Ryan Odom has acquired his big man in foreign basketball prospect Johann Grünloh, a 6’11” German forward who currently plays for SC Rasta Vechta in the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL), the highest level of professional club basketball in Germany. 247Sports Insider Dushawn London first reported the news.
NEWS: 6’11” German big man Johann Grünloh has committed to Ryan Odom and Virginia, per @247Sports.
The 19-year-old currently plays for SC Rasta Vechta. pic.twitter.com/v2oSWwIm6j
— Dushawn London (@DushawnLondon1) April 28, 2025
ESPN lists Grünloh as a projected 2nd-round pick, a massive acquisition by Odom and his staff.
A native of Löningen, Germany, Grünloh is 19 years old and will turn 20 on August 14th. Despite his young age, he already has quite an impressive basketball resume at the professional club level and on the international stage. In 2023, Grünloh played for Germany in the U18 European Championships and helped his country win a bronze medal as the top shot blocker at the tournament, averaging 3.9 blocks per game.
In the 2023-2024 basketball season, while Grünloh was still finishing secondary school, he played for both the professional Rasta Vechta team and the second Rasta Vechta team that plays in the highest youth division of basketball. Grünloh was instrumental in helping Vechta have the sixth-best defense in the BBL and also helped lead the junior team to a championship. He then graduated and played full-time with the professional Rasta Vechta squad for the 2024-2025 season.
This season, Johann Grünloh has played in 33 games, starting in every game, and averaged 8.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks in 23.3 minutes per game. He shot 47.6% from the floor and 35.4% from three-point range. Grünloh had 13 games in double-figures, including a 20-point performance in his most recent game just last week, and posted two double-doubles this season.
Watch some highlights from Johann Grünloh’s 2024-2025 season in the video below:
Ryan Odom has had more than his fair share of success recruiting and coaching international players. One of his best players at VCU last season was Max Shulga, a native of Ukraine who played for Odom at Utah State and then followed him to Richmond to play for the Rams for his final two seasons of college basketball. Last year’s VCU roster also had a pair of London natives in Michael Belle and Luke Bamgboye. Then there’s Martin Carrere, a 6’8″ wing originally from Pontonx-sur-l’Adour, France, who redshirted last season at VCU and is the lone Ram who followed Odom to Virginia through the transfer portal.
Johann Grünloh also has been teammates with former Virginia forward Jayden Gardner, who joined SC Rasta Vechta in 2024. Gardner and Grünloh have been the team’s starting frontcourt tandem in every game this season. With Grünloh committed to Virginia, it can certainly be speculated that Gardner played a factor in his decision.
The commitment of Grünloh is a huge boost to Virginia’s frontcourt as he looks to slot right into Virginia’s starting five alongside Dallin Hall, Jacari White, Sam Lewis, and Devin Tillis.
Grünloh is Virginia’s sixth transfer, joining Toledo’s Sam Lewis, North Dakota State’s Jacari White, VCU’s Martin Carrere, BYU’s Dallin Hall, and UC Irvine’s Devin Tillis. Alongside two incoming freshmen in Virginia natives, Chance Mallory and Silas Barksdale, Grünloh becomes the eighth rostered player for the 2025-26 season.
Despite the commitment of Grünloh, expect Odom to continue to nab commits to round out his roster and bulk up his roster. Grünloh gives Virginia its first firm frontcourt presence, but there’s work to be done.
Stay up to date on all the latest Virginia basketball transfer portal activity, including outbound transfers from the current roster and UVA’s effort to pursue players in the portal, here: Virginia Basketball Transfer Portal: Latest News and Updates
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