Bliss will announce commitment Friday; Ty Jerome tells Bliss there’s no place like UVA

By Jerry Ratcliffe

Virginia’s main point-guard recruiting target for the 2024 class, Christian Bliss, announced that he will commit to one of four schools on Friday at 5 p.m. ET.

Bliss, a 6-foot-4, 205-pound four-star, who visited both UVA and Xavier last week, will choose between Virginia, Miami, Villanova and Xavier.

Bliss told Houston Wilson of the national Rivals recruiting network that his visit to UVA went well.

“I really learned more about the play development at Virginia,” Bliss told Wilson. “I did not really know that much about the other coaches and how they develop their players. I learned more about how they develop their players on the court and in the weight room.”

Player development is definitely one of the major factors Bliss is interested in for a future home, and the fact that he has been talking to former UVA national champion Ty Jerome and current Cavaliers standout Ryan Dunn can only help Virginia’s chances.

Our own Scott Ratcliffe caught up with Jerome at his youth basketball camp at Albemarle High School this week, and the Golden State Warrior highly encouraged Bliss to become a Wahoo when Bliss visited Charlottesville last week. The two shared a workout and Jerome liked what he saw in the New York point guard.

“I think it would be awesome,” Jerome said. “I sat down with [Bliss] for a while and I basically told him, ‘I can’t think of a better place to come in somewhere and really get better. You have a great strength coach, you have a great development staff. You have great coaches that pour into you every day. You have nutritionists — it’s a great support system.’

“So there’s a great culture, like I could go on and on and on, but I can’t think of a better place to really come and really get better and really grow as a person and as a player. I think that’s what his main goal is. I mean a lot of guys are thinking one and done, and I don’t think he is. He’s just thinking that he definitely wants to go to the NBA, but when it happens, it happens. I think that’s the biggest message I would tell him, come in and focus on being a great college player and enjoying your college years.”

UVA what yall think? Go Wahoos🔹🔸?? pic.twitter.com/mKW6ZuhmLM

— Christian Bliss (@ChristianBliss0) June 26, 2023

Bliss told Wilson that he has known Jerome for quite some time because Jerome played in the PSA Cardinals AAU program, the same one Bliss plays in.

“[Jerome] has explained to me about what he went through during his time at Virginia and what I should be prepared for if I were to go there,” Bliss told Rivals. “He explained to me about what Coach (Tony) Bennett is like, and told me that Bennett is 100-percent honest with what he says.”

While player development is a major factor, Bliss said that the development isn’t just about getting to the NBA, but also what school can develop him academically and as a person.

Dunn could also testify to that. When Dunn and his family learned that Virginia didn’t have any scholarships remaining, he offered to come to UVA as a walk-on his first year, with the family footing the bill. That’s how much Dunn wanted to play for Bennett.

“My family and I spent some time with Ryan Dunn,” Bliss told Rivals. “He is from Long Island and I am from Queens and they are pretty close to each other, so it was cool talking to him.”

Bliss is averaging 9.6 points, 5.1 assists and 4.1 rebound for the Cardinals on the EYBL Circuit and ranks No. 72 overall in the 2024 recruiting class in On3’s ratings system.