Last night, as most were gathering around their dinner tables, Coach Mooney and his staff received word that the final piece of their 2017 recruiting class had made his decision to join the Spiders. Tomas Verbinskis, a 6'5 Lithuanian wing, via Sagemont HS in Ft. Lauderdale, FL will is a perfect fit for what Coach Mooney is looking to do at Richmond. Sagemont HS was also home to junior walk-on Joe Kirby, who served as Tomas' host on the visit last weekend.
The Relationship
Coach Rob Jones first saw Tomas playing last year while he was recruiting fellow Sagemont star Nik Popovic (Boston College). Tomas' offer was extended in September 2015 but Tomas wanted to spend some more time in the States before focusing on his recruiting; this is just his second year in the States.
Tomas' mother joined him in the U.S. last weekend for his Richmond visit. While on campus he, "met with all the coaching staff, the guys showed me around, got to see all the facilities and dorms and got to have a meeting in the business school." The B-school is currently the front runner for Tomas' academic attention, as he looks to study Economics. Being recruited since he set foot in Florida, he was quite anxious to get his recruitment behind him and, "just enjoy my Senior year."
The Next Chapter
Richmond coaches love utilizing a motion offense in order to create good shot opportunities. Verbinskis took notice and realized how well his game would fit in with Mooney's strategy. "I love coming off screens and reading the defense and that's what Coach Mooney looks to do." While he didn't have a specific role he saw himself in at Richmond, he recognized that he did have to continue to work to get stronger and improve his defense in order to earn his playing time at the next level.
Tomas has a quick release and has grown up in a similar system; the transition to the college game should not be difficult on the offensive end. As Tomash mentioned, he needs to continue to develop his strength and defense in order to earn his time in Mooney's system.
Scholarship Situation
This wraps up UR's recruiting efforts for the 2017 class. Richmond currently has no available scholarships available for the 2018 recruiting class. The staff will continue to build relationships with players and coaches in the event that a scholarship becomes available. Players like Armando Bacot will likely be a high priority for the staff.
