Patience pays for Beekman
After considering turning pro, senior guard eager to lead
Reece Beekman said returning to the Virginia men’s basketball team this season is about winning a conference championship, going farther in the NCAA Tournament … and about being patient.
“There’s one constant I’ve learned,” Beekman said. “I’ve learned to wait my turn.”
Beekman, a 6-3 senior guard and a preseason first-team All-ACC selection, had a chance to turn pro after last season. He attended the NBA draft combine, then decided to return to Charlottesville.
“When I was in high school, I had to wait my turn,” he said. “In college, I had to wait my turn. It’s the same thing with the NBA.”
Beekman, named the ACC’s Defensive Player of the Year last season, leads a Cavaliers team that is considered to be in the league’s upper tier — along with Duke, Miami and North Carolina — this season.
The Cavaliers open the season tonight, hosting Tarleton State of Texas at 7 at John Paul Jones Arena.
Beekman said the NBA draft combine experience will make him a better player, and his coach agrees.
“When you’re there,” coach Tony Bennett said of the combine, “you’ve really got to lace ‘em up. It makes you a better player.”
Beekman said pro scouts liked a lot about his game but suggested he work on creating his own shot and being more efficient from mid-range.
“Overall, it’s a matter of being steady with my offensive game,” said Beekman, who averaged 9.5 points per game and led UVA in assists in 19 of his team’s 33 games. “People thought another year would help with that.”
But Beekman sees another key role for himself this season.
The Cavaliers’ roster has a number of new faces, and Beekman has embraced being a leader.
“In the offseason, I worked at getting everyone together, on and off the court,” he said. “I think we started on that in the summer.”
The Cavaliers played softball, watched movies together. They went on a whitewater rafting trip.
“We did a lot of hanging out,” said starting wing Ryan Dunn.
Once practice began, Beekman helped the new players learn Bennett’s trademark defense.
“It was rough at first with the new guys,” he said. “We worked a lot on that. But it’s getting better.”
Beekman said the version of Virginia basketball that fans see in early and mid-November will change as the season progresses.
“It all won’t happen instantly,” he said. “It’s something that will come with time.”
Dunn said Beekman’s presence on the floor is a big lift.
“Just having him out there helps a lot,” Dunn said. “We talked a lot in the summer, and he’s helped me. When he’s on the floor, I feel more confident.”
Beekman said the Cavaliers are built for a big season.
“I feel like we have all the right pieces,” he said. “Everybody has to be bought in with that. And I feel like if that happens, we can go a long way.”
“He has a way of speaking to the younger players,” Bennett added. “They listen to what he says.”
Of course, it was more than the mid-range shot and being a leader that brought Beekman back to Charlottesville for another year.
“Well, I definitely want to get my degree,” said Beekman, who is majoring in American Studies. “That’s important to the whole family.”
And there is the Furman game. Virginia’s NCAA run ended abruptly when the Cavaliers were upset by the Paladins 68-67. UVA led 67-65 in the closing seconds, but a bad pass ended up in the hands of Furman’s J.P. Pegues, who made a 3-pointer.
Beekman narrowly missed winning it, as his last-second shot rolled off the rim.
“I haven’t won a game there,” he said of the NCAA Tournament. “I want the feeling of going as far as we can.”
He said the loss was a learning experience.
“It was a reminder that the little things matter,” he said. “We’ll use that game for inspiration.”