Four-star forward Jackson Keith has been trending toward being a priority recruit for UVa for a while now. Ranked as the No. 39 overall player in the class of 2025, the Durham (NC) native was recently in Charlottesville and came away from his experience with an even better feel for the school, the program, and for what Tony Bennett and Co. are looking for.
“This past visit to Virginia was great,” Keith told CavsCorner. “I got to talk with Coach Bennett as we have really started to build a strong relationship. My biggest thing about Virginia is they are always going to be honest with me. They are not just going to tell me the stuff I want to hear but instead they are going to tell me the things that they want me to improve on and I like that.”
That extends to his game, where the 6-foot-6 wing knows some of those improvements he could make.
“They want me to become a little more consistent with my jumper,” Keith explained. “With them being a big defensive program, I can always improve on that end of the floor as well.”
Keith also got to talk with Bennett about how he would fit in Virginia’s program.
“They have always had really good, long, athletic wings that are really efficient but can also guard the best players on the court and they think I can become that next guy,” he said. “Some of those guys include Justin Anderson and DeAndre Hunter. These were guys that also got out in transition and excelled in doing so and I can definitely see myself having a role like that at Virginia.”
During his time on Grounds, he also got to sit in on a practice with the current Virginia team and came away with some lasting impressions.
“It was a very intense practice and I loved it,” Keith said. “Of course they were playing defense the entire time. I was really impressed with Reece Beekman, he has been one of the best defenders I have seen in person in a long time.”
With the success that Bennett has had during his tenure at UVa, it’s become commonplace for former players to come back to Charlottesville and visit, which was something else that stood out to Keith.
“I just really learned that it is a big family type program,” he said. “If you go to UVa, I learned that you are always going to come back and I really like that. When I was on my visit Justin Anderson was there and he was just telling me the same thing. He told me he will always come back.”
Along with UVa, Keith has recently visited North Carolina and NC State. He plans on visiting UNC again tonight and is working on scheduling visits to Georgetown and Tennessee.
As of now, there is no immediate timetable for a decision but he does know he would like to decide before his senior season.
“I think if I find that right school then there is no point in wasting time,” Keith said. “I would not want to waste the coaches time or my time. I think I would definitely like to make a decision before my senior season.”
