What you do with the other guy’s recruits never matters as much as what you do with your own. UVA head basketball coach Dave Leitao won a berth in the National Invitational Tournament in his first season, but that won’t satisfy UVA fans (and administrators) when the Cavs are playing in the swanky John Paul Jones Arena next year. Wahoo fans are watching Leitao closely as he finalizes his first recruiting class for the Cavaliers.
So far Leitao has been “forward” thinking: all four committed 2006 scholarship recruits are listed at that position. Two 6’9" power forwards, Jerome Meyinsse and Ryan Pettinella, recently signed letters of intent, joining 6’9" Jamil Tucker and 6’6" Will Harris. Next year’s squad will also include 6’7" recruited walk-on Andy Burns, who turned down scholarship offers from American University and the University of Vermont to play ACC ball at UVA, according to fan site thesabre.com.
The latest signings probably spell the end of the recruiting season for ‘06-’07. Only one scholarship remains for next year, and it presumably belongs to 6’5" guard/small forward Solomon Tat, if the Nigerian can resolve his visa issues.
Meyinsse was only discovered late last month at a Houston AAU basketball tournament. Pettinella is transferring from University of Pennsylvania, via Monroe Community College. Having already sat out 05-06 while looking for a more “athletic” program with an “up-tempo style,” he is eligible to play immediately for the Cavaliers and “hopes to contribute significant minutes his first season,” according to The Sabre.
He has a chance on a team with an unsettled pecking order. “It’s my belief that the only guaranteed starters are [guards] Sean Singletary and J.R. Reynolds,” says Wes McElroy, who hosts the drivetime show on 840 AM ESPN radio (and who is a regular contributor to C-VILLE). Singletary was First Team All-ACC last season while Reynolds made Third Team.
The incoming players will compete for starting 3, 4, and 5 slots with returning players Adrian Joseph (6’7"), Jason Cain (6’10"), Laurynas Mikalauskas (6’8"), Mamadi Diane (6’5") and Tunji Soroye (6’11").
Early news for the ‘07 recruiting class came in last week when 6’2" guard Calvin Baker announced he is transferring to UVA from William and Mary, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch. He has three years of eligibility remaining and hopes to earn a scholarship for that year.
Last week also brought the news that UVA assistant coach Gene Cross—Leitao’s assistant at his former school, DePaul, who helped secure the 2006-07 recruiting class at UVA—is leaving Virginia to take an assistant coaching job at Notre Dame.—Will Goldsmith