One of the top transfers nationally and certainly one of the top targets on UVa’s board, the Wahoos landed Merrimack forward Jordan Minor on Thursday. Having just recently visited both Virginia and Florida Gulf Coast; he made the call shortly after that he wanted to play for Tony Bennett and Co., and canceled the rest of his visits.

“The people that I met there when I was on the visit was something that completely sold me,” Minor told CavsCorner prior to his announcement. “I always hear about how the people make the place special and that was certainly true when I visited Virginia. The facilities were super nice and I really enjoyed talking with the staff about how I would fit there.

“The energy there from the coaching staff and players,” he added, “was also something that really sold me when making my decision.”

Throughout the process, Minor always knew he wanted to go somewhere with proven success. Now, he wants to keep that winning tradition going at UVa.

“Coming into a winning program, I think that is the biggest thing for me and obviously from an academic standpoint, there is nothing much stronger than Virginia,” he said. “This program is used to winning and that is all that they really know so I know winning are the expectations and I need to hold myself accountable to those standards and help hold my teammates accountable.

“We want to give ourselves in an opportunity to get back to the Final Four and compete for a national championship,” Minor added.

When talking with Bennett and his staff, the NEC Defensive Player of the Year and Co-Player of the Year really enjoyed hearing about how the Hoos can help improve his game.

“The conversations about me fitting in were great conversations,” he recalled. “We talked about the strengths they know I have and we talked about weaknesses and stuff that I can improve on. They showed me that they not only have a vision for me but they have done their homework on where I can help this team grow and expand my overall game and help the program get back to their winning ways.”

There was also some crossover with Minor and some of the forwards from the 2019 national championship-winning squad that Bennett showed to Minor on film.

“Coach Bennett compared me to some of the forwards that he had on his team that won the national championship,” he said. “When we were watching film, there were clips of my game and then the next clip was some of Coach Bennett’s previous guys so they definitely see that fit and I think for me when I was on that visit, it was not just a school that said they wanted me, they actually saw the vision about who I can be and actually become.”

Given the departures this offseason and the state of roster, Minor not only understands them but embraces what they mean for him in terms of what the Cavaliers need from him.

“In terms of blending in, I think my toughness and competitiveness will help as soon as I get to campus,” he explained. “It will not be hard for me to gel with the guys as I am eager to come in and learn from one of the best coaches in college basketball and I am willing to put other stuff to the side in order to help us win and that's the goal and that is the standard. Next year we have our eyes set on getting back to the Final Four.”

When asked what fans will see from him, Minor said, “They can expect someone to bust their tail and work super hard all the time. They are going to see that I am a willing learner, a leader and a great teammate, and someone that is going to leave it out on the floor every night. They will also see that I am passionate about winning and I want to do everything I can to get Virginia back to the Final Four.”