CHARLOTTESVILLE 鈥 Not all coaches would鈥檝e shared the advice that UC Irvine coach Russell Turner passed along to his veteran forward Devin Tillis at the conclusion of this past season.
Tillis, who has since departed UC Irvine for Virginia, tallied double-figure scoring efforts in eight of the campaign鈥檚 final nine contests. He helped the Anteaters reach the Big West tournament title game and then advance all the way to the NIT championship final.
鈥淚 met with him and told him before he could tell me that he was going to transfer, that he should transfer,鈥 Turner, a 麻花视频 native and Patrick Henry graduate, told The Daily Progress this past week.
鈥淚 had been following the market with guys like him,鈥 Turner said, 鈥渁nd he had played exceptionally well in the NIT and there were a couple of player comps, which were almost exact comparables to Devin and guys had gotten paid really high numbers. I was convinced that Devin was as good as some guys who had gotten paid really high numbers and probably better than some. So, we agreed that he was going to go into the transfer portal.鈥
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At that point in early April, according to Turner, Tillis didn鈥檛 want to hire an agent and instead preferred to field all inquiries and offers through his high school coach.
That somewhat concerned Turner, he said, just because he wanted Tillis 鈥 a three-year starter for UC Irvine who Turner enjoyed coaching 鈥 to earn appropriate value and be treated fairly in the transfer market.
But not long after Turner鈥檚 and Tillis鈥 end-of-season meeting, Turner heard from longtime friend and UVa associate head coach Griff Aldrich, who sent a text to congratulate Turner on UC Irvine鈥檚 32-7 year and its runner-up finish in the NIT.
Turner, a Hampden-Sydney grad, was a two-time All-American there and had crossover at Hampden-Sydney with Aldrich and UVa coach Ryan Odom. Turner was a few years ahead of Aldrich and Odom, and they played for the Tigers when Turner was on the Hampden-Sydney staff.
Later, Turner worked for Odom鈥檚 father, Dave Odom, at Wake Forest.
鈥淎nd I knew Griff was interested in Devin,鈥 Turner said, 鈥渁nd that started an exchange between Griff and me about Devin. I told him my perspective on it.鈥
Said Tillis: 鈥淐oach Turner told me, he said, 鈥楬ey, my guys at Virginia hit me up,鈥 and then we sat down and watched film on how they played and how he thought I鈥檇 fit in. It went hand-in-hand together.鈥
Tillis was a no-brainer of a match for the build-from-scratch roster Ryan Odom and Aldrich were assembling.
This past season, Tillis averaged 13.7 points and 7.8 rebounds per contest. He registered seven double-doubles, was an All-Big West second-team selection, an All-Big West tournament team pick and an NIT All-Tournament team honoree.
Tillis鈥 production increased during the final month of the year, too. He averaged 16.6 points per game over the final nine games and seven of those contests were in the postseason. Turner said Tillis didn鈥檛 do anything differently in those win-or-go-home contests other than play more minutes. Throughout the regular season, Turner tried to preserve Tillis鈥 health to last through the year.
鈥淚 told Griff that Devin would be the power forward version of Kihei Clark because Kihei Clark had played out here in LA and we had recruited him at Irvine,鈥 Turner said. 鈥淓verybody initially with Kihei underestimated him because of his size and Devin is a little bit that way.
鈥淗e looks small in some ways because he doesn鈥檛 look great in a uniform,鈥 Turner continued. 鈥淚 told Griff that similarly to Kihei, Devin鈥檚 best body part is his brain.鈥
Tillis was a 39.5% shooter from 3-point range this past season, so he has proven ability to shoot from long range and that鈥檚 a necessary trait to play for Odom. Turner said Tillis can play with his back to the basket as well and has a post-up skill set, making him a well-rounded offensive player.
During Big West conference action most opponents of UC Irvine would double team Tillis when he got the ball, Turner said, but Tillis knew how to handle pressure.
鈥淗e鈥檚 a guy that once a team is forced to double him and he gets to pick them apart with his passing, he鈥檚 just as happy,鈥 Turner said about Tillis, who Turner pointed out was a great teammate during his four years with UC Irvine after transferring there from UNLV.
That鈥檚 something Tillis said he鈥檚 bringing to UVa and has already tried to display during the Cavaliers鈥 first few weeks of summer practices.
鈥淚鈥檓 a real efficient player. I play with a lot of heart, lot of passion,鈥 Tillis said. 鈥淎t UC Irvine, I was a winner. I won a lot of games, and ultimately, I鈥檓 going to bring winning to the core and an immense amount of leadership.
鈥淸Odom] wants me to be a big-time contributor and leader, and we have a good mix of old guys and young guys, and he thinks I鈥檓 a great connector. That鈥檚 something that Coach Turner told him, too.鈥
Turner said Tillis鈥 defensive metrics reveal he was one of the best defenders in the Big West last season and Turner noted all of the analytics UC Irvine uses highlight that Tillis excels in the areas many coaches believe in.
When Turner was chatting with Aldrich about Tillis during the recruiting process, Turner likened Tillis to former Iowa State star and current NBA forward Georges Niang as well as former longtime pro forward Brian Scalabrine.
Turner coached against Scalabrine in the Pac-12 and the NBA.
鈥淏oth of those guys were really undervalued as draft choices compared to what they were able to do,鈥 Turner said, 鈥渁nd hopefully that鈥檒l be the case for Devin and for UVa. I think Devin can really have a fine season there.鈥
Turner is most pleased, though, that Tillis will continue his career under the watch of Odom and Aldrich, who Turner knows will treat Tillis well.
Turner has known Tillis since Tillis was a standout at Windward High School in Los Angeles. Turner said he recruited Tillis some then, but didn鈥檛 take Tillis until he transferred after one season at UNLV.
鈥淚 feel lucky that Devin saw what I did in that he鈥檇 be such a perfect fit in our academic community and our overall basketball community,鈥 Turner said. 鈥淚 know Ryan and Griff are trying to establish the same type of program at UVa that we have at Irvine, so I knew Devin would perfectly fit with what Ryan and Griff would want and I knew that it would be important for Devin to play for really good people and people with high character. So, I told him that right away and I knew it would be a factor for him.鈥
Tillis said it was key while weighing his options.
鈥淸Turner] has been an important role model to me in my development as a player,鈥 Tillis said. 鈥淪o, hearing all those things from a person I really trust and have a lot of respect for, it meant a lot to me. It made my decision easy to want to come to play for Coach Odom.鈥
