Last season’s finish may have been a disappointment for the No. 24 Virginia’s men’s basketball team — they missed the NCAA tournament and lost in the semifinals of the NIT — but for the Cavaliers, it was less the end of a journey than a step in the development of the program.
The team lost four players going into this season — two to graduation and two to transfer — but a talented recruiting class and the addition of redshirt sophomores Malcolm Brogdon from injury and Anthony Gill from transfer may ease the absence. The 2013-14 Cavaliers may, in fact, be the deepest team in coach Tony Bennett’s five-year tenure, making picking a lineup potentially more complicated than usual.
Backcourt
Virginia’s most nationally recognizable player is senior guard Joe Harris, and he will form the backbone of the Cavalier backcourt — and likely the team in general. After finishing with 18.4 points per game last season, Harris was named to the All-ACC first team, and he finished one vote shy of being named Preseason ACC Player of the Year going into this season.
Harris’ signature moment as a Cavalier came in last year’s 73-68 win against Duke, when he scored 36 points. After that game, though, his performance seemed to slow down, and he did not lead the team in scoring in any of the team’s last eight games.
“I think I kind of got away from understanding who I need to be as a player,” Harris said. “I think I got away from the things that made me successful — being tough minded, playing tough, trying to outwork people possession after possession. I’m not good enough to where I can just get by off being more talented than someone else.”
Harris was asked to provide much of the team’s scoring last season, but with a team as deep as this year’s squad, he may not need to be as large a focus. The senior says that a more team-based approach fits his game.
“I’ve never been one to think as the alpha dog,” Harris said. “I’m thinking about what I can do for us to win. If that means I need to be more aggressive or assertive, then I’ll do that, but I’m never going to try and force and play outside of myself. I always try to play within the confines of the team.”
Virginia’s biggest mystery may be with its point guard position. Sophomore guard Teven Jones saw starting time last year after senior point guard Jontel Evans went down with an injury, but he will fight for minutes this season. Brogdon missed all of last year with a foot injury, but he performed well in his freshman year in 2011, averaging 6.7 points in 28 games. At 6-foot-5, he is tall for the point guard spot but provides a scoring threat in tandem with Harris.
“I’m totally willing to play either [guard position],” Brogdon said. “I prefer the point guard position. I like facilitating; I like getting people the ball. Whatever is going to get me on the floor is what I’m going to do.”
Virginia’s only two recruits from last year’s class, London Perrantes and Devon Hall, are both point guards, and both may see action off the bench.
Frontcourt
Virginia returns the majority of its frontcourt players from last year and the experienced core will look to build on its success from last year. Senior forward Akil Mitchell anchors the lineup, coming off a stunning 2012-13 season in which he averaged 13.1 points and 8.9 rebounds en route to third team All-ACC honors. He averaged just 4.1 points and 4.4 rebounds in 2011-12, but he has emerged as a linchpin for the team.
Mitchell started at center for much of last season and performed well, but this season he should be able to move back to power forward, his more natural position. Sophomore center Mike Tobey saw action in 30 games last season, but he was sidelined for most of the second half of the season with a bout of mononucleosis.
The 6-foot-11-inch center was chosen to play on the United States U19 national team at this summer’s World Championships in the Czech Republic alongside many of the nation’s best players. Tobey says the experience helped him to mature as a player.
“Their hunger is insane,” Tobey said. “They’re the best players in the country, and a lot of them are supposed to go lottery picks. Every day, they come to practice with the same hunger and the same will — nonstop willingness. If I could just incorporate that into my game, it should help me a lot.”
The starting small forward position may be more of a question. Sophomore guard Justin Anderson provided highlight dunks and electrifying athleticism in his first year on Grounds, but fellow sophomore forward Evan Nolte may have been more consistent, proving deadly accurate from three-point range — he finished second on the team with 42 three-pointers. Anderson is expected to be the starter, but Nolte should see his fair share of minutes.
Competition will be a theme for the Cavaliers this year, especially in the frontcourt. In addition to Mitchell, Tobey, Anderson and Nolte — who each saw significant time last year — the Cavaliers bring back junior forward Darion Atkins and sophomore transfer Gill, who was forced to sit out last year after transferring from South Carolina. All six may have claims to a starting spot, but Bennett will have to balance time wisely.
“We’ve got competitive guys, we’ve got talented players,” Bennett said. “There’s going to be a war for playing time, but will they put the team above themselves? … Will be there be frustrations [for] guys used to playing a lot? Of course, but I think we’ve got a team that wants to be good collectively.”
Bennett emphasized that, with his team’s depth, there’s no clear starting lineup. He has the flexibility to tailor his lineups to the opponent.
“It’ll be different lineups,” Bennett said. “That’s a good thing, but it’s challenging. In practice … we’re able to say ‘all right, we’re splitting teams, White versus Blue’ and compete and it’s not one team dominating the other. That’s what I like, because that makes each other better.”
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