Trey Murphy III - were on NBA contracts, while Reese Beekman was in the G League. The rest were scattered across 20 foreign countries.
Onyenso, Thomas, White and Tillis are trying to join them. Nothing is promised, but each has already gotten a foot in the door.
That matters in recruiting. At programs like Virginia, success at the next level feeds the next wave of talent, and that can become a cycle.
This year’s newcomers - Christian Harmon, Jurian Dixon, Kalu Anya, Jan Vide and Nolan Adekunle - can see what’s possible when work, discipline and some luck line up. So can the high school players and portal targets who will be weighing Virginia next spring.
It isn’t automatic. Odom and his staff have shown they’ll take players who fit their system over bigger names who don’t. But Virginia’s growing reputation as a place that sends players to the pros is the kind of thing that keeps the machine moving.
In Other News...
Virginia Still Has One Scoring Problem That Could Derail A Repeat
Virginias offense did plenty to keep the Cavaliers in games last season, but the final few yards remained a stubborn issue. The numbers tell the story: Virginia finished 96th nationally in red-zone touchdown percentage at 56.25 percent, a rate that left too many drives settling for less than seven and helped turn a handful of tight ACC games into missed chances.
The frustration showed up in the kind of matchups that can swing a season, including one-score losses to N.C. State and Wake Forest, plus the ACC championship game against Duke. Virginias defense had its own red-zone problem too, allowing touchdowns on 83.78 percent of opponent trips, so the path to a repeat is clear enough even if the fix is not: the Cavaliers need more reliable finishing on both sides of the ball, and they need it fast. [Read more 🡒]