This Arizona basketball team will look very different than the one we saw in 2023-24, but we should still expect them to be title contenders thanks to the talent brought in.
Five Wildcats entered the portal, including starters Oumar Ballo and Kylan Boswell, but Tommy Lloyd and Arizona basketball responded nicely by bringing in three new transfers (and counting). Read below for the grade of each new Wildcat.
*This list will be updated as new players commit to the team.
Tobe Awaka
BREAKING: Tennessee transfer big man Tobe Awaka has committed to Arizona, he tells @On3sports. https://t.co/uTQnIwTtQ9 pic.twitter.com/XzmJinLEqO
— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) April 29, 2024
Tobe Awaka isn’t going to win or lose you games, but he’ll do the little things on both sides of the floor, and sometimes that’s all you need in a player. Last year at Tennesee, he averaged 5.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 0.6 blocks in 13 minutes a game. His best game came against Mizzou, when he posted a statline of 18 points and 10 rebounds in just 22 minutes.
One of his biggest issues is foul trouble. Awaka averaged 2.5 fouls a game in just those 13 minutes. He reached 4 or more fouls 8 times this season despite never playing more than 23 minutes, including a foul out in just 14 minutes against Purdue in the Elite 8. Arizona has a lot of size, and if he can’t stay on the court then he may see his minutes dwindle.
Defensively, he can be elite, and Tennessee was a lot better when he was on the floor. EvanMiya ranked him 54th in the country in DBPR, which measures the defensive value a player brings when he is on the court. Arizona was a top-10 defensive team last year, and with him on the court, they can reach that again. He will probably start at the four spots, and as long as he is on the court, he can be great for this Arizona basketball team. The main question will be whether he can take a jump with more minutes, something he wasn’t able to get at Tennessee.
Grade: B
Anthony Dell’Orso
NEWS: Campbell transfer Anthony Dell'Orso, one of the best available wings in the portal, has committed to Arizona, he told ESPN. The 6'6 sophomore Australian averaged 20.2 points, shooting 39% for 3 this season. Testing the NBA Draft waters and will continue to gather feedback. pic.twitter.com/Mj6xpggnIs
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) May 7, 2024
If there is any player in this transfer portal class who can take the Dalton Knecht leap, it’s Anthony Dell’Orso. The Aussie forward averaged 19.5 PPG, 6.5 RPG, and 1.6 steals per game as a sophomore at Campbell, a huge jump after winning Big South Freshman of the Year the previous year. He’s not a high-volume three-point shooter, averaging four a game, but he shoots it at 38% when he does. He scored 30+ three times last season, including a 34-point 11 rebound performance against UNC Willington in which he played 48 minutes.
One of the biggest questions is whether this can translate to the power conference level. Campbell only played one game against a Power 5 opponent during Dell’Orso’s time, and it was the second game of his freshman season. There is obviously a lot of talent in the mid-major conferences, but having to go up against a Big 12 defense like Houston or Iowa State is a whole different beast. There might be some growing pains early on, but he can get there.
Dell’Orso is currently in the draft, so there isn’t 100% certainty he’ll even step foot in Tuscon. However, it is likely he does, and he’ll probably serve as the team’s 6th man. He can bring the offense, and if Caleb Love doesn’t return he can be really valuable, but his defense is lacking, which could limit his minutes during conference play. Of any player entering the Big 12, Dell’Orso could be the biggest boom or bust of them all.
Grade: B+
Trey Townsend
NEWS: Oakland transfer forward Trey Townsend (@treyt430) has committed to Arizona, his agent @georgelangberg of GSL Sports Group tells @On3Sports.
The Horizon League POY averaged 17.3 PTS, 8.1 REB, and 3.1 AST this season.https://t.co/eyR47VwcBt pic.twitter.com/C8t2QWrRsB
— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) April 24, 2024
Townsend became a household name after Oakland’s upset win against Kentucky in the NCAA Tournament. Townsend posted 17 points and 12 rebounds in that game and followed that up with a 30-point and 13-rebound game in the loss against NC State. The Horizon League player of the year also scored 38 points in the conference tournament final to get them in the position to pull off the upset.
If Caleb Love doesn’t return, Townsend would be the only senior on the team, which is crazy to think about with the rise in players staying for longer and using their COVID year. That experience will help tremendously.
I think that Townsend will be forced to become more of a perimeter player at Arizona. Awaka and Motiejus Krivas both can’t shoot, so having three forwards out there with no outside game could be a nightmare. Arizona could go small and move Awaka to the 5 and Townsend to the 4, but that’ll probably be unlikely. Townsend only averaged one three a game last year and was really great with his back to the basket, so the fit there might be a little difficult. Tommy Lloyd will have a difficult roster decision to make to get the best out of his bigs, including Townsend.
Defensively, he isn’t the best, but his offense more than makes up for it. He has shown he can compete at this level, and as was mentioned earlier, that experience will be extremely valuable for this Arizona basketball team.
Grade: A-
Featured Image Credit: Joe Tipton @tiptonedits