Welcome to my team preview series for 2024-25. Each day between now and the start of the college basketball season, I will preview one team or conference, both on Instagram (@collegehoopsoutlet) and through an article here. The preview will go in-depth on the roster build of the team, my expectations for their upcoming season, and the state of the program under their current head coach.

Arizona (Projected: 5th in Big 12)

Heading into year four of the Tommy Lloyd era at Arizona, the Wildcats will be looking to finally break through the Sweet 16, having never gone further in three tournaments as a top two seed. Lloyd lost a good chunk of his veteran core this offseason, but the Wildcats return the reigning Pac 12 Player of the Year and bring in a solid group of transfers. This will be Arizona’s first season in the Big 12 and the Wildcats are widely projected to be one of the top five teams in the conference.

Caleb Love (18 ppg, 5 rpg), the reigning Pac 12 Player of the Year, is the most important returner for Lloyd’s squad by a wide margin. Not only will he bring experience and winning pedigree, but Love is one of the best scorers in the country when he’s on his game. Shooting a career-high 41.3% from the field last season, one has to imagine in Love’s fifth season he’ll even be another step above that. With Love’s dynamic scoring ability back, Arizona’s ceiling is automatically raised, and the Wildcats should be competitive night-in and night-out at the top of the Big 12.

Next to Love in the backcourt will be two returners, junior Jaden Bradley (7 ppg) and sophomore KJ Lewis (6 ppg). Both Bradley and Lewis came off the bench in every Arizona game last season, but the opening is there for one or both to take a spot in the starting lineup. A pair of physical two-way guards, both Bradley and Lewis are primed for breakout seasons and it’s really hard for me to put one over the other. With Bradley’s two years of experience, I’ll give him the nod for the starting point guard role, though Bradley, Lewis, and Love should all be pretty even when it comes to ball handling duties for the Wildcats. Motiejus Krivas (5 ppg, 4 rpg) will be another important returner for the Wildcats, appearing in all 36 games last season as a 7-2 freshman. Krivas can hopefully fill the Oumar Ballo role for the Wildcats, protecting the paint, controlling the glass, and scoring inside when necessary. Henri Veesaar (2 ppg in 22-23) redshirted last season but is another guy who should be back in the mix in the Arizona frontcourt.

Six players went out the door for Arizona over the offseason, all of whom were a part of the Wildcats’ rotation. Oumar Ballo (13 ppg, 10 rpg) and Kylan Boswell (10 ppg, 4 apg) hit the transfer portal, while the other pair of departing starters, Pelle Larsson (13 ppg, 4 rpg, 4 apg) and Keshad Johnson (12 ppg, 6 rpg) graduated. Off the bench, Paulius Murauskas (3 ppg) and Filip Borovicanin (2 ppg) departed via the transfer portal.

In the transfer portal, Lloyd found four veterans who can all contribute instantly to the squad. The lone high major transfer of the class is Tennessee transfer Tobe Awaka (5 ppg, 5 rpg at Tennessee). Awaka stands at just 6-8 but provides a lot of the same abilities as Krivas, with elite rebounding and solid rim protection. My favorite of the group is Campbell transfer Anthony Dell’Orso (20 ppg, 7 rpg at Campbell), a big scoring wing who dominated the CAA this season. Tuning into the occasional CAA on CBSSN matchup, watching Dell’Orso play for Campbell you could tell he was bound to make the jump up to the power conference level. While shooting 49.2% from the field and 38.0% from three, Dell’Orso logged seven double-doubles and seven 25+ point outings.

Trey Townsend (17 ppg, 8 rpg at Oakland) was another impactful scorer at the mid-major level and should have just as good of odds as Dell’Orso to start for the Wildcats. Townsend started every game he played in at Oakland over his four-year career there with the Golden Grizzlies and was well-known as a big game player. Townsend scored 38 points in the Horizon League championship game to send Oakland to the NCAA Tournament, before notching a 17-point double-double in the team’s surprise win over Kentucky and a 30-point performance in the Golden Grizzlies’ overtime loss to eventual South Region champion NC State. With two impactful scorers on the way in, the Wildcats’ offense should remain one of the best in the country. Liam Lloyd (6 ppg, 4 rpg at Northern Arizona), son of Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd, was the final add via the transfer portal, although Liam will join the team as a walk-on.

Tommy Lloyd finished out his roster building for 2024-25 by adding a duo of talented freshmen. Carter Bryant (4*, NAT 21) will likely have the bigger role of the two, a big wing at 6-8 with elite athleticism and a good scoring ability. Bryant could eventually overtake Lewis, Dell’Orso, or Townsend in the starting lineup, though I’d like to give the nod to the upperclassmen for now. Emmanuel Stephen (4*, NAT 93) has the potential to be a big piece of Arizona’s frontcourt in the future and could be used as a backup center in limited minutes as a freshman. Stephen’s physical frame and elite shot blocking ability should allow him to be physically ready to go as a freshman.

In my eyes, Tommy Lloyd has already established himself as one of the better coaches in college basketball. Now he’s suffering from the treatment Matt Painter got up until six months ago, known as a serial loser in March. You’re only a loser until you win, and I think Tommy Lloyd will prove that eventually. This year, he can prove himself as a coach by getting Jaden Bradley and KJ Lewis to become significant contributors in the backcourt by season’s end. If that happens, then the backcourt should be good enough all-around to win three games in the NCAA Tournament if the draw is right.

All eyes will be on Caleb Love in his fifth year of college basketball, but the reality is that the squad around him is also full of talent. Motiejus Krivas, Emmanuel Stephen, and Tobe Awaka can combine for elite rim protection and rebounding inside. On the wing, Anthony Dell’Orso, Trey Townsend, and Carter Bryant are elite scorers, and now they just need to prove it at the Big 12 level. The X-factors for this Arizona team for me though are the returning guards Jaden Bradley and KJ Lewis. Supporting cast members a year ago, both will now be important to Lloyd’s plan for this season. Both are good defenders on the perimeter, and if they can become slightly more consistent options on the offensive end with increased chances, the Wildcats can go far this season.

I think I can safely say that this is the best team I’ve previewed so far, and I love the all-around capabilities this team has. I love the different options the frontcourt has, and I really believe that Bradley and Lewis can take the next step and give Love help in the backcourt. To project this team 5th in the Big 12 may seem disrespectful, but it just goes to show how loaded the Big 12 should be this season.