Odom confirms Guy & Wilkins could have stayed

By Jerry Ratcliffe

Virginia coach Ryan Odom confirmed on a Zoom call with VAF members on Friday that both Kyle Guy and Isaiah Wilkins were both offered opportunities to stay on the Cavaliers basketball staff in similar roles to what they had, but both declined.

There had been a lot of conjecture in Wahoo Nation the past week about  Guy and Wilkins, both beloved figures in Cavalier basketball history.

Both Guy and Wilkins announced via social media that neither were returning to Odom’s staff. Odom has unjustly received criticism for not electing to keep the former Cavaliers on his staff.

What Guy and Wilkins didn’t say is that they were both given opportunities to stay on the staff and chose to pursue other jobs. According to sources close to the program, the two staff members were offered to remain in similar roles that they held under Tony Bennett and Ron Sanchez, but both declined, with Odom confirming that report Friday.

Guy, who retired from playing professional basketball and returned to UVA last summer to work on his degree, held the title of Athlete Development Mentor/Special Assistant, a position that Bennett created in the program just so Guy could return. Wilkins was an assistant coach the last two seasons after two previous years as a grad assistant.