PHOENIX — After he raced downcourt just ahead of a Desert Vista High School defender and elevated for an almost unguardable layup Friday, Cameron Holmes didn’t stop to celebrate or possibly even breathe.
Instead, the Arizona men's basketball signee now playing at Goodyear Millennium High School darted out of the way of an inbounder, then immediately turned to shadow his defender-turned-ballhandler all the way back down the court.
That was about 24 seconds of his night.
In the other moments of Millennium’s 76-54 win at Desert Vista's gym on Friday night, Holmes could be found defending the basket, throwing in three 3-pointers and reading the defense at the top of the key as he dribbled before tossing it over to the left wing to teammate Adan Diggs, who hit a 3.
Millennium Tigers guard Cameron Holmes (3) is introduced before a game against the Brophy Prep Broncos at Brophy Prep Gym in Phoenix, on Jan. 27, 2026.
While it’s hardly unusual for a four- or five-star high school player to serve multiple roles because his team simply has no choice, Millennium does have plenty of other talent around Holmes.
Considered a top contender to win the Arizona Open Division championship this season, Millennium's roster includes multiple high-major prospects, including a five-star guard in Diggs.
So they don’t necessarily need Holmes to do everything. But he can, so he does.
“He guards multiple positions, he plays multiple positions on offense, because he’s so versatile,” Millennium coach Rich Thornton said. “Very, very versatile.”
UA coach Tommy Lloyd probably could have seen that coming. Lloyd briefly coached Holmes during USA’s U19 World Cup training camp last summer, when Holmes did not ultimately make a team of mostly older players, then kept recruiting him.
Five-star forward Cameron Holmes gestures during USA Basketball's U19 training camp in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
“He’s got electric athleticism,” Lloyd said in November, after Holmes signed to play for the Wildcats next season. “He's a lefty, which makes him really unique as a perimeter player. He's got good size. I think he's a really good two-way player, but he can already shoot the 3, handle the ball, finish above the rim. There's a lot of things to really like about him.”
But that’s not all. This season, his final one in high school, Holmes is also the Tigers' leader, having found himself in a much different place this season than during his previous three at Millennium.
Millennium guard Cameron Holmes (3) looks to drive past Brophy Prep guard Oliver Burbach (0) at Brophy Prep Gym in Phoenix, on Jan. 27, 2026.
Former Millennium coach Ty Admundsen left last summer to become an assistant coach at ASU, where he coincidentally was facing the Wildcats on Saturday, and the Tigers' roster was also turning over heavily, including Diggs’ transfer from Gilbert Williams Field.
Having been firmly committed to staying at Millennium despite constant overtures to join a prep-school program somewhere else, Holmes was shaken.
“I was actually clueless a little bit,” Holmes said. “I didn't know where my final destination was gonna be, but I decided to stay and stick it out. My team got the big addition of Adan, and I realized I wanted to play with a star.”
It was a two-way street. Diggs, a top UA target in the class of 2028 who says he may reclassify to graduate in 2027, says he came to Millennium in part for the chance to play with Holmes.
“He's just been a mentor,” Diggs said. “He wants to see me succeed just as much as I want to see him succeed. So it's a constant battle between each other, to push each other to be great.”
Millennium guard Cameron Holmes (3) dunks the ball against the Sunnyslope Vikings on Jan. 21, 2026.
It helped make Holmes' decision to stay easier that Thornton had served as an assistant director for the well-regarded Vegas Elite club program, and Holmes said he knew him from the EYBL circuit.
Under Thornton, the Millennium program has so far lived up to expectations this season, moving to 19-3 after beating Desert Vista. The Tigers’ only losses this season have come to IMG, to well-regarded Wheeler of Marietta, Ga., and to the other top contender for the Arizona Open Division title, Phoenix Sunnyslope, 61-57.
“It's been amazing,” Holmes said. “We’ve been through a lot of ups and downs, but through it all, we just stuck to it. We had a huge coaching change. But no matter what it was, we just stayed in the gym, put the work in, and I felt like I've got significantly better from last year.”
Holmes has had a chance to work on everything in his game in his versatile role with the Tigers, and Thornton said he’s working the most with Holmes on his poise because “he’s such a temperamental, emotional player,” yet one that Thornton and Lloyd both praise.
Millennium guard Cameron Holmes (3) celebrates a shot against the Sunnyslope Vikings on Jan. 21, 2026.
“He's a great young man from a great family, super high character, great energy,” Lloyd said. “He’s fun to be around. His teammates love him, coaches love him, and he's a really talented player.”
Also, one that is getting more well-rounded by the second.
Arizona signee Cameron Holmes battles with a Desert Vista defender during a game on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026 at Desert Vista's "Storm Center" gym in Phoenix.
“I feel like this year has been more than it ever was,” Holmes said of his role. “I feel like coming in my freshman year, I was really still figuring out who I wanted to be, what I wanted to do out on the court.
“Now, I want to guard the best player. I want to get buckets. Just lead my team in any way. Be vocal. I just feel like everything from my freshman to senior year, I've learned so much through the game of basketball. It's been a lot. It's been good.”
