Post by mhbruin on May 18, 2023 10:22:34 GMT -8
CHANGES
Added Transfer Keshad Johnson from SDSU.
Added transfer Caleb Love from North Carolina
Cedric Henderson, Jr. is graduating, not returning.
May 25: Added Spanish player Conrad Martinez
June 14: Added Lithuanian Paulius Murauskas
9/5: Euros ranked.
====================
Next are the 2nd-3rd Arizona Wildcats. When we last looked at their roster the only had 9 scholarship players. They now have 13. Tommy Lloyd has been busy in the portal and overseas.
Last year I predicted, "I think the Wildcats finish 4th, and make the NCAA tournament as around a #10 seed." They finished tied for 2nd and were a #2 seed.
Their best wins were beating UCLA twice (although one was with without Bona and Clark) and they had wins over Tennesse and San Diego State.
Their worst loss? They lost to #15 seed Princeton in the first round of the NCAA tournament. They were very fortunate not to be the biggest embarassment in the first round, since #1 seed Purdue lost to Farliegn Dickenson. Purdue in turn is lucky not to be the first #1 to lose to a #16. Perhaps everyone will remember Virginia, and forget Purdue. Somehow, it's easy to forget Purdue.
GRADUATING
Ramey was a starter, and played pretty well for Arizona, but he wasn't a great shooter at Texas, and the change of scene to Tucson didn't help much inside the arc. He shot 39% /41% / 54%. That's terrible free throw shooting for a guard. However, his 41% from behind the arc was 5th best in the Pac-12.
Henderson was a part-time starter. His 40% from behind the arc was second best for a rotation player. The Wildcats lose their top 2 outside shooters to graduation.
IN THE DRAFT OR TURNING PRO
Tubelis was runner up for Pac-12 Player of the Year, and he was a great college pleyer. He led the Pac-12 in scoring, and he led the Wildcats in rebounds and steals. He was a great college player.
Pelle, Son of Laars, declared for the draft, but has returned to school.
TRANSFERRING OUT
You may hate Kerr Mini-Timmie, but Arizona will miss his 5 assists per game, which led the Pac-12. With Kriisa and Ramey, they lose their two team leaders in assists and A/TO ratio.
I won't miss anything about Kriisa.
RETURNING
Arizona loses three starters including their best player, but they return three very good players.
Ballo is a very good college center, but we will have to see how he does without Tubelis.
Pelle, son of Laars, is a good all-around player.
Kylan Boswell has "star" written all over him (and I don't mean tattoos.) Don't be surprised if he leads the team in scoring and makes the All-Pac-12 team.
Henri Vessar was considered the 12th best Euro in his birth year. He may be asked to fill Tubelis's shoes. Tubelis was the #1 Euro in his year. I suspect those Tubelis shoes will go unfilled.
RECRUITS
KJ Lewis is listed as a SF, but is only 6-4,
Arizona continues to recruit Europe hard. In recent years they have brought in Kerr Kriisa, Azoulas Tubelis, Adama Bal, Filip Borovicanin, Henri Veesar, and now Motiejus Krivas. They also have Pelle Laarson, by way of Utah.
Motiejus Krivas played for the same Lithuanian team as Kerr Krissa, however he is not named after a famous Arizona player.
Two Lithuanians and a Spaniard walk on to a basketball court. What happens next is a mystery. Since Euros are so hard to evaluate, it is hard to know how good a class this is (very much like UCLA's class).
TRANSFERRING IN
Arizona's main rotation will likley be Ballo, Larsson, and Boswell, along with these three transfers. Anyone else who is a major contributor will be a surpise bonus.
Bradley's role diminished as his freshman season progressed at Alabama, but the former McDonald's All-American reached double figures 11 times and averaged 3.1 assists per game in just 19.8 minutes of action. He has a lot of upside..
Johnson was one of the best defenders in the portal.
"After playing four years for the reigning national runner-up, San Diego State, and playing a key role in the program’s most successful stretch, Keshad Johnson picked Arizona over the Kentucky Wildcats, Oklahoma Sooners, Texas Tech Red Raiders, and USC Trojans."
Caleb Love is another McDonald's All-American who was going to transfer to Michigan, but switched to Arizona. I'm not sure why Lloyd wanted him. He led North Carolina in shot attempts, although there were other better shooters on the roster. He alos led the Tar Heels in turnovers.
He had 11 games with 20 or more points and a season high 34. He will win some games for U of A and lose some.
CONCLUSION
Arizona took a step backwards in Tommy Lloyd's second season. Now they lose three starters. I expect Boswell to be VERY good, and I think the transfer Bradley has talent. Ballo is good, although a bit limited. I am not sure he can thrive without Tubelis. There is enough raw talent to be a facctor in the Pac-12, but I don't see them as a top 2 team. 3rd or 4th seems right to me.
Wilner:
2. Arizona
As expected, the Wildcats made quality use of the transfer portal to reinforce a roster that lost top scorer Azuolas Tubelis. The most recent portal acquisition, guard Caleb Love (from North Carolina), generated the most attention, but don’t overlook Keshad Johnson (San Diego State) and Jaden Bradley (Alabama), or the return of veteran Pelle Larson, who withdrew from the NBA Draft. Arizona should be tougher and more athletic than it has been in two years under Tommy Lloyd, which will brighten its prospects for success in the NCAAs. Previous: 3
Added Transfer Keshad Johnson from SDSU.
Added transfer Caleb Love from North Carolina
Cedric Henderson, Jr. is graduating, not returning.
May 25: Added Spanish player Conrad Martinez
June 14: Added Lithuanian Paulius Murauskas
9/5: Euros ranked.
====================
Next are the 2nd-3rd Arizona Wildcats. When we last looked at their roster the only had 9 scholarship players. They now have 13. Tommy Lloyd has been busy in the portal and overseas.
Last year I predicted, "I think the Wildcats finish 4th, and make the NCAA tournament as around a #10 seed." They finished tied for 2nd and were a #2 seed.
Their best wins were beating UCLA twice (although one was with without Bona and Clark) and they had wins over Tennesse and San Diego State.
Their worst loss? They lost to #15 seed Princeton in the first round of the NCAA tournament. They were very fortunate not to be the biggest embarassment in the first round, since #1 seed Purdue lost to Farliegn Dickenson. Purdue in turn is lucky not to be the first #1 to lose to a #16. Perhaps everyone will remember Virginia, and forget Purdue. Somehow, it's easy to forget Purdue.
GRADUATING
| Player | Games | Starts | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
| Courtney Ramey | 32 | 32 | 31 | 11 | 4 | 3,6 |
| Cedric Henderson, Jr. | 35 | 20 | 23 | 8 | 4 | 1.1 |
Ramey was a starter, and played pretty well for Arizona, but he wasn't a great shooter at Texas, and the change of scene to Tucson didn't help much inside the arc. He shot 39% /41% / 54%. That's terrible free throw shooting for a guard. However, his 41% from behind the arc was 5th best in the Pac-12.
Henderson was a part-time starter. His 40% from behind the arc was second best for a rotation player. The Wildcats lose their top 2 outside shooters to graduation.
IN THE DRAFT OR TURNING PRO
| Player | Games | Starts | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Can Return? |
| Ąžuolas Tubelis | 35 | 34 | 30 | 20 | 9 | 2.0 | No |
Tubelis was runner up for Pac-12 Player of the Year, and he was a great college pleyer. He led the Pac-12 in scoring, and he led the Wildcats in rebounds and steals. He was a great college player.
Pelle, Son of Laars, declared for the draft, but has returned to school.
TRANSFERRING OUT
| Player | Games | Starts | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Destination |
| Adama Bal | 26 | 0 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 0.5 | Santa Clara |
| Kerr Kriisa | 35 | 34 | 31 | 10 | 2 | 5.1 | West Virginia |
You may hate Kerr Mini-Timmie, but Arizona will miss his 5 assists per game, which led the Pac-12. With Kriisa and Ramey, they lose their two team leaders in assists and A/TO ratio.
I won't miss anything about Kriisa.
RETURNING
Arizona loses three starters including their best player, but they return three very good players.
| Player | Games | Starts | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists | FG% | 3Pt% | A/TO | Class | Recruiting Stars | Recruiting Rank |
| Oumar Ballo C | 35 | 35 | 28 | 14 | 9 | 1.6 | 65% | --- | 0.9 | Sr | 4 | 78 |
| Pelle Laarson G | 35 | 18 | 27 | 10 | 4 | 3.1 | 47% | 36% | 1.8 | Sr | 3 | 203 |
| Kylan Boswell G | 35 | 0 | 15 | 5 | 2 | 1.6 | 45% | 39% | 1.9 | So | 4 | 30 |
| Henri Veesaar F | 29 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 0.5 | 62% | 27% | 1.3 | So | Unranked (4-star, #14 Europrospects) | |
| Dylan Anderson F | 15 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0.1 | 41% | 33% | 1.0 | So | 4 | 109 |
| Filip Borovicanin F | 14 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0.4 | 54% | 50% | 1.2 | So | Unranked (3-star, #29 Europrospects) |
Ballo is a very good college center, but we will have to see how he does without Tubelis.
Pelle, son of Laars, is a good all-around player.
Kylan Boswell has "star" written all over him (and I don't mean tattoos.) Don't be surprised if he leads the team in scoring and makes the All-Pac-12 team.
Henri Vessar was considered the 12th best Euro in his birth year. He may be asked to fill Tubelis's shoes. Tubelis was the #1 Euro in his year. I suspect those Tubelis shoes will go unfilled.
RECRUITS
(#42 class, #10 in Pac-12)
| Player | Size | Position | Recruiting Stars | Recruiting Rank | Offers |
| KJ Lewis | 6-4 185 | SF | 4 | 85 | Memphis, Texas Tech, Alabama |
| Motiejus Krivas | 7-2 256 | C | 4-star | 135 | - No other offers - |
| Conrad Martinez | 6-1 | PG | 3-star | - No other offers - | |
| Paulius Murauskas | 6-8 220 | PF | 4-star | 107 | - No other offers - |
KJ Lewis is listed as a SF, but is only 6-4,
Arizona continues to recruit Europe hard. In recent years they have brought in Kerr Kriisa, Azoulas Tubelis, Adama Bal, Filip Borovicanin, Henri Veesar, and now Motiejus Krivas. They also have Pelle Laarson, by way of Utah.
Motiejus Krivas played for the same Lithuanian team as Kerr Krissa, however he is not named after a famous Arizona player.
Two Lithuanians and a Spaniard walk on to a basketball court. What happens next is a mystery. Since Euros are so hard to evaluate, it is hard to know how good a class this is (very much like UCLA's class).
TRANSFERRING IN
| Player | Size | Games | Starts | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists | FG % | 3-Pt % | A/TO | From | Class | Recruiting Stars | Recruiting Rank |
| Jaden Bradley | 6-3 185 | 37 | 22 | 20 | 6 | 3 | 3.1 | 39% | 32% | 1.7 | Alabama | So | 4 | 46 |
| Keshad Johnson | 6-7 200 | 39 | 39 | 22 | 8 | 5 | 0.7 | 53% | 26% | 0.8 | SDSU | Sr 5 | 3 | 312 |
| Caleb Love | 6-4 200 | 33 | 32 | 36 | 17 | 4 | 2.8 | 38% | 30% | 1.2 | North Carolina | Sr | 5 | 14 |
Arizona's main rotation will likley be Ballo, Larsson, and Boswell, along with these three transfers. Anyone else who is a major contributor will be a surpise bonus.
Bradley's role diminished as his freshman season progressed at Alabama, but the former McDonald's All-American reached double figures 11 times and averaged 3.1 assists per game in just 19.8 minutes of action. He has a lot of upside..
Johnson was one of the best defenders in the portal.
"After playing four years for the reigning national runner-up, San Diego State, and playing a key role in the program’s most successful stretch, Keshad Johnson picked Arizona over the Kentucky Wildcats, Oklahoma Sooners, Texas Tech Red Raiders, and USC Trojans."
Caleb Love is another McDonald's All-American who was going to transfer to Michigan, but switched to Arizona. I'm not sure why Lloyd wanted him. He led North Carolina in shot attempts, although there were other better shooters on the roster. He alos led the Tar Heels in turnovers.
He had 11 games with 20 or more points and a season high 34. He will win some games for U of A and lose some.
CONCLUSION
Arizona took a step backwards in Tommy Lloyd's second season. Now they lose three starters. I expect Boswell to be VERY good, and I think the transfer Bradley has talent. Ballo is good, although a bit limited. I am not sure he can thrive without Tubelis. There is enough raw talent to be a facctor in the Pac-12, but I don't see them as a top 2 team. 3rd or 4th seems right to me.
Wilner:
2. Arizona
As expected, the Wildcats made quality use of the transfer portal to reinforce a roster that lost top scorer Azuolas Tubelis. The most recent portal acquisition, guard Caleb Love (from North Carolina), generated the most attention, but don’t overlook Keshad Johnson (San Diego State) and Jaden Bradley (Alabama), or the return of veteran Pelle Larson, who withdrew from the NBA Draft. Arizona should be tougher and more athletic than it has been in two years under Tommy Lloyd, which will brighten its prospects for success in the NCAAs. Previous: 3
Vrooman: 1
Tommy Lloyd is my runaway favorite in the Pac-12 yet again. Last year my model liked Arizona more than UCLA which ended up being incorrect but this year it isn’t close to being close. The postseason success hasn’t been there quite yet under Lloyd but so far he’s 2 for 2 putting out really good regular season teams so it seems reasonable to keep up the faith.
The trio of Oumar Ballo, Pelle Larsson, and Alabama transfer Jaden Bradley are all in my top-15 for the Pac-12 while Ballo is 5th. Add in Kylan Boswell who was really good off the bench as a freshman, North Carolina transfer Caleb Love, and San Diego State transfer Keshad Johnson (the last 2 each played in one of the last 2 NCAA Tournament title games) and that’s a really nice 6-man group to anchor your rotation.
Tommy Lloyd is my runaway favorite in the Pac-12 yet again. Last year my model liked Arizona more than UCLA which ended up being incorrect but this year it isn’t close to being close. The postseason success hasn’t been there quite yet under Lloyd but so far he’s 2 for 2 putting out really good regular season teams so it seems reasonable to keep up the faith.
The trio of Oumar Ballo, Pelle Larsson, and Alabama transfer Jaden Bradley are all in my top-15 for the Pac-12 while Ballo is 5th. Add in Kylan Boswell who was really good off the bench as a freshman, North Carolina transfer Caleb Love, and San Diego State transfer Keshad Johnson (the last 2 each played in one of the last 2 NCAA Tournament title games) and that’s a really nice 6-man group to anchor your rotation.