Isaiah Wilkins joins Tony Bennett’s staff as graduate assistant

By Jerry Ratcliffe

Isaiah Wilkins is coming home.

One of the more popular Virginia basketball players during the Tony Bennett era, Wilkins has been named a graduate assistant for the Cavaliers.

“I’m so excited to bring back a guy that’s played here,” Bennett said Tuesday. “There’s a handful of guys that I’ve coached in our time here where I say, ‘If they want to coach, they’re going to be terrific.’ Isaiah is one of those. He’s right up at the top of the list.”

Wilkins, who has played professionally in Europe for the past three years, helped VIrginia capture two ACC regular season titles, an ACC Tournament championship, and four NCAA appearances during his career from 2015-18. Over that span, the Cavaliers posted a 113-26 record.

Wilkins was ACC Defensive Player of the Year in 2018 and was twice named to the ACC Defensive team.

“Charlottesville is a place that I love and a place that I developed and grew a lot,” Wilkins said. “So just to have the opportunity to go back, I was going to jump on it. But I’m also super hyped to work with the coaches. Those guys have seriously impacted the way that I am today and the way that I’ll continue to keep living.”

Over his UVA career the Atlanta native averaged 4.9 points and 4.8 rebounds per game (132 appearances) and is fifth on the Cavaliers’ career blocked shots list with 141. An undergraduate in African American and African studies, Wilkins was an ACC Academic Honor Roll athlete.

After leaving UVA, Wilkins played in the NBA G League for the Greensboro (N.C.) Storm, then moved on to  Canterbulry of New Zealand’s NBL in 2019, where he was Defensive Player of the Year. Later, he played in Poland before finishing up his pro career in 2020-21 for Ratiopharm in the top league in Germany.