Even when a team has specific needs in a specific recruiting cycle, there’s no doubt that coaches have to be mindful of prospects in other classes as well. That’s certainly the case for UVa, which has been not only zeroing in on 2024 visits but also on moving things forward with 2025s as well.
While Tony Bennett and his staff are already heavily involved with a handful of juniors, one of the newest names to pop up on their radar is guard Leroy Kelly out of Dallas.
A 6-foot-2 shooting guard from Dynamic Prep who plays AAU for Drive Nation on the Nike EYBL circuit. Kelly put together a solid spring and summer. But associate head coach Jason Williford first saw him last winter.
“Virginia first saw me last year when Jason Williford watched me play in DC,” Kelly told CavsCorner this week. “Ever since then he has been keeping up with me and we have been on the phone a few times. He watched me play a few times this summer during the AAU season and we have just been keeping in contact.”
Kelly said that he has been enjoying hearing Williford’s message about the program having a winning culture.
“He has just been telling me about how at Virginia they are winners,” Kelly said. “Tony Bennett is a super successful head coach and they are always a team that has a chance to win a national championship. Coach Bennett has built that program into a winning culture.”
As far as his own game, Kelly believe things are coming along well.
“I feel like when I am at my best I am just impacting the game in a lot of different ways,” he said. “I feel like I am locking my man up, making plays for my teammates, hitting shots and getting to my spots. I would call myself a Swiss Army knife, I can do a little bit of everything when I am on the court.”
At this point, Kelly hasn’t had the the chance to see the Wahoos in person yet but he has watched the team play plenty, especially one particular game that many fans will remember pretty fondly.
“I have watched their game against Texas Tech in the national championship game a lot of times,” Kelly said. “I have not been able to watch them in person but I have watched them a lot on the internet. I am looking forward to seeing what the team looks like this upcoming year.”
When watching Virginia, Kelly really enjoys the freedom that Bennett’s guards have when on the court.
“I love how Coach Bennett lets his players play,” he said. “Watching Kyle Guy in that system was really fun to watch. I like how Coach Bennett gives his guards a lot of freedom and then of course I like how they defend. They defend at a really high level at Virginia and I feel like that fits me.”
When asked what his college decision will come down to, Kelly said he already had a good sense of things.
“I just want to go somewhere I can play and really develop,” he explained. “I want to go somewhere I feel like everyone is part of a big family and a place I feel like I can go to and really get better and help the team win while showcasing my skills.”
