Rivals150 guard Perry talks Virginia offer, early recruitment
Rivals Top150 guard Travis Perry recently picked up an offer from Virginia and is starting to build a strong relationship with the Cavaliers.
Coming off a really good summer and fall as he focuses on helping his high school team get back to the state tournament, the class of 2024 standout talked about getting a chance to check UVa out in person and what’s it meant to him.
“The fall has been really good,” Perry told CavsCorner. “It is good to have a lot of schools come in often and watch us practice and workout. I have been starting to build a lot of good relationships with different programs but it is also good for my teammates.
“We have several guys on our team that will end up being Division I players also,” he added. “It was a great end to the summer and fall and now my high school team is just preparing to make it back to the state tournament as that is our main goal so we are focusing on that.”
Perry, No. 87 overall in his class, plays on the prominent Indiana Elite AAU team which also produced former Cavalier great Kyle Guy. The 6-foot-2, 170-pound Lyon County prospect enjoyed a very successful summer with them with coaches from Virginia attending some of those games.
“The summer went really well,” Perry explained. “The main thing is winning and that is what we did. We only lost two games all summer and won close to 40 games and won the Adidas Championship so it was a great summer, we had a really good team.”
Perry has met Guy a couple of times and Guy has talked with Perry about his experience at Virginia, including playing for Tony Bennett.
“I have met Kyle and he is still in touch with some of the Indiana Elite coaches,” he said. “He has told me how Coach Bennett used him and played him and different things like that which was good to hear.”
The relationship between UVa and Perry started with assistant coach Kyle Getter after he saw a good portion of him this summer.
“Coach Getter and I have a pretty strong relationship,” Perry said. “That is the coach I talk to most of the time from Virginia. Before they offered, he actually came down for a golf tournament that I was in for school and stayed and watched all 18 holes. That was pretty big and neat, not many coaches would go out there and make the effort to do that so that was pretty neat for sure.”
When Virginia extended the offer to Perry it was during a Zoom call with Bennett.
“I had a really awesome Zoom with Coach Bennett,” he recalled. “They watched me a lot with Indiana Elite this past summer and also during the high school live period. The entire Virginia coaching staff has great basketball minds. Coach Bennett wants the best for his players and not just on the basketball floor but in every way of life and I could really tell that in my zoom with him.
“I am going to continue to build a relationship with Virginia,” Perry added, “and hopefully get down there for a visit soon.”
So what has he heard from the Wahoos?
“His message is pretty similar to the one we have at my high school where my dad is the coach and it is similar to how Indiana Elite plays,” Perry said. “Coach Bennett expects all of his guys to play hard, play for each other, and win at the end of the day. Virginia always has a hard playing team because they have guys that go out there and compete everyday, play hard defense and do the little things and that is something that I value.
“I want to play for a program that plays for each other,” he added, “plays for their coaches and that is when teams really strive.”
Perry and Bennett also got to talk about how Perry could potentially fit in the Virginia system if he were to commit to the Cavaliers.
“Coach Bennett has said he would use me in a lot of different ways because they have so many different sets that they can run,” Perry said. “He could play me at the one or the two which I am used to. He has also talked to me about being their type of guy. They think I fit the same values as the rest of the program and they know I would come in and play hard everyday and have a good mindset everyday. They trust me and I trust them.”
Perry has already taken official visits to Purdue and Michigan and unofficial visits to Kentucky and Vanderbilt.
