Head coach Tommy Lloyd and the Arizona Wildcats suffered a heartbreaking first-round defeat in March at the hands of 15-seed Princeton. That team lost a lot, but like usual, Lloyd worked the transfer portal and the international scene well. There’s a reason Jon Rothstein always tweets, “Grab your passport,” talking about Lloyd. I seem to be a little higher on the Wildcats than others, but this retooled squad is really talented.
Previous teams in my rankings can be seen here.
Preseason College Basketball Rankings: #11 Arizona Wildcats
Lloyd loves his international players. Oumar Ballo, a Mali native, started with Lloyd at Gonzaga, then followed him to Arizona two years ago. Last year, Ballo took on a starting role for the first time and had a breakout season. He doubled his scoring and rebounding averages. He was top seven in the PAC-12 in total points, rebounds, and blocks. Fellow seven-foot international center Henri Veesaar returns. The Estonian was a top-40 recruit last year but didn’t play a ton as a freshman due to the presence of Ballo and Ąžuolas Tubelis. But with the latter gone, he should have a much bigger role this year.
Swedish guard Pelle Larsson looks ready to move into a full-time starting role this season. Two years ago, he won PAC-12 Sixth Man of the Year, and last year, he started just over half of their games, with Cedric Henderson Jr. starting the others. Larsson set new career highs in points, rebounds, and assists and tied his high in steals. Returning with him in the backcourt is Kylan Boswell. All the buzz right now is that the former five-star recruit is poised for a breakout campaign as a sophomore.
Alabama transfer Jaden Bradley is another player who could be in line for a breakout sophomore campaign. He proved last year as a freshman for the Crimson Tide that he can play well in both starting and bench roles. Caleb Love is coming off of a disappointing season at UNC. The disappointment came more from the team’s performance than his own. He should add a lot of scoring and creativity to this offense, which could benefit the team. Keshad Johnson transfers in fresh off a magical Final Four run with San Diego State. He gives the Wildcats a lot of experience at the forward position, something they don’t have at that position anywhere else on this roster.
Putting more emphasis on this team’s international flair, Lloyd is bringing in two four-star recruits, both of whom are from Lithuania. Those two are power forward Paulius Murauskas and center Motiejus Krivas. With Lloyd’s history with international big men such as Ballo and Tubelis, those two could develop well.
Projected Lineup
C – Oumar Ballo (14.2 PPG, 8.6 RPG, 1.6 APG, 0.7 APG, 1.3 BPG)
PF – Keshad Johnson (7.7 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 0.7 APG, 0.5 APG, 0.5 BPG at San Diego State)
SG – Pelle Larsson (9.9 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 3.1 APG, 0.8 APG, 0.2 BPG)
PG – Kylan Boswell (4.6 PPG, 1.6 RPG, 1.6 APG, 0.7 APG, 0.0 BPG)
PG – Caleb L0ve (16.7 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 2.8 APG, 1.1 APG, 0.2 BPG at UNC)
