After his mentor said he would transfer from the Arizona Wildcats on May 27, rising sophomore Devonaire Doutrive now says he's sticking around.
Sorry for the confusion everyone but I’m staying at the University of Arizona 🐻⬇️
— Devonaire Doutrive (@Devonaire23) June 24, 2019
His decision was posted just hours after Alex Barcello said he's leaving, and a week after Terry Armstrong opted to turn pro instead of showing up as a freshman.
Armstrong's decision left UA at the scholarship maximum of 13 while Barcello's temporarily left them with one spot open until Doutrive took it back. However, UA is believed to still be recruiting for next season.
MORE: Alex Barcello leaving Arizona Wildcats, but Devonaire Doutrive says he's coming back
The return of Doutrive not only gives the Wildcats some much-needed depth on the perimeter but it could save Arizona in future Academic Progress Rating calculations, since they are measures of both academics and retention.
Players who transfer to another school in the next regular semester and have a 2.6 grade-point average do not cost their former schools a retention demerit. It is believed that Barcello is a good student, though individual grades are normally not released because of student-privacy rules.
Doutrive's mentor, Laurian Watkins, said on May 27 that Doutrive was looking for a "more suitable" spot to play next season.
"U of A was awesome, just not the best fit for him!" Watkins said via text message then. "Wishing U of A nothing but the best. They have put in a solid recruiting class in addition to some good transfers. Everyone will be great on both sides."
