Virginia to Host Harvard Transfer Point Guard Malik Mack for Official Visit
This is shaping up to be quite a busy recruiting weekend on Grounds for the Virginia men's basketball program. Tony Bennett and the Cavaliers are now set to host two transfer portal targets this weekend, as in addition to Saint Mary's forward Joshua Jefferson, UVA will also host Harvard transfer point guard Malik Mack, who is reportedly visiting both Virginia and Georgetown this weekend.
Mack is one of the most highly-coveted transfers on the market right now, as On3 ranks him as the No. 1 available point guard currently in the transfer portal.
It's not difficult to see why, as the 6'1" freshman guard proved to be one of the most talented guards not just in the Ivy League, but in the entire country in his first season playing college basketball. Mack started 24 games this season and ranked third among first-year players in scoring in the entire country. In 33.2 minutes per game, Mack averaged 17.2 points, 4.8 assists, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.3 steals per game and shot 34.1% from three-point range on 5.5 three-point attempts per contest.
Mack led the Ivy League in assists, was fourth in scoring, fifth in assist to turnover ratio (1.9), and sixth in steals. He scored 20 or more points in eight different games and ran away with the Ivy League Rookie of the Year award as well as an All-Ivy League honorable mention.
Mack was a very good player on a bad team, as despite the incredible production the Crimson got from their star freshman, they went 14-13 overall and failed to qualify for the four-team Ivy League Tournament. Now, Mack is in the transfer portal with three years of eligibility remaining and looking to parlay his strong freshman season into an opportunity for a significant role at a more prominent program.
Mack will undoubtedly have his fair share of suitors and it's no surprise that Virginia and Georgetown were two of the first programs to reel him in for an official visit. He is originally from Oxon Hill, Maryland, just outside of Washington, D.C. and played his high school ball at St. John's College High School in the nation's capital, where he was the Gatorade Player of the Year in 2022-2023.
As for that opportunity for big role at a major program, Virginia can certainly provide that for Mack, given the departure of Reece Beekman and the reasonable uncertainty that the committee of Dante Harris, Christian Bliss, and the other guards on the roster can effectively fill the role of starting point guard. The Cavaliers currently have two open scholarship spots and there is a scenario where both of those spots are filled by transfers visiting this weekend.
Stay tuned to CavaliersNow for more transfer portal coverage and other offseason roster updates for Virginia men's basketball.
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