6. Arizona Wildcats
Less than a week after winning the Pac-12 Tournament, Arizona, led by eventual the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft, Deandre Ayton, was bounced from the first round of the NCAA Tournament by No. 13 seed Buffalo.
In addition to Ayton’s departure, the Wildcats also lost key contributors in center Dušan Ristić as well as guards Rawle Alkins and Allonzo Trier. Without last year’s core, Arizona will turn to new faces to carry its program.
Some of the notable newcomers include transfers Chase Jeter, Ryan Luther and Justin Coleman.
Jeter, a Duke transfer, sat out last season after averaging 14.9 minutes per game with the Blue Devils in 2016-17. After sitting out of Arizona’s first exhibition against Western New Mexico, Jeter scored just one point against Chaminade in the Wildcats’ second scrimmage.
Luther is another player expected to make an impact this season after four years at Pittsburgh. A year ago, Luther averaged 12.7 points per game while making 38.7 percent of his 3-point shots.
The Wildcats will be aided in the backcourt by Samford transfer Coleman. Despite being undersized at 5-foot-10, Coleman is incredibly efficient, averaging an assist to turnover ratio of 2.4 last year.
Perhaps just as valuable as the transfers is Brandon Williams. A four-star recruit, Williams decommitted from the Wildcats in wake of an NCAA investigation in March, but ultimately decided to stay at Arizona. Through two scrimmages, Williams scored a combined 27 points.
Returners Brandon Randolph and Emmanuel Akot were both highly-touted prospects coming out of high school, but neither made much of an impact last year.
Picked to finish fourth in the Pac-12 media poll, Arizona could surprise a lot of people if its talent develops.