Word is that Washington State coach Tony Bennett is going to come in as the new coach for Virginia basketball. Just in case there is any doubt in his mind that he’s making the right choice by coming to coach at Virginia, I’ve written a letter to convince him that coaching Virginia is as great a gig as you could possibly find.
Dear Tony Bennett,
Thank you for giving me the chance to tell you that you’ve made a great decision in moving to Virginia. Hopefully by the end of this column, you won’t have a single thought about packing your bags, flying to Charlottesville and starting the next stage of your career in John Paul Jones Arena.
Let’s get a few basics out of the way up front. Yes, Virginia has higher academic requirements for its athletes than a lot of schools, but heaven forbid student-athletes go to class, right? The caliber of student-athletes at Virginia is higher than at most other schools because of these academic standards, which is a good thing for a new incoming coach.
You are taking a team that will have a nearly identical roster next year, with the starting lineup still intact. In case you needed a reminder, Virginia is the home of ACC Freshman of the Year Sylven Landesberg, a budding superstar who will make your transition to the ACC a lot easier. Surrounding him is a talented point guard in freshman Sammy Zeglinski, a potentially great power forward in sophomore Mike Scott and 7-foot freshman center Assane Sene, who got better and better as the season went on. We have a top recruit coming in at the small forward position — Tristan Spurlock — who will challenge sophomore Jeff Jones for playing time. If you can just give these players confidence and the freedom to play good, old-fashioned, fun basketball, you will help this young team grow into a great one in a hurry.
Now, to the most important part of my sales pitch: If you come to Virginia, you will be coaching in the nicest venue in the conference and one of the top basketball venues in the country. JPJ rivals some NBA arenas, and that’s not an exaggeration. With this awesome building comes the potential for you to bring back to life one of the best fan bases — and student sections — in the ACC.
I was here in 2006 when JPJ first opened. I know how electric a crowd can be in this building, and how much of an impact the fans can have on a game. Consider this: Virginia was 8-0 in ACC play at home in the first year at JPJ and 16-1 overall, with the loss a one-point defeat to Stanford during Winter Break, when the student section was barely full.
What made that year different from the one before? Besides the new venue and the players being one year older — nothing, really. The coach was the same, the core of the roster was identical and the preseason outlook wasn’t much different. What happened was this: The new arena created instant buzz around the team, a similar kind of buzz to one that hiring a new coach can make. It took only one season for Virginia to rise to the top of the conference after just one change. Once the season started, the fans made the atmosphere at JPJ as intimidating as any in the conference, possibly even the nation. The fans made the team better, and the better the team played, the louder and more energized the fans were. This cycle drove the Cavaliers to the top of the ACC from a seventh-place tie the year before.
What happened after that is a sad story, but one that made a turn for the better when our previous coach cleaned out your new office. This previous coach, who shall remain nameless — Dave Leitao — started to ruin his relationship with his players. The team didn’t have the same will to win as it had the year before, and the apathetic play resonated negatively with the fans. There was less energy in the building, and the team started losing more often. It was pretty much the opposite of the cycle that propelled Virginia to the top in 2006-07. The past two years of basketball at Virginia have been somewhat depressing because of that, but the shot in the arm you will bring the program can have the same effect as the opening of JPJ. If you can start this season off with a few wins, you will have an amazing fanbase on your side, and you will return this program to glory in a short period of time.
So, after you read this last paragraph while sitting at your desk in your soon-to-be-former employer Washington State’s basketball facilities, stop and take a look around you. Your office isn’t as nice as the one you’ll have at JPJ, you’re not working at Mr. Jefferson’s beautiful University and you aren’t coaching in the best basketball conference in the nation. That’s right, the ACC is still the best, but we’ll discuss this more once you come and settle down in Charlottesville. Upgrading your job from Washington State coach to Virginia coach is the best decision you’ll ever make. Turning this program around shouldn’t take long, and could make you an instant hero. We have all the right pieces; we just need you to put them in place. Whaddya say?
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