Ryan Odom bringing new style to Virginia: 'I think fans are going to be shocked'
By Jeff Goodman & Sam Lance
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — When Virginia basketball fans watch Ryan Odom’s team play for the first time, they might have to blink twice to make sure what they are seeing is real.
Odom, who comes to Virginia from VCU, has a very distinct style of play. And it’s much, much different than what Virginia fans are used to under Tony Bennett. There won’t be any more slow-paced, deliberate half court sets. The “pack line” defense won’t be in play.
Instead, Odom’s teams will play quite the opposite. And it should be a lot more fun.
“I think a lot of UVA fans are going to be shocked at first because it’s something new,” senior guard Dallin Hall said at The Field of 68’s ACC media day. “But I think they’re going to love it and we hope to go out there and give our best every night to make them proud.”
But what exactly is Odom’s new style? For starters, offensively, Virginia will play at a very fast pace and attempt a lot of outside shots. Last season at VCU, Odom’s squad ranked No. 21 in 3-point attempt rate (47.8%), and with multiple players shooting above 40% from deep in practice…
“That’s one thing we’re going to see with Virginia basketball,” Hall said. “A lot of up-tempo, a lot of threes.”
It’s defensively, though, where Odom’s style will stand out. Virginia’s new head man loves to press every possession, and the players have taken the identity to heart. Learning how to fight through fatigue has been one of the main focuses of practice.
Most would assume Odom’s press is meant to force a faster tempo, but its real goal is to make opponents work deeper into the shot clock. If you look at last season’s VCU team, Odom had opponents averaging 18.8 seconds per possession, ninth longest in the country. He’s looking to bring the same effect to Virginia.
“They bought in right away,” Odom said. “We’re going to try to play very similar to the way we played at VCU, and that’s a pressing style. Not necessarily a trapping style, but full court every possession. You have to have depth in order to do that, and we have a good amount of depth right now.”
Odom noted that if you look at Bennett’s best teams, they were well balanced. The year they won the national title, Virginia wasn’t just elite defensively, but one of the most efficient offenses in the country. Odom knows there’s multiple ways to win, and he’s eager to prove his faster, pressing style can work in Charlottesville.
“If you’re winning in the 50s, that’s certainly a way to play,” Odom said. “If you’re winning in the 80s, that’s a fun way to play too. But the reality is you have to be able to get the stop when you need it, get the score when you need it, regardless of what the score is, the pace.”
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