Top recruit Sidney considering Cavaliers

Daily Progress
Published: November 11, 2008

Virginia’s 2009 recruiting class may be even better than anybody imagined.

That’s saying something when you consider UVa coach Dave Leitao has already landed guard Jontel “Bub” Evans and forward Tristan Spurlock.

On Monday, a source told The Daily Progress that Virginia has a legitimate shot of reeling in one of the jewels of the 2009 class — Renardo Sidney, a 6-foot-10, 250-pounder out of Los Angeles’ Fairfax Senior High.

Sidney, considered by many to be a “one-and-done” type player — meaning he will likely turn pro after just one college season — is rated as a
5-star recruit by Rivals.com and as the 10th best prospect in the nation.

“He’s the best player in the country,” said Franklin Harris, a NYC-based recruiting guru. “The only reason he’s not [rated] No. 1 is because he can be lazy at times and can sometimes be disinterested. High school basketball is just not competitive for him.

“I’ve seen him play maybe 10 times. He can score inside, put it on the floor. He’s a prototypical NBA 4-man.”

Sidney, who grew up in Mississippi — he’s also

considering Mississippi State, LSU, UCLA and USC — will be in Charlottesville this weekend with his parents and attend UVa’s season-opening game against VMI on Sunday.

With national signing day beginning Wednesday, a source said it isn’t out of the realm of possibility that Virginia inks Sidney during the early period.

However, another source said he expected Sidney to bypass college and play

professionally in Europe — a route that former California prep phenom Brandon Jennings took this year.

Wherever Sidney winds up, Leitao’s recruiting job has to be commended. Until now, everybody figured the coach was done with his 2009 class. Apparently, he wanted to make it even stronger.