Football
We are now 17 days away from the Aug. 1 report date for fall camp and 46 days from the season opener.
But it was just enough room for Rich Rodriguez to add his second defensive back in the past three weeks. Just days after losing Vince Miles to an undisclosed medical situation, the Wildcats inked Tellas Jones as the latest member of the 2013 class.
Jones, who was on a visit Friday, will compete at safety, although he told GOAZCATS.com that he has some experience as a weakside linebacker, as well. The Fort Scott (Kan.) Community College product should fit in as a bandit or free safety.
As far as eligibility is concerned, Jones redshirted his lone year at the JC level so he will have four years left. For a Wildcats secondary looking for depth, the 6-1, 190-pounder's addition has low-risk, high-reward potential.
* Looking ahead to where Jones has his best shot of getting on the field, the free safety role is the one of the three safety spots wide open heading into fall camp.
Without Jones or Jarvis McCall, the second late safety addition, the Wildcats would have had just Will Parks and Jamar Allah on a short list of viable options. Combined, the duo made just 14 tackles in backup roles.
With Tra'Mayne Bondurant and Jared Tevis all but cemented at the spur and bandit, respectively, the safety position is trending upward as one of the more increasingly solidified areas heading into camp. Although, things are still far from settled.
Basketball
* Just as the Orlando Summer League was coming to a close for Solomon Hill and Grant Jerrett, the Las Vegas summer league was just beginning for Mark Lyons.
But unlike his former Arizona teammates, the minutes have not been there for Lyons and will likely not be there for the rest of his stay. The combo guard played a little more than eight scoreless minutes Saturday in an 84-71 loss to the Miami Heat and picked up more fouls (3) than rebounds (1) and steals (1).
Lyons never got off the bench the following day against the San Antonio Spurs.
But soon it will be off to France, where he has signed a professional contract to play for Chorale Roanne of the premier Pro A league. The only way out of that contract would have been to latch on with an NBA roster, but that is clearly not going to happen.
* Aaron Gordon is now on campus after leaving Northern California for Tucson on Saturday.
With his arrival, it is a good time to look around the Pac-12 Conference and other parts of the country where impact freshmen will grab plenty of headlines:
Pac-12
Arizona: Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, of course, is the Wildcats' other highly touted newcomers. The five-star forward should provide an immediate defensive presence that could help make up for the loss of Kevin Parrom.
Cal: After Gordon, shooting guard Jabari Bird may have the next biggest immediate impact for a program in the league. The Bears have lost Pac-12 player of the year Allen Crabbe so Bird will be able to step right in and fill the void. The nation's 31st-ranked player has a silky smooth mid-range game and is my early pick as the runner-up for conference freshman of the year honors. Combined with fellow incoming guard Jordan Matthews (78th), Cal has the two highest-ranked newcomers in the league outside of Arizona.
Colorado: One of the more intriguing fits will be Jaron Hopkins. The 6-5 guard wants to be a point guard but the Buffaloes already have Spencer Dinwiddie well-established in that role. Hopkins can be a bit erratic but can score. So for a team that has been known for fairly disciplined play, Colorado could be an interesting marriage for Hopkins.
Oregon: As far as defensive presences go, Jordan Bell should be one of the most impactful in the league next year. Although just 6-8, the Long Beach Poly product has good timing and springs for legs.
UCLA: Zach LaVine has the unenviable task of replacing Shabazz Muhammad's production in Westwood. But like Hopkins, the 6-4 four-star will not be called upon to carry the bulk of the load.
USC: Four-star forward Roschon Prince should have a green light for the new-look Trojans, led by head coach Andy Enfield. USC could be one of the more entertaining products to watch in the Pac-12 next season.
Washington: A teammate of Gordon's on the U19 U.S. team was point guard Nigel Williams-Goss. He was a steady floor general and defensive presence for powerhouse Findlay Prep, and is the reason the Huskies have the nation's second-best incoming class in the Pac-12 behind the Wildcats.
Around the country
Gordon could very well be in the national freshman of the year discussion, so here's a look at his competition:
Kansas: You have to start at the top with the No. 1 recruit in the nation, Andrew Wiggins. After the Jayhawks lost Ben McLemore and Jeff Withey, the team is pretty much in his hands. He also is one of two on this list being touted as the next LeBron James (although, not by me).
Duke: Your next LeBron comparison belongs to Jabari Parker, the fourth-ranked prospect in the nation. Nonetheless, the college game should at least be a playground for a player of his caliber.
Kentucky: It's hard to pick one when there are five five-star, but No. 2-ranked Julius Randle gets that distinction. But the presence of the Harrison twins will likely take away some of the shine.
Indiana: We got to see a bit of Noah Vonleh at the LeBron James Skills Academy in Las Vegas. After also watching him on the AAU circuit last summer, Vonleh is a versatile big man who can step out and shoot it but also gobble up rebounds. This may be your sleeper in the race.
For more on the recruiting side of things, here is Matt Moreno's recruiting breakdown for this week's GOAZCATS.com War Room.
July is a busy time for the Arizona basketball and football programs. Sean Miller and his coaching staff are on the road this month taking a look at some potential future Wildcats while Rich Rodriguez and his staff are preparing for a big event at the end of the month. It's a busy month for GOAZCATS.com as well with the live basketball recruiting period for basketball taking place over the course of three five-day periods this month.
The first live evaluation period took place over the last five days and GOAZCATS.com was able to watch quite a few recruits at the Peach Jam, where Arizona had coaches all week long. We'll have more on who Arizona kept an eye on and the latest on some of the more notable recruits as well.
The list for Arizona's event for the opening of the Lowell-Stevens Football Facility later this month continues to grow and last week a big name confirmed he'll be in attendance for what could be a big day for the 'Cats. We'll discuss that a little bit more as well as talk about what the likelihood is that Arizona picks up multiple commitments that weekend.
As always there is a lot to discuss, so let's get to it. Here is this week's recruiting portion of the War Room.
Football recruiting
Arizona is planning a big event for later this month with a number of recruits expected to attend the opening of the Lowell-Stevens Football Facility, and it could end up being a really big day for the Wildcats for many reasons. So far the Wildcats have been able to pull in a couple four-star prospects in the 2014 class with Cameron Denson and Nick Wilson making decisions early in the process.
Later this month there are expected to be a few more four-star prospects on campus for the event, and UA has been picking up steam with one of those prospects in particular as of late.
* Four-star lineman prospect Natrell Curtis has really started to look at the Wildcats as an option at the next level. For a while early in the process the 'Cats looked to be one of the schools in the mix, but maybe not a probable destination. However, Curtis recently visited Tucson and even before that the Wildcats had really put an emphasis on recruiting the two-way standout from Phoenix (Ariz.) Mountain Pointe.
The work Rodriguez's staff has put in with Curtis seems to be paying off now and he is one of the highly-rated recruits who is expected to attend this month's event.
"Arizona, I like them a lot," Curtis told Rivals.com last week. "I like the coaching staff. I have a great relationship with every coach on that staff. I love the offense they run, that power. They throw the ball, too. They air it out. That new facility is nice."
The big lineman prospect plans to cut his list down some time soon, and he said there are two schools he knows will make the cut - Arizona and UCLA. Both schools have been recruiting the talented prospect for a long time, and UCLA has long been seen as a possible leader for Curtis.
While UCLA wouldn't mind adding Curtis, based on what we've been hearing the Bruins are starting to cool somewhat on the 2014 recruit. So if things come down to those two schools in the end, UA might have a very good shot to land the four-star prospect.
For now Curtis isn't setting a timetable for a decision, but it looks likely that he will take some official visits.
"I haven't decided yet when to make my choice yet," he said. "I have a few colleges in mind that I plan on visiting and I'm really serious about. It's tough. Sometimes I feel like I found that school that I want to commit to, but at the same time I want to take my visits, so it's tough."
* Another big-time recruit Arizona will host at the end of the month is Rivals100 defensive end recruit Connor Humphreys, who is getting close to narrowing his list. The Portland (Ore.) Central Catholic standout told GOAZCATS.com recently that he had three more visits to take before he started looking at narrowing it down.
He reiterated that to Rivals.com West recruiting analyst Adam Gorney last week, but he also mentioned that a leader is emerging in his recruitment.
"I think Tennessee is one of my favorite schools," Humphreys said. "I loved the visit, I love the campus, I love the city. I just have to take more visits to see how everything else compares to Tennessee now.
"They're getting up there. With the distance it's kind of holding me back and that's why I want to see some other schools before I finally make my top five."
Humphreys would prefer to play closer to home, so there is a chance for Arizona to make a move with a good visit at the end of the month. While it could take some work, UA certainly has a shot in this one and the visit will be important to the future of the recruitment since the four-star recruit is looking to commit soon.
"I think after I make those final three visits I'll have my five favorites and I'm sure a few of those schools will be in the five but I'm not finally set with the top five yet," Humphreys said. "I'm sure after I take those I'll have my top five and I'll be ready to commit sometime in August."
* Another big time defensive end who has quieted things down after taking a lot of visits earlier in the year is still waiting things out as the summer continues. Matt Dickerson had an enjoyable visit to Arizona earlier this year, but since that time a lot of schools have jumped into the recruitment.
Getting a visit early on from the San Mateo (Calif.) Serra standout could be a big benefit when it comes time to narrow things down, but for now the 6-foot-5 recruit is not in a big rush.
"I can't say I have any favorites at this point in my recruiting process because I still have to visit the rest of the schools," he told Rivals.com last week. "I have visited Washington, Colorado, UCLA, San Jose State and Arizona. The rest I have to see are USC, Oregon, Nebraska, Arkansas and I really want to go see Notre Dame. I don't think I can afford to pay for seeing all these schools so I might visit a few using my official visits.
"It is going to be a real hard decision to make, as time goes on it is getting harder and harder. But because all these schools offer so much I can't go wrong with my decision. I honestly just don't want to make a decision I will regret. I want to be completely positive in my choice."
It will be interesting to see if not being able to go on too many more unofficial visits will play into things, but Arizona is still in a decent spot considering his visit to Tucson went very well.
* There are going to be a number of talented prospects on campus when Arizona unveils its new football facility, and there is certainly the possibility of multiple commitments that weekend. While we won't go as far as saying certain prospects are going to commit, we will say there are a few to keep an eye on going into that weekend.
Based on what we're hearing there are a few recruits who have been thinking over their recruitments, and a few to keep an eye on are from all across the board. One I would really look at is tight end recruit Darrell Cloy. The La Habra, Calif., recruit hasn't been shy about his relationship with Arizona and his talks with the 'Cats have been productive as of late.
Another one to watch is Tucson (Ariz.) Salpointe recruit Kaelin Deboskie. Picking up an Arizona offer is a big deal for Deboskie considering his friend and teammate Cameron Denson is already committed to the 'Cats. While it's not a sure thing, Deboskie is another one to keep an eye on.
And then there is of course the two prospects from Los Angeles (Calif.) Salesian. Rivals250 linebackers Jamardre Cobb and Marquis Ware. We brought you the video of Cobb discussing Arizona as his favorite recently and nothing has changed with that. Both prospects are expected to attend the event and there's certainly a chance both end up leaving as committed recruits.
For now those are a few of the prospects to keep an eye on as things get closer to the end of the month.
Basketball recruiting
It was the start of the July evaluation period last week, and Arizona was out in full force watching a ton of prospects all over the country. However, a lot of the focus for UA's coaching staff was in North Augusta, S.C. at the Nike Peach Jam. After spending some time in Indianapolis watching recruits like Stephen Zimmerman, Chase Jeter, Derryck Thornton, and Namon Wright Miller made the move to the Peach Jam to keep an eye on a couple big-time prospects in the 2014 class.
Two of the prospects Arizona made sure to watch a ton during the first evaluation period of the month should be well known by now to Wildcat fans.
* Stanley Johnson has been a priority recruit for Arizona for a long time now. His skill set matches up with what Miller and his staff want in a wing prospect and he has consistently improved his skill set as time has gone on. While there was a time when Johnson was more of an undersized power forward he has worked on his game and developed into a legitimate small forward option at the next level.
The Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei star had plenty of eyes on him at the Peach Jam playing with the Oakland Soldiers, and Sean Miller was a regular at his games over the weekend in South Carolina.
One school that also made it a priority to be at all of Johnson's games was Kentucky, and lately John Calipari's program has been making a big push for the five-star recruit. That was very evident all week long, and it's something Johnson noticed.
"Me and him, I know where he stands," Johnson said of Calipari. "I've talked to him a bunch of times, probably every week, him and the assistants. He doesn't have to come to my games anymore. There's no need."
One thing that has become a big factor in Johnson's recruitment is the fact that UK has only offered one small forward in the 2014 class, while other schools have offered different recruits at that same position. It's something that Johnson discussed quite a bit over the last couple weeks, and it really has put Calipari's program in a good spot.
"I'm not saying Arizona's not just as good of a school, I'm saying they just have other concerns (at small forward), which I respect," Johnson said. "If Calipari (did), I'll respect it, too, but it kind of puts them on a different echelon, because I'm the only person they've offered."
Arizona has had a firm spot in Johnson's recruitment throughout the process, and while that continues UK has also started making a very strong push. The Wildcats have really ramped up things here lately as well, so it will be interesting to see how things go moving forward.
Johnson is set to visit Arizona in September, and he'll be in Kentucky later in the year so there's still a long way to go before any decision happens. But for now things are starting to get very interesting with the standout wing prospect.
* The other prospect Miller made sure to watch all week at the Peach Jam was another five-star prospect Arizona has made a priority for some time in Houston Hoops standout Justise Winslow. The 6-foot-5 wing recruit was very good all week long, and he consistently had an Arizona coach at each of his games. Duke is another big player in Winslow's recruitment and Mike Krzyzewski was a regular at Houston Hoops' games as well.
Winlsow mentioned to GOAZCATS.com that his intention is still to sign in November, so things could really get moving here soon. Winslow has visited Arizona quite a bit throughout his recruitment, so there's not a lot that has changed within his recruitment when it comes to seeing more schools or learning more about the schools.
At this point things are pretty clear, and it's more about taking a closer look at his options and figuring out where he wants to go. While there has been talk of Winslow joining up with fellow five-star prospects Jahlil Okafor and Tyus Jones, that seems like less of a possibility as time moves on.
We'll have plenty more from the first July evaluation period and another one starts Wednesday, so continue to check in with GOAZCATS.com for all the latest.
We are now 17 days away from the Aug. 1 report date for fall camp and 46 days from the season opener.
But it was just enough room for Rich Rodriguez to add his second defensive back in the past three weeks. Just days after losing Vince Miles to an undisclosed medical situation, the Wildcats inked Tellas Jones as the latest member of the 2013 class.
Jones, who was on a visit Friday, will compete at safety, although he told GOAZCATS.com that he has some experience as a weakside linebacker, as well. The Fort Scott (Kan.) Community College product should fit in as a bandit or free safety.
As far as eligibility is concerned, Jones redshirted his lone year at the JC level so he will have four years left. For a Wildcats secondary looking for depth, the 6-1, 190-pounder's addition has low-risk, high-reward potential.
* Looking ahead to where Jones has his best shot of getting on the field, the free safety role is the one of the three safety spots wide open heading into fall camp.
Without Jones or Jarvis McCall, the second late safety addition, the Wildcats would have had just Will Parks and Jamar Allah on a short list of viable options. Combined, the duo made just 14 tackles in backup roles.
With Tra'Mayne Bondurant and Jared Tevis all but cemented at the spur and bandit, respectively, the safety position is trending upward as one of the more increasingly solidified areas heading into camp. Although, things are still far from settled.
Basketball
* Just as the Orlando Summer League was coming to a close for Solomon Hill and Grant Jerrett, the Las Vegas summer league was just beginning for Mark Lyons.
But unlike his former Arizona teammates, the minutes have not been there for Lyons and will likely not be there for the rest of his stay. The combo guard played a little more than eight scoreless minutes Saturday in an 84-71 loss to the Miami Heat and picked up more fouls (3) than rebounds (1) and steals (1).
Lyons never got off the bench the following day against the San Antonio Spurs.
But soon it will be off to France, where he has signed a professional contract to play for Chorale Roanne of the premier Pro A league. The only way out of that contract would have been to latch on with an NBA roster, but that is clearly not going to happen.
* Aaron Gordon is now on campus after leaving Northern California for Tucson on Saturday.
With his arrival, it is a good time to look around the Pac-12 Conference and other parts of the country where impact freshmen will grab plenty of headlines:
Pac-12
Arizona: Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, of course, is the Wildcats' other highly touted newcomers. The five-star forward should provide an immediate defensive presence that could help make up for the loss of Kevin Parrom.
Cal: After Gordon, shooting guard Jabari Bird may have the next biggest immediate impact for a program in the league. The Bears have lost Pac-12 player of the year Allen Crabbe so Bird will be able to step right in and fill the void. The nation's 31st-ranked player has a silky smooth mid-range game and is my early pick as the runner-up for conference freshman of the year honors. Combined with fellow incoming guard Jordan Matthews (78th), Cal has the two highest-ranked newcomers in the league outside of Arizona.
Colorado: One of the more intriguing fits will be Jaron Hopkins. The 6-5 guard wants to be a point guard but the Buffaloes already have Spencer Dinwiddie well-established in that role. Hopkins can be a bit erratic but can score. So for a team that has been known for fairly disciplined play, Colorado could be an interesting marriage for Hopkins.
Oregon: As far as defensive presences go, Jordan Bell should be one of the most impactful in the league next year. Although just 6-8, the Long Beach Poly product has good timing and springs for legs.
UCLA: Zach LaVine has the unenviable task of replacing Shabazz Muhammad's production in Westwood. But like Hopkins, the 6-4 four-star will not be called upon to carry the bulk of the load.
USC: Four-star forward Roschon Prince should have a green light for the new-look Trojans, led by head coach Andy Enfield. USC could be one of the more entertaining products to watch in the Pac-12 next season.
Washington: A teammate of Gordon's on the U19 U.S. team was point guard Nigel Williams-Goss. He was a steady floor general and defensive presence for powerhouse Findlay Prep, and is the reason the Huskies have the nation's second-best incoming class in the Pac-12 behind the Wildcats.
Around the country
Gordon could very well be in the national freshman of the year discussion, so here's a look at his competition:
Kansas: You have to start at the top with the No. 1 recruit in the nation, Andrew Wiggins. After the Jayhawks lost Ben McLemore and Jeff Withey, the team is pretty much in his hands. He also is one of two on this list being touted as the next LeBron James (although, not by me).
Duke: Your next LeBron comparison belongs to Jabari Parker, the fourth-ranked prospect in the nation. Nonetheless, the college game should at least be a playground for a player of his caliber.
Kentucky: It's hard to pick one when there are five five-star, but No. 2-ranked Julius Randle gets that distinction. But the presence of the Harrison twins will likely take away some of the shine.
Indiana: We got to see a bit of Noah Vonleh at the LeBron James Skills Academy in Las Vegas. After also watching him on the AAU circuit last summer, Vonleh is a versatile big man who can step out and shoot it but also gobble up rebounds. This may be your sleeper in the race.
For more on the recruiting side of things, here is Matt Moreno's recruiting breakdown for this week's GOAZCATS.com War Room.
July is a busy time for the Arizona basketball and football programs. Sean Miller and his coaching staff are on the road this month taking a look at some potential future Wildcats while Rich Rodriguez and his staff are preparing for a big event at the end of the month. It's a busy month for GOAZCATS.com as well with the live basketball recruiting period for basketball taking place over the course of three five-day periods this month.
The first live evaluation period took place over the last five days and GOAZCATS.com was able to watch quite a few recruits at the Peach Jam, where Arizona had coaches all week long. We'll have more on who Arizona kept an eye on and the latest on some of the more notable recruits as well.
The list for Arizona's event for the opening of the Lowell-Stevens Football Facility later this month continues to grow and last week a big name confirmed he'll be in attendance for what could be a big day for the 'Cats. We'll discuss that a little bit more as well as talk about what the likelihood is that Arizona picks up multiple commitments that weekend.
As always there is a lot to discuss, so let's get to it. Here is this week's recruiting portion of the War Room.
Football recruiting
Arizona is planning a big event for later this month with a number of recruits expected to attend the opening of the Lowell-Stevens Football Facility, and it could end up being a really big day for the Wildcats for many reasons. So far the Wildcats have been able to pull in a couple four-star prospects in the 2014 class with Cameron Denson and Nick Wilson making decisions early in the process.
Later this month there are expected to be a few more four-star prospects on campus for the event, and UA has been picking up steam with one of those prospects in particular as of late.
* Four-star lineman prospect Natrell Curtis has really started to look at the Wildcats as an option at the next level. For a while early in the process the 'Cats looked to be one of the schools in the mix, but maybe not a probable destination. However, Curtis recently visited Tucson and even before that the Wildcats had really put an emphasis on recruiting the two-way standout from Phoenix (Ariz.) Mountain Pointe.
The work Rodriguez's staff has put in with Curtis seems to be paying off now and he is one of the highly-rated recruits who is expected to attend this month's event.
"Arizona, I like them a lot," Curtis told Rivals.com last week. "I like the coaching staff. I have a great relationship with every coach on that staff. I love the offense they run, that power. They throw the ball, too. They air it out. That new facility is nice."
The big lineman prospect plans to cut his list down some time soon, and he said there are two schools he knows will make the cut - Arizona and UCLA. Both schools have been recruiting the talented prospect for a long time, and UCLA has long been seen as a possible leader for Curtis.
While UCLA wouldn't mind adding Curtis, based on what we've been hearing the Bruins are starting to cool somewhat on the 2014 recruit. So if things come down to those two schools in the end, UA might have a very good shot to land the four-star prospect.
For now Curtis isn't setting a timetable for a decision, but it looks likely that he will take some official visits.
"I haven't decided yet when to make my choice yet," he said. "I have a few colleges in mind that I plan on visiting and I'm really serious about. It's tough. Sometimes I feel like I found that school that I want to commit to, but at the same time I want to take my visits, so it's tough."
* Another big-time recruit Arizona will host at the end of the month is Rivals100 defensive end recruit Connor Humphreys, who is getting close to narrowing his list. The Portland (Ore.) Central Catholic standout told GOAZCATS.com recently that he had three more visits to take before he started looking at narrowing it down.
He reiterated that to Rivals.com West recruiting analyst Adam Gorney last week, but he also mentioned that a leader is emerging in his recruitment.
"I think Tennessee is one of my favorite schools," Humphreys said. "I loved the visit, I love the campus, I love the city. I just have to take more visits to see how everything else compares to Tennessee now.
"They're getting up there. With the distance it's kind of holding me back and that's why I want to see some other schools before I finally make my top five."
Humphreys would prefer to play closer to home, so there is a chance for Arizona to make a move with a good visit at the end of the month. While it could take some work, UA certainly has a shot in this one and the visit will be important to the future of the recruitment since the four-star recruit is looking to commit soon.
"I think after I make those final three visits I'll have my five favorites and I'm sure a few of those schools will be in the five but I'm not finally set with the top five yet," Humphreys said. "I'm sure after I take those I'll have my top five and I'll be ready to commit sometime in August."
* Another big time defensive end who has quieted things down after taking a lot of visits earlier in the year is still waiting things out as the summer continues. Matt Dickerson had an enjoyable visit to Arizona earlier this year, but since that time a lot of schools have jumped into the recruitment.
Getting a visit early on from the San Mateo (Calif.) Serra standout could be a big benefit when it comes time to narrow things down, but for now the 6-foot-5 recruit is not in a big rush.
"I can't say I have any favorites at this point in my recruiting process because I still have to visit the rest of the schools," he told Rivals.com last week. "I have visited Washington, Colorado, UCLA, San Jose State and Arizona. The rest I have to see are USC, Oregon, Nebraska, Arkansas and I really want to go see Notre Dame. I don't think I can afford to pay for seeing all these schools so I might visit a few using my official visits.
"It is going to be a real hard decision to make, as time goes on it is getting harder and harder. But because all these schools offer so much I can't go wrong with my decision. I honestly just don't want to make a decision I will regret. I want to be completely positive in my choice."
It will be interesting to see if not being able to go on too many more unofficial visits will play into things, but Arizona is still in a decent spot considering his visit to Tucson went very well.
* There are going to be a number of talented prospects on campus when Arizona unveils its new football facility, and there is certainly the possibility of multiple commitments that weekend. While we won't go as far as saying certain prospects are going to commit, we will say there are a few to keep an eye on going into that weekend.
Based on what we're hearing there are a few recruits who have been thinking over their recruitments, and a few to keep an eye on are from all across the board. One I would really look at is tight end recruit Darrell Cloy. The La Habra, Calif., recruit hasn't been shy about his relationship with Arizona and his talks with the 'Cats have been productive as of late.
Another one to watch is Tucson (Ariz.) Salpointe recruit Kaelin Deboskie. Picking up an Arizona offer is a big deal for Deboskie considering his friend and teammate Cameron Denson is already committed to the 'Cats. While it's not a sure thing, Deboskie is another one to keep an eye on.
And then there is of course the two prospects from Los Angeles (Calif.) Salesian. Rivals250 linebackers Jamardre Cobb and Marquis Ware. We brought you the video of Cobb discussing Arizona as his favorite recently and nothing has changed with that. Both prospects are expected to attend the event and there's certainly a chance both end up leaving as committed recruits.
For now those are a few of the prospects to keep an eye on as things get closer to the end of the month.
Basketball recruiting
It was the start of the July evaluation period last week, and Arizona was out in full force watching a ton of prospects all over the country. However, a lot of the focus for UA's coaching staff was in North Augusta, S.C. at the Nike Peach Jam. After spending some time in Indianapolis watching recruits like Stephen Zimmerman, Chase Jeter, Derryck Thornton, and Namon Wright Miller made the move to the Peach Jam to keep an eye on a couple big-time prospects in the 2014 class.
Two of the prospects Arizona made sure to watch a ton during the first evaluation period of the month should be well known by now to Wildcat fans.
* Stanley Johnson has been a priority recruit for Arizona for a long time now. His skill set matches up with what Miller and his staff want in a wing prospect and he has consistently improved his skill set as time has gone on. While there was a time when Johnson was more of an undersized power forward he has worked on his game and developed into a legitimate small forward option at the next level.
The Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei star had plenty of eyes on him at the Peach Jam playing with the Oakland Soldiers, and Sean Miller was a regular at his games over the weekend in South Carolina.
One school that also made it a priority to be at all of Johnson's games was Kentucky, and lately John Calipari's program has been making a big push for the five-star recruit. That was very evident all week long, and it's something Johnson noticed.
"Me and him, I know where he stands," Johnson said of Calipari. "I've talked to him a bunch of times, probably every week, him and the assistants. He doesn't have to come to my games anymore. There's no need."
One thing that has become a big factor in Johnson's recruitment is the fact that UK has only offered one small forward in the 2014 class, while other schools have offered different recruits at that same position. It's something that Johnson discussed quite a bit over the last couple weeks, and it really has put Calipari's program in a good spot.
"I'm not saying Arizona's not just as good of a school, I'm saying they just have other concerns (at small forward), which I respect," Johnson said. "If Calipari (did), I'll respect it, too, but it kind of puts them on a different echelon, because I'm the only person they've offered."
Arizona has had a firm spot in Johnson's recruitment throughout the process, and while that continues UK has also started making a very strong push. The Wildcats have really ramped up things here lately as well, so it will be interesting to see how things go moving forward.
Johnson is set to visit Arizona in September, and he'll be in Kentucky later in the year so there's still a long way to go before any decision happens. But for now things are starting to get very interesting with the standout wing prospect.
* The other prospect Miller made sure to watch all week at the Peach Jam was another five-star prospect Arizona has made a priority for some time in Houston Hoops standout Justise Winslow. The 6-foot-5 wing recruit was very good all week long, and he consistently had an Arizona coach at each of his games. Duke is another big player in Winslow's recruitment and Mike Krzyzewski was a regular at Houston Hoops' games as well.
Winlsow mentioned to GOAZCATS.com that his intention is still to sign in November, so things could really get moving here soon. Winslow has visited Arizona quite a bit throughout his recruitment, so there's not a lot that has changed within his recruitment when it comes to seeing more schools or learning more about the schools.
At this point things are pretty clear, and it's more about taking a closer look at his options and figuring out where he wants to go. While there has been talk of Winslow joining up with fellow five-star prospects Jahlil Okafor and Tyus Jones, that seems like less of a possibility as time moves on.
We'll have plenty more from the first July evaluation period and another one starts Wednesday, so continue to check in with GOAZCATS.com for all the latest.
