UVA Basketball alum Mike Curtis is headed back to the NBA for a job with the Memphis Grizzlies, where he will be the new head of health and player performance.
Curtis, who played at Virginia from 1994-1998, was the secret sauce for the Tony Bennett-era teams.
Curtis, as the head strength and conditioning coach for the past 17 years, turned a generation of skinny high-schoolers into blocks of granite during their time on Grounds.
I didn’t know this before, but before returning to the alma mater, Curtis was the head strength and conditioning coach for the Memphis Grizzlies from 2002-2008, so the new job will be a homecoming for him.
Curtis will have one familiar face in the training room – Ty Jerome averaged 19.7 points and 5.7 assists per game in his first season with the Grizzlies in 2025-2026.
Ryan Odom didn’t waste time finding a new guy to fill the opening. On Tuesday, UVA Athletics announced that Luke Toburen will be the new director of sports performance for men’s basketball.
Toburen spent the last four seasons at Longwood, including three under Griff Aldrich, who was the associate head coach under Odom in Year 1.
Toburen initially made the move to join Aldrich at his new job at Pepperdine, but with the opening at UVA, he decided to come back home – he had served as a graduate assistant from 2020-2022 under Mike Curtis.
“Returning to Virginia is a full-circle moment for me,” said Toburen, an alum of Grove City College, who earned his master’s in exercise physiology from UVA in 2022.
“My time working under Mike Curtis on the strength and conditioning staff played a significant role in my professional development and helped shape the coach I am today,” Toburen said. “It is an honor to join Coach Odom and his staff, and I look forward to contributing to the continued success and tradition of excellence that defines Virginia Basketball.”
“We are excited to add Luke to our staff and welcome him and his family back to Charlottesville,” Odom said, per a statement in the news release from UVA Athletics.
“Having trained under Mike Curtis, Luke understands the standard of excellence here and has a deep appreciation for what makes Virginia such a special place,” Odom said. “Luke has also built a strong track record through his own experiences, and his ability to teach, connect with players and help them grow will be a tremendous asset for our program.”
UVA Athletics also managed to get a quote from Curtis on Toburen for its release.
“Luke Toburen is one of the most gifted strength and conditioning professionals I have encountered in my 28 years in human performance,” Curtis said. “He has an uncommon combination of high technical skill, passion and caring. His familiarity with UVA Athletics, its resources, and the quality of its student-athletes will allow for a seamless transition. Luke is the type of person and coach who will tirelessly work to raise the standard for Virginia Men’s Basketball. He is the perfect fit.”
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Chris Graham
