For us Virginia Basketball fans that see the glass as always being half-empty, the concern is, when does Tony Bennett hang up his whistle, and what’s next?
Monday evening on the Richmond Sports Radio 910 “Hoos Talking” program, Bennett, while not announcing when, did say where he may be in the future.
“Hoos Talking” co-host Frank Maloney, when speaking of Bennett’s career accomplishments and accolades, asked Bennett if he had given any thought to what he may like to do next.
“I’d love to be head of the NIL and transfer portal. It’s what I’ve been dreaming about,” replied a stoic Bennett.
Which caused Maloney and co-host Jim Hobgood to pause a few seconds to climb back up in their chairs after rolling around on the floor.
Bennett quickly changed course, saying, “You know, really, I haven’t, I love the game, everyone who pays attention is concerned about where (college basketball) is going, and the ripple effect that some of the things that seem to be so good, that may have some impact that we aren’t aware of.”
Bennett said the game has a more pro-like feel to it. “The ripple effect is starting to make the game more pro-like, like everyone has seen.”
“The beauty is that you still get to assemble your guys, you still get to get your guys to try to do it your way, and to double-down on what we believe matters.”
Bennett said regardless of what is surrounding the game, you still stick to your values. “You adjust, you adjust your style of play, but you keep your true core values, and what is non-negotiable on what you do on and off the court.”
And if the game stops you from doing that?
“As long as you can continue to do that and be competitive, you keep going, but when you have to start compromising things and the way you do them, then you better start thinking about other things,” noted Bennett.
Life is good for Bennett.
“I love being around people, I enjoy my family so much, being in Charlottesville and coaching these young men at this institution,” he said.
Reflecting on his 15 years at UVA Bennett said, “I’m just grateful, 15 years into this, you hope some good things would happen, as that’s the plan coming in. Obviously there’s been some hard losses and hard times. I was walking down the hallway today and looked into our trophy cases and said wow, we got six ACC regular-season trophies, two conference tournament titles, Elite Eight, national championship. It made me very grateful.”
Bennett said that despite this year’s youth, his team is embracing flying around on defense and being disruptive as possible.
“We’re playing three first-year, three second-year players and Reece (Beekman) along with Jake Groves, our transfer, and we seem to be learning through our mistakes,” noted Bennett.
Despite being undersized, Bennett feels the Cavaliers are using an abundance of athleticism to counteract the size deficiency.
“We’re using our athleticism. We are not a big strong team that can control the rim in the lane. But we’re getting some steals and blocked shots from Ryan Dunn, and some guys who are just trying to scramble around and being disruptive. Offensive players now are getting better and better at creating opportunities and making plays. A lot of times when we trap the post, that’s what they have to do, and I like the way they are doing it.”
On watching the explosiveness and skill set of Dunn, Bennett said it’s the energy and competitive energy Dunn brings.
“One of the reasons we didn’t redshirt him (Dunn) last season was because of the energy he brought, and the fire he got from flying around, his tenacity. Now that he has gotten stronger, more confident. I told him to never lose why he was so effective for us last season. His activity has been the difference maker. We may not have a 7-footer, but having him down their help makes up for that,” Bennett said.
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