Toward the end of last season, I came to the belief that the Kihei Clark-Reece Beekman backcourt was a waste of talent and potential production. Both players are pure point guards who are not suited for the off guard role. Playing one of them in that position is a waste of his talent and the talent of the off guard who is sitting on the bench. Kihei and Reece might be your two best guards, but not your best backcourt. If they are your best backcourt, then your backcourt is your limiting factor.

Accompanying that first belief was a conviction that it was time to hand the ball to Reece Beekman. Were I in Tony Bennett’s position, in my post-season meetings with the two players I would have told them that Beekman was going to be the designated starter going into practice. I know this is an extremely difficult conversation to have with and an extremely controversial decision to make regarding your senior point guard who helped win a national championship, but last season’s results convinced me that Kihei’s size is a limitation that he simply cannot overcome at the elite college level. Beekman, on the other hand, has next-level potential as a point guard – but not as an off guard. If he is not given the chance to run the team as the number one guy, we are going to lose that potential. You simply cannot squander NBA potential.

Kihei is a fine baller who is going to win you a lot more games than he is going to lose, but the problem is that he is not going to win you games against elite defense. He is good enough to beat your average defense, but not great defense. Going into last season, I thought that he could overcome his size deficit and improve his efficiency in the lane, but the way the season played out disabused me of that notion. I expected great things last season, primarily because I thought the addition of Sam Hauser – and Trey Murphy when it became clear he was going to play – would remedy the primary problem with the 2019-20 offense, that being a lack of respectable corner shooting that allowed defenses to crash to the rim when Kihei and Jay Huff executed the pick-and-roll in Kirk Penney’s Continuity Ball Screen offense. As effective as Kihei and Jay were even with defenses being able to cheat off the corners, I figured they would be undefendable with shooters like Sam and Trey in the corners.

It did not turn out that way, and we may never know how it might have turned out had Bennett not scrapped the CBS offense and spent the entire offseason installing a new offense with no ball screens whatsoever. We also may never know how things would have turned out had Bennett not panicked at the first sign of trouble with the new offense and scurried back to the comfort and safety of his “woobie”, the Sides Offense, aka the Blocker-Mover Offense, aka The BM Offense (which is shorthand for “That Fucking Piece of Shit Offense”).

At some point in the season ACC coaches realized that even with perhaps the two deadliest three-point shooters in the NCAA available to space the floor for Clark, the best way to defend him was to put him in a sack and see if he could fight his way out of it. Meaning, when he gets into the lane, surround him and take away his passing lanes, daring him to beat you with his shot. Don’t let him pass to the roll man and obstruct his passing lanes to the corners, and force him to convert over a big man. It worked. In the first 11 games of the season, Kihei did improve his efficiency in the lane, hitting 68% of his shots at the rim, but from the first Georgia Tech game on, that success rate plummeted, and he ended the season at 53.1%. Source  He was completely ineffective against teams with decent shotblocking bigs.

If Kihei couldn’t consistently beat defenses with Huff, Hauser and Murphy around him, there is no reason to expect he will be able to do so with the players he will have around him this season. Who is going to spread the floor? Who is going to demand constant attention out on the three-point arc?

In addition to not making meaningful improvement in the lane, Kihei regressed as an outside shooter and at the free throw line. After improving his three-point percentage to a highly respectable 38% as a sophomore, Kihei hit fewer than 1/3 of his tries as a junior. After being an excellent free throw shooter his whole career, Kihei’s success at the charity line dropped to a pedestrian 73.4%. See sports-reference.com  His effectiveness as a catch-and-shoot guard is sub-par for ACC ball, with his lack of height making it possible for teams to sag and help off him and still bother his shot on a recovery.

Reece Beekman was a Tony Bennett Plan A recruit. He was Tony’s first choice point guard, the kind of ball-dominant floor general who could beat defenses off the bounce and create offense for himself and his teammates. A top 50 recruit, Beekman was recognized as a potential NBA prospect.

As a point guard.

Beekman came in and found himself behind a celebrated veteran, kind of like the number one draft pick QB joining a team whose QB just led them to the Super Bowl a couple of years ago. Tony Bennett loves playing two point guards, and his off guards were Casey Morsell and Tomas Woldetensae, so Beekman became a starter early in the season and averaged 29.4 minutes per game. Reece showed a lot of flashes, but he struggled adjusting not only to the ACC level but also to his completely new and foreign role as the sidekick, and his overall production was not elite. He shot a Morsellesque 24.3% from the arc and only 50% at the rim. See sports-reference.com

When your starting backcourt that is on the floor together for 23 minutes per game is only 29 for 99 from three on the season, and converts barely half its opportunities at the rim, you’re going to have a hard time winning games at a high level.

Unlike with Kihei, there is reason to expect much better from Reece this year – if we make him the Number One QB. This is crucial. All his life before UVA, Reece played with the ball in his hands. He was shooting off the dribble, not off the catch. He was running the show, able to read the opponent and the game. In winning time, he was the undisputed trigger man. He excelled. It’s the reason he was Bennett’s number one priority. While he performed poorly shooting the three off the catch last season – his 0.636 Points Per Possession were in the bottom 12% of the nation – he was effective with the ball in his hands. He made good decisions, logging a nearly 3:1 Assist:Turnover ratio (He was 1:1 on the Seattle Hoo Steal:Turnover Ratio) and his 1.0 PPP on “All Jump Shots Off the Dribble” was in the top 86% of all Division I players for an “Excellent” rating by Synergy Sports. Unfortunately, 35% of his offensive plays were “Catch and Shoot” and he was only able to shoot off the dribble on 10% of possessions. He was also one of the best in the country in his limited opportunities running the Pick-and-Roll, with his 1.31 PPP on “Overall P&R – Derived Offense” putting him in the 99% range. He was “Excellent” at scoring his own baskets and even better at dishing to his teammates.

These numbers indicate that when he was allowed to perform his natural role, he excelled, but when forced to play out of position, he was ineffective. Did we recruit an NBA-calibre point guard to turn him into a mediocre shooting guard? Leaving him in a position where 35% of his plays will be catch-and-shoot jumpers and fewer than half that will be off the dribble does a disservice to him and to the team.

The problem is that the Reece Beekman-Kihei Clark backcourt might actually be Virginia’s best possible pairing this season, thanks to yet another unexpected departure to the NBA. I really like Armaan Franklin as a two-guard and I think a backcourt of Beekman and Franklin would be capable of winning games against great defense – an essential requirement for advancing deep into the NCAA Tournament – but given the lack of options at the wing, Franklin likely ends up being your only real ACC-level option at that position. With Franklin at the three, Clark and Beekman are your only proven ACC-level guards.

For the third season in a row, Virginia comes into the season with a dearth of wing players from whom it can reasonably expect production. After two years of uninspiring results as Bennett’s only options for the third perimeter position, Morsell is off seeking more freedom and Woldetensae has moved on to the next stage of his life. I wish Tomas nothing but the best as he begins his professional life. This year, Bennett has Kody Stattmann, Carson McCorkle and Taine Murray. I do not share the view that Igor Milicic is a viable wing candidate. He has never hit more than 1/3 of his three-point shots at a high level of competition, why should we expect him to do better against ACC defense? Moreover, the scouting report on him questions his lateral quickness.

Stattmann is the only proven commodity at the wing and he has proven to be the next Evan Nolte: He will give you competent minutes and every plus play he makes is a delightful bonus. This would be great from your fifth or sixth wing, but not part of the formula for a championship team as your third.

Kody is a cautionary tale for us when it comes to crafting expectations for McCorkle and Murray. Kody was a stud in Australia, known for his three-point shot and all-around offensive game, and he shot lights out at the Adidas international event that summer. We were pretty hopeful about his prospects, but in three seasons of ACC ball, he’s 18 for 69 from the three-point line (26.1%) and his high game is 11 points. StLouHoo cautions against expectations for international players before their third season in the USA, but even with that, Kody has shown no signs of being a productive ACC player. To be fair, he was extremely limited by illness last season, playing in only 4 games after appearing in 18 and 24 his first two seasons. Look for him to have a role this year, as he was good on defense his sophomore season, and Bennett could value him in the Nolte Role.

Freshman Taine Murray from New Zealand might have the best chance of giving the Hoos another quality ACC wing this year, despite the StLouHoo Rule of International Prospects. Murray has good size at 6-5 and 207 pounds, and good video. He shows more athleticism and purer form on the jump shot than Stattmann, and he goes from the catch to the release nearly as quickly as Kyle Guy. Murray has a lot of experience coming off flare screens and down screens – the two staples of the BM Offense – and looks smooth and decisive on his admittedly limited film. When I watch him play, Joe Harris immediately comes to mind. Taine also has a defensive mindset and will mix it up. He will be my pick for player most likely to surprise. If he does, Virginia’s prospects look much brighter.

McCorkle came to Virginia last year from storied Greensboro Day School with a great jump shot. Carson probably is the best shooter on the team, but the question is whether there is enough of him to be a factor in the ACC. At 6-3, 185 he is a little small for an ACC wing, and he doesn’t have exceptional run-jump athleticism to make up for it. If he can do everything else well enough to compete in the ACC, Carson could provide a Kyle Guy-like threat from distance. What makes me hesitate to expect anything from McCorkle this year and suspect that he has been recruited over is that he showed absolutely nothing last season, and a guy who has ACC starter-level ability generally shows at least something, at least flashes, in his first year. On a team where Casey Morsell and Tomas Wodetensae were the only other options at the two-guard, that McCorkle didn’t even get an opportunity to show flashes is a reason to be hesitant in expecting a big role for him this year.

What this survey of the guards tells us is that the transfer of Franklin – a proven big-time performer in the Big Ten – was a lifesaver for Tony Bennett’s 2021-22 team (just like the transfer of Jaylen Gardner was in the post, as Hooamp will tell you). He gives Virginia three proven ACC-level performers, all of whom can make plays on defense and will not shrink from any moment. Franklin is a strong player with pretty good size on the wing, at 6-4, 204 pounds. He was the second-best player for an Indiana team that admittedly struggled in the Big Ten.

Franklin played 30 minutes per game and was second on the team in points per game and shots per game, third in Player Efficiency Rating (PER) and True Shooting Percentage (TS%) behind two big men (Trayce Jackson-Davis and Race Thompson), and led the team in 3FG% and steals. See sports-reference.com  His efficiency profile on Synergy indicates that he should fit into what Virginia wants its wings to do.

Armaan’s overall offensive efficiency of .888 PPP was nothing special (54%), but break it down and it looks very strong for Virginia: He was Poor in transition with a .704 PPP (11% ranking), but Very Good in the halfcourt at .932 PPP (71%). Break it down even further and it looks even better: He was Very Good as a Spot-Up shooter on 30% of his plays (1.048 PPP for 76%) and Excellent coming off screens (1.48 PPP for 96%)! He was also Very Good off Handoffs (not that those feature greatly in the Hoo offense).

We are likely to see the trio of Clark, Beekman and Franklin on the floor for at least 25 minutes per game, simply because of numbers. A point guard playing shooting guard and a shooting guard playing wing forward is not ideal, and Tony knows it. He knows that offense is not going to come easy with this malformed roster. He knows they will “have to find other ways.” Those other ways? “We’ll have to be able to play great defense.” New-Look Hoos Still Forming Identity, by Jeff White  While that trio will struggle to be fluid offensively and is going to give up size almost every night, they should be able to put a lot of pressure on the opposing ballhandlers. Beekman and Franklin both led their teams in steals last season. If Shedrick can protect the rim, and he and Gardner lock down the defensive boards, Virginia is going to win a lot of games despite the ugly ass offense.

In my wildest HOOpS dreams, Taine Murray proves ready to contribute from day one, and we can see a lot of Beekman running point with Franklin and Murray on the wings. Those are your three perimeter players with the most potential, the most firepower. Franklin and Murray both have good size and are comfortable shooting threes off the catch. Both can handle it. With Shedrick and Gardner in the post, you have a five-man group with good size, talent, overall athleticism and offensive ability.

If Murray is ready to provide major minutes.

If Shedrick is able to stay healthy and ready to play starter minutes.

If Tony lets Beekman run the show.

That’s a lot of “ifs.” It would go against Tony’s history to sit the senior. Unless Murray truly is ready, Tony won’t have any choice anyway. That might still be ok if he establishes Reece as the primary ballhandler. We know that the Hoos will battle, and we know that the Hoos will grind, and we know that at the end of the season we will be proud of them.

In the end, that’s what matters.

By Seattle Hoo

A fan of UVA basketball since Ralph Sampson was a sophomore and I was in high school, I was blessed to receive two degrees from UVA and attend many amazing games. Online since 1993, HOOS Place is my second UVA sports website, having founded HOOpS Online in 1995.