After a quiet start to the offseason, the Virginia men’s basketball team saw its first transfer portal entry on Saturday. Leon Bond III, a redshirt freshman, appeared to have entered his name after two seasons in the program. The Wisconsin native has three years of eligibility remaining.
Bond posted on Instagram “Thank you Virginia” and “You will have my heart forever,” but has made no official announcement.
Bond came to Virginia as a 4-star recruit that 247 Sports ranked No. 60 nationally in the Class of 2022. He averaged 21.1 points, 7.0 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.9 steals as a senior in 2021-22 for Wauwatosa East High School in Wisconsin. He was named Wisconsin Division 1 All-State First Team and was a McDonald’s All-American nominee.
He had offers from Texas A&M, Marquette, Virginia Tech, and Wisconsin-Milwaukee among others. His VirginiaSports.com bio says he chose UVA “because head coach Tony Bennett and the entire coaching staff was the most genuine about his skill level and the five pillars – humility, passion, unity, servanthood and thankfulness align with his personal beliefs.”
While with the Cavaliers, Bond supported his teammates and the school so he won over fans thanks to that outgoing personality. Still, the forward received limited playing time this season after the initial redshirt. He appeared in 24 games this season for the Hoos. He averaged 4.3 points and 2.8 rebounds while reaching double figures in four games (Tarleton State, North Carolina A&T, North Carolina Central, Morgan State). Bond also added 15 assists and 13 steals. He shot 45.8% from the field (44-96), but attempted just 2 3-pointers (1-2) on the season.
That last part may be a key factor in his decision to enter the portal. At 6’5″ and 200 pounds, Bond carries the build of a wing at the ACC level but he played a lot of post at Wauwatosa. Without a 3-point shot in his arsenal, it creates challenges to find his most natural position at Virginia. While it remains to be seen where he chooses as a new destination, a different conference or program could offer the opportunity to play more of an undersized forward role than what appeared to be on the table at UVA.
Virginia has reportedly been in contact with numerous point guards and forwards in the transfer portal since the end of the season. Bond’s decision opens up a potential scholarship spot for the Hoos. They previously have been projected with one definitive opening as Reece Beekman is not expected to use his bonus pandemic eligibility year. A third scholarship slot could open if Ryan Dunn declares for and stays in the NBA Draft. Most mock projections include Dunn on those lists, but he has some time before an official decision must be made. The NBA Draft early entry deadline is on April 27 and the NCAA early entrant withdrawal deadline is May 29.
The UVA roster appears to need reshuffling after this past season. The Hoos did qualify for the NCAA Tournament and finished third in the ACC, but lost 8 games this season while scoring fewer than 55 points. That included the NCAA Tournament First Four game against Colorado State, a 67-42 loss that quickly ended the Cavaliers’ stay in March Madness. Plus, Beekman led Virginia in both scoring (14.3 points per game) and assists (ACC-leading 6.2 assists per game) so that offense would be losing its most consistent piece from the past season.
Gotta get back to recruiting future pros and not acquiring “stiffs” from minor colleges. Getting one Canadian with an upside is a start. But remember that Guy was Indiana’s Mr Basketball, Jerome the top PS player in NYC; Huff was a 4-star player, etc. Only two of this year’s team seem to have a chance to be pros. Maybe the least talented group since Tony’s first year as coach
He has to use his talent also. He focuses so much on defense he will sit guys who are 4 stars (see Gertrude, Bond) and stick with guys who fit his defense even when they are completely inept on offense or can’t shoot (see Rhode, Harris). He might need to be more flexible and give up a little on the defensive end to get a little more offense going. Too many times Reese and Imac were out there with 3 guys coming off screens at the three point line that can’t shoot 3s (Rhode, Harris, Dunn) or big men who aren’t aggressive or confident on offense (Minor, Buchanon). We’ll see what adjustments Tony makes, but I’m sure he’s thinking about all of this. I’m guessing he’ll have to switch back to recruiting 4 stars and hoping they stick around versus taking transfers and hoping they pan out. And guys have definitely figured out how to stop sides when there’s only 1 shooter and no threat of post offense and only 1 guy (Beekman) who consistently tries to get to the basket. What a mess. Wouldn’t want that job, but have faith in Tony adapting to the new NBA version of college basketball.
Very insightful and astute comments!
This “doesn’t give up the defensive end for offense” myth is disproven by recent players like Jake Groves, Jayden Gardner, Trey Murphy III, and others. You can go back to the first minutes for Anthony Gill, Kyle Guy, and others as well if you like.
This will be a true test for Tony and his ability to adapt to a new era in NCAA bball