Arizona State coach Bobby Hurley is taking his team on an offseason trip to Europe. He hopes the journey will be a bonding experience for his returning players and new recruits in this challenging era of college basketball coaching. (Photo by Joey Plishka/Cronkite News)
PHOENIX – The University of Arizona and Arizona State made the NCAA men’s basketball tournament last season, however, both teams suffered the same losing fate in the first round.
That’s not all the programs lost. The two schools each had multiple starters leave for various reasons, igniting the offseason search to retool for the coaches.
UArizona coach Tommy Lloyd and ASU coach Bobby Hurley continued their pursuits Saturday at the Section 7 Boys Weekend, a mega-event for high school basketball players from across the country to display their skills in front of college scouts during the live period for men’s basketball recruiting. Both coaches stepped away from the action to speak with media and shared what fans can expect this upcoming season.
“I’m not saying we’re going to be the best program, but as a program, we’re going to be fine and we’re going to be competitive on the national landscape,” Lloyd said Saturday.
UArizona won the Pac-12 tournament title and earned a 2-seed in the NCAA tournament, only to get upset in the first round against No. 15 Princeton. Then, adding to an already difficult offseason, UArizona lost two of its star players in Azuolas Tubelis and Kerr Kriisa. Tubelis signed with the Philadelphia 76ers as an undrafted free agent last Thursday, and Kriisa transferred to West Virginia.
Additionally, the Wildcats lost two other starters – Cedric Henderson Jr. and Courtney Ramey – to graduation. Oumar Ballo is the program’s only returning starter.
“We were capable of making a run like any of these other teams, it just didn’t happen for us,” Lloyd said. “Now the challenge is to come back and get better. Increase your margin for error.”
Arizona men’s basketball coach Tommy Lloyd called the presence of a basketball portal and NIL deals “college basketball now. There’s so many moving parts and (it’s) a little bit less predictable than it was a few years ago.” (Photo by Joey Plishka/Cronkite News)
There is reason for optimism for the Wildcats. Motiejus Krivas, listed at 7-feet-2, and 6-8 forward Paulius Murauskas from Lithuania are set to debut this season. Lloyd embraced the challenge of the modern-day recruiting landscape in college sports, with more transfers and international players than ever due to the NCAA’s new rules that allow players to transfer schools without having to sit out for one year.
“That’s college basketball now,” Lloyd said. “There’s so many moving parts and a little bit less predictable than it was a few years ago. … I’m not trying to build the number one recruiting class in the country. I’m trying to build the number one team in the country.”
Even though the recruiting process has changed, Lloyd has certain traits he looks for in players that do not change every year.
“The first thing you’re looking for is a certain level of talent,” Lloyd said. “Then it comes down to personal preference. We like guys that are great teammates and play great team basketball.”
Meanwhile, Arizona State blew a second-half lead as a 10-seed to 7-seeded TCU in March and lost on a go-ahead, game-sealing basket to win the game for the Horned Frogs. ASU lost its leading scorer Desmond Cambridge Jr. and Luther Muhammad to graduation. Enoch Boakye will enter the transfer portal.
Hurley was asked about the difficulty of securing players when the option of transferring is more feasible today.
“Players that increase their value, particularly, have a lot of options out there,” Hurley said. “You gotta fast track bringing a team together.”
Hurley is planning to take his team on an offseason trip to Europe, where they will travel to Paris and Athens. He expressed hope that the trip will be a great learning and bonding experience for his returning players and nine expected new recruits.
“Trying to soak it in and evaluate everybody and see what everything looks like,” Hurley said. “Overall, I’ve got a good feeling about the roster, and what we’ve put together so far.”
