I have seen a lot of questions on Twitter about why Emmanuel Akot decided to leave the Wildcats now, and it's hard to say for sure.
Akot hasn't been available for comment and UA coach Sean Miller declined to take questions Tuesday that weren't about his remaining players.
But here's what we know and can reasonably speculate about the move:Β
β Akot was a starter, but his role was declining. He played only 13 minutes at Stanford on Jan. 9, and none at all in the final 7:47 while Ira Lee was the hero down the stretch. On Friday, UA coach Sean Miller spoke of wanting to play Lee more often, especially alongside starter Chase Jeter.
βΒ Akot reclassified to skip his senior season, throwing him into an even more difficult situation as a collegian. At age 18, he had to compete for time against last season's veteran and deep roster, averaging 10.9 minutes a game. He suffered tendinitis in his knee and Miller indicated he needed to learn how to take care of it better.
β Akot also never developed into the defensive stopper Miller said he could be as a freshman. In addition, this season his rebounding average of 2.8 was the least of UA's frontcourt players, with Akot collecting just 3.3 percent of offensive rebounding opportunities and 13.6 percent of defensive opportunities.
β Because he's forfeiting the rest of his eligibility this season β and not immediately leaving for another school β Akot's decision to quit now suggests either he was unhappy with his day-to-day existence on the team or that he and/or those around him believed there wasn't much point in him continuing to play.
If Akot had tried to play next season, he'd have to transfer immediately to a school that could enroll him for the spring semester and then he'd be eligible after the 2019 fall semester. But that would leave him only about two-thirds of next season to play and all of 2020-21.
β However, Akot's decision to stay at UA this semester maximizes his athletic and academic potential. Miller said he's in good academic standing, so if Akot leaves while eligible that both eases his academic transition and saves UA a demerit in the Academic Progress Rating.
After transferring in the spring, Akot will have to sit out all of next season, barring a successful appeal, but he'll get next season to develop behind the scenes under another staff, while he'll have two full seasons of eligibility to play in 2020-21 and 2021-22.
Plus, since Akot reclassified, sitting out a redshirt season actually only puts him back in his original class. He'll turn 20 in March and be 21 when his redshirt junior season begins.
Photos: Emmanuel Akot's career as an Arizona Wildcat
Photos: Emmanuel Akot's career as an Arizona Wildcat
Arizona Wildcats vs. Montana Grizzlies men's college basketball
Updated
Arizona Wildcats vs. Stanford Cardinal men's college basketball
Updated
Arizona Wildcats vs. Utah Utes men's college basketball
Updated
University of Arizona vs Colorado
Updated
Arizona vs Utah Valley
Updated
Arizona vs Utah Valley
Updated
Arizona UConn Basketball
Updated
Arizona Wildcats 100, Georgia Southern Eagles 70
Updated
Arizona Wildcats 100, Georgia Southern Eagles 70
Updated
University of Arizona vs Houston Baptist
Updated
University of Arizona vs Houston Baptist
Updated
University of Arizona vs Houston Baptist
Updated
Arizona Wildcats vs. Chaminade Silverswords college basketball
No. 9 Arizona Wildcats vs. Washington Huskies college basketball
Updated
No. 9 Arizona Wildcats vs. Washington Huskies college basketball
Updated
No. 9 Arizona Wildcats vs. Washington Huskies college basketball
Updated
No. 17 Arizona Wildcats vs. No. 3 Arizona State Sun Devils
Updated
University of Arizona vs Utah
Updated
Arizona vs UMBC
Updated
University of Arizona vs Chico State
Updated
University of Arizona vs Eastern New Mexico
Updated
Arizona Wildcats Red-Blue scrimmage
Updated
Emmanuel Akot
Updated
Emmanuel Akot reportedly quits Arizona Wildcats
Updated
Arizona declined to comment late Monday on a 247Sports.com report that sophomore forward Emmanuel Akot has quit the Wildcats and will transfer next season.
Akot could not be reached for comment. His high school coach, Curtis Condie, said Monday that he didnβt know if Akot was leaving. Akot would be the second Wildcat to leave the program this season. Belgian freshman Omar Thielemans left the team in October, and has since enrolled at Wright State.Β
Akot could play at another school next season, after the fall semester ends, if he were to leave the UA immediately and enroll somewhere else. However, 247Sports.com said Akot plans to finish out this semester at Arizona and transfer afterward. That would leave Akot with two full seasons of college eligibility remaining, but he’d have to sit out all of the 2019-20 season as a transfer.
Arriving in 2017 from Winnipeg, Manitoba via Utahβs Wasatch Academy, Akot possessed a four-star rating and a versatile skillset. He never found a consistent role at Arizona. He spent much of his freshman season battling knee tendinitis, and didnβt emerge as the defensive stopper coach Sean Miller said he could become.
Miller put Akot in the starting lineup after this seasonβs trip to the Maui Invitational in a move to help his confidence β and give the Wildcats extra shooting off the bench in former starter Ryan Luther β but Akotβs per-minute contributions remained similar.
Over 17 games this season, Akot averaged 3.8 points and 2.8 rebounds while playing an average of 19.3 minutes per game. As a bench player in the previous six games, he averaged 2.8 points, 2.7 rebounds and played 16.7 minutes per game.
Having Akot βstarting the game gives us a different look β we have another ball-handler on the court, we have almost another wing player to defend,β Miller said of the move in early December. βIβm gonna say weβre a little bit quicker, a little more fluid in terms of multiple ball-handlers.β
But Akot may have faced an uphill battle to earn more playing time the rest of this season, and next. On Wednesday, sophomore reserve Ira Lee made several critical plays in the final minute to spark UAβs 75-70 win at Stanford. Miller said on Friday he wanted Lee to play more often, especially alongside starting center Chase Jeter.
Akot scored two points on 1-for-4 shooting with three rebounds at Stanford, then posted six points and three rebounds in 23 minutes on Saturday at Cal.
Next season, UA is bringing in well-regarded forwards Terry Armstrong and Zeke Nnaji, along with five-star guards Nico Mannion and Josh Green.
Check out photos from Akot's brief Arizona career:Β
Photos: Emmanuel Akot's career as an Arizona Wildcat
Arizona Wildcats vs. Montana Grizzlies men's college basketball
Updated
Arizona Wildcats vs. Stanford Cardinal men's college basketball
Updated
Arizona Wildcats vs. Utah Utes men's college basketball
Updated
University of Arizona vs Colorado
Updated
Arizona vs Utah Valley
Updated
Arizona vs Utah Valley
Updated
Arizona UConn Basketball
Updated
Arizona Wildcats 100, Georgia Southern Eagles 70
Updated
Arizona Wildcats 100, Georgia Southern Eagles 70
Updated
University of Arizona vs Houston Baptist
Updated
University of Arizona vs Houston Baptist
Updated
University of Arizona vs Houston Baptist
Updated
Arizona Wildcats vs. Chaminade Silverswords college basketball
No. 9 Arizona Wildcats vs. Washington Huskies college basketball
Updated
No. 9 Arizona Wildcats vs. Washington Huskies college basketball
Updated
No. 9 Arizona Wildcats vs. Washington Huskies college basketball
Updated
No. 17 Arizona Wildcats vs. No. 3 Arizona State Sun Devils
Updated
University of Arizona vs Utah
Updated
Arizona vs UMBC
Updated
University of Arizona vs Chico State
Updated
University of Arizona vs Eastern New Mexico
Updated
Arizona Wildcats Red-Blue scrimmage
Updated
Emmanuel Akot
Updated
Emmanuel Akot reportedly quits Arizona Wildcats
Updated
Arizona declined to comment late Monday on a 247Sports.com report that sophomore forward Emmanuel Akot has quit the Wildcats and will transfer next season.
Akot could not be reached for comment. His high school coach, Curtis Condie, said Monday that he didnβt know if Akot was leaving. Akot would be the second Wildcat to leave the program this season. Belgian freshman Omar Thielemans left the team in October, and has since enrolled at Wright State.Β
Akot could play at another school next season, after the fall semester ends, if he were to leave the UA immediately and enroll somewhere else. However, 247Sports.com said Akot plans to finish out this semester at Arizona and transfer afterward. That would leave Akot with two full seasons of college eligibility remaining, but he’d have to sit out all of the 2019-20 season as a transfer.
Arriving in 2017 from Winnipeg, Manitoba via Utahβs Wasatch Academy, Akot possessed a four-star rating and a versatile skillset. He never found a consistent role at Arizona. He spent much of his freshman season battling knee tendinitis, and didnβt emerge as the defensive stopper coach Sean Miller said he could become.
Miller put Akot in the starting lineup after this seasonβs trip to the Maui Invitational in a move to help his confidence β and give the Wildcats extra shooting off the bench in former starter Ryan Luther β but Akotβs per-minute contributions remained similar.
Over 17 games this season, Akot averaged 3.8 points and 2.8 rebounds while playing an average of 19.3 minutes per game. As a bench player in the previous six games, he averaged 2.8 points, 2.7 rebounds and played 16.7 minutes per game.
Having Akot βstarting the game gives us a different look β we have another ball-handler on the court, we have almost another wing player to defend,β Miller said of the move in early December. βIβm gonna say weβre a little bit quicker, a little more fluid in terms of multiple ball-handlers.β
But Akot may have faced an uphill battle to earn more playing time the rest of this season, and next. On Wednesday, sophomore reserve Ira Lee made several critical plays in the final minute to spark UAβs 75-70 win at Stanford. Miller said on Friday he wanted Lee to play more often, especially alongside starting center Chase Jeter.
Akot scored two points on 1-for-4 shooting with three rebounds at Stanford, then posted six points and three rebounds in 23 minutes on Saturday at Cal.
Next season, UA is bringing in well-regarded forwards Terry Armstrong and Zeke Nnaji, along with five-star guards Nico Mannion and Josh Green.
Check out photos from Akot's brief Arizona career:Β
Photos: Emmanuel Akot's career as an Arizona Wildcat
Arizona Wildcats vs. Montana Grizzlies men's college basketball
Updated
Arizona Wildcats vs. Stanford Cardinal men's college basketball
Updated
Arizona Wildcats vs. Utah Utes men's college basketball
Updated
University of Arizona vs Colorado
Updated
Arizona vs Utah Valley
Updated
Arizona vs Utah Valley
Updated
Arizona UConn Basketball
Updated
Arizona Wildcats 100, Georgia Southern Eagles 70
Updated
Arizona Wildcats 100, Georgia Southern Eagles 70
Updated
University of Arizona vs Houston Baptist
Updated
University of Arizona vs Houston Baptist
Updated
University of Arizona vs Houston Baptist
Updated
Arizona Wildcats vs. Chaminade Silverswords college basketball
No. 9 Arizona Wildcats vs. Washington Huskies college basketball
Updated
No. 9 Arizona Wildcats vs. Washington Huskies college basketball
Updated
No. 9 Arizona Wildcats vs. Washington Huskies college basketball
Updated
No. 17 Arizona Wildcats vs. No. 3 Arizona State Sun Devils
Updated
University of Arizona vs Utah
Updated
Arizona vs UMBC
Updated
University of Arizona vs Chico State
Updated
University of Arizona vs Eastern New Mexico
Updated
Arizona Wildcats Red-Blue scrimmage
Updated
Emmanuel Akot
Updated
Emmanuel Akot reportedly quits Arizona Wildcats
Updated
Arizona declined to comment late Monday on a 247Sports.com report that sophomore forward Emmanuel Akot has quit the Wildcats and will transfer next season.
Akot could not be reached for comment. His high school coach, Curtis Condie, said Monday that he didnβt know if Akot was leaving. Akot would be the second Wildcat to leave the program this season. Belgian freshman Omar Thielemans left the team in October, and has since enrolled at Wright State.Β
Akot could play at another school next season, after the fall semester ends, if he were to leave the UA immediately and enroll somewhere else. However, 247Sports.com said Akot plans to finish out this semester at Arizona and transfer afterward. That would leave Akot with two full seasons of college eligibility remaining, but he’d have to sit out all of the 2019-20 season as a transfer.
Arriving in 2017 from Winnipeg, Manitoba via Utahβs Wasatch Academy, Akot possessed a four-star rating and a versatile skillset. He never found a consistent role at Arizona. He spent much of his freshman season battling knee tendinitis, and didnβt emerge as the defensive stopper coach Sean Miller said he could become.
Miller put Akot in the starting lineup after this seasonβs trip to the Maui Invitational in a move to help his confidence β and give the Wildcats extra shooting off the bench in former starter Ryan Luther β but Akotβs per-minute contributions remained similar.
Over 17 games this season, Akot averaged 3.8 points and 2.8 rebounds while playing an average of 19.3 minutes per game. As a bench player in the previous six games, he averaged 2.8 points, 2.7 rebounds and played 16.7 minutes per game.
Having Akot βstarting the game gives us a different look β we have another ball-handler on the court, we have almost another wing player to defend,β Miller said of the move in early December. βIβm gonna say weβre a little bit quicker, a little more fluid in terms of multiple ball-handlers.β
But Akot may have faced an uphill battle to earn more playing time the rest of this season, and next. On Wednesday, sophomore reserve Ira Lee made several critical plays in the final minute to spark UAβs 75-70 win at Stanford. Miller said on Friday he wanted Lee to play more often, especially alongside starting center Chase Jeter.
Akot scored two points on 1-for-4 shooting with three rebounds at Stanford, then posted six points and three rebounds in 23 minutes on Saturday at Cal.
Next season, UA is bringing in well-regarded forwards Terry Armstrong and Zeke Nnaji, along with five-star guards Nico Mannion and Josh Green.
Check out photos from Akot's brief Arizona career:Β
Photos: Emmanuel Akot's career as an Arizona Wildcat
Arizona Wildcats vs. Montana Grizzlies men's college basketball
Updated
Arizona Wildcats vs. Stanford Cardinal men's college basketball
Updated
Arizona Wildcats vs. Utah Utes men's college basketball
Updated
University of Arizona vs Colorado
Updated
Arizona vs Utah Valley
Updated
Arizona vs Utah Valley
Updated
Arizona UConn Basketball
Updated
Arizona Wildcats 100, Georgia Southern Eagles 70
Updated
Arizona Wildcats 100, Georgia Southern Eagles 70
Updated
University of Arizona vs Houston Baptist
Updated
University of Arizona vs Houston Baptist
Updated
University of Arizona vs Houston Baptist
Updated
Arizona Wildcats vs. Chaminade Silverswords college basketball
No. 9 Arizona Wildcats vs. Washington Huskies college basketball
Updated
No. 9 Arizona Wildcats vs. Washington Huskies college basketball
Updated
No. 9 Arizona Wildcats vs. Washington Huskies college basketball
Updated
No. 17 Arizona Wildcats vs. No. 3 Arizona State Sun Devils
Updated
University of Arizona vs Utah
Updated
Arizona vs UMBC
Updated
University of Arizona vs Chico State
Updated
University of Arizona vs Eastern New Mexico
Updated
Arizona Wildcats Red-Blue scrimmage
Updated
Emmanuel Akot
Updated
Emmanuel Akot reportedly quits Arizona Wildcats
Updated
Arizona declined to comment late Monday on a 247Sports.com report that sophomore forward Emmanuel Akot has quit the Wildcats and will transfer next season.
Akot could not be reached for comment. His high school coach, Curtis Condie, said Monday that he didnβt know if Akot was leaving. Akot would be the second Wildcat to leave the program this season. Belgian freshman Omar Thielemans left the team in October, and has since enrolled at Wright State.Β
Akot could play at another school next season, after the fall semester ends, if he were to leave the UA immediately and enroll somewhere else. However, 247Sports.com said Akot plans to finish out this semester at Arizona and transfer afterward. That would leave Akot with two full seasons of college eligibility remaining, but he’d have to sit out all of the 2019-20 season as a transfer.
Arriving in 2017 from Winnipeg, Manitoba via Utahβs Wasatch Academy, Akot possessed a four-star rating and a versatile skillset. He never found a consistent role at Arizona. He spent much of his freshman season battling knee tendinitis, and didnβt emerge as the defensive stopper coach Sean Miller said he could become.
Miller put Akot in the starting lineup after this seasonβs trip to the Maui Invitational in a move to help his confidence β and give the Wildcats extra shooting off the bench in former starter Ryan Luther β but Akotβs per-minute contributions remained similar.
Over 17 games this season, Akot averaged 3.8 points and 2.8 rebounds while playing an average of 19.3 minutes per game. As a bench player in the previous six games, he averaged 2.8 points, 2.7 rebounds and played 16.7 minutes per game.
Having Akot βstarting the game gives us a different look β we have another ball-handler on the court, we have almost another wing player to defend,β Miller said of the move in early December. βIβm gonna say weβre a little bit quicker, a little more fluid in terms of multiple ball-handlers.β
But Akot may have faced an uphill battle to earn more playing time the rest of this season, and next. On Wednesday, sophomore reserve Ira Lee made several critical plays in the final minute to spark UAβs 75-70 win at Stanford. Miller said on Friday he wanted Lee to play more often, especially alongside starting center Chase Jeter.
Akot scored two points on 1-for-4 shooting with three rebounds at Stanford, then posted six points and three rebounds in 23 minutes on Saturday at Cal.
Next season, UA is bringing in well-regarded forwards Terry Armstrong and Zeke Nnaji, along with five-star guards Nico Mannion and Josh Green.
Check out photos from Akot's brief Arizona career:Β
Photos: Emmanuel Akot's career as an Arizona Wildcat
Arizona Wildcats vs. Montana Grizzlies men's college basketball
Updated
Arizona Wildcats vs. Stanford Cardinal men's college basketball
Updated
Arizona Wildcats vs. Utah Utes men's college basketball
Updated
University of Arizona vs Colorado
Updated
Arizona vs Utah Valley
Updated
Arizona vs Utah Valley
Updated
Arizona UConn Basketball
Updated
Arizona Wildcats 100, Georgia Southern Eagles 70
Updated
Arizona Wildcats 100, Georgia Southern Eagles 70
Updated
University of Arizona vs Houston Baptist
Updated
University of Arizona vs Houston Baptist
Updated
University of Arizona vs Houston Baptist
Updated
Arizona Wildcats vs. Chaminade Silverswords college basketball
No. 9 Arizona Wildcats vs. Washington Huskies college basketball
Updated
No. 9 Arizona Wildcats vs. Washington Huskies college basketball
Updated
No. 9 Arizona Wildcats vs. Washington Huskies college basketball
Updated
No. 17 Arizona Wildcats vs. No. 3 Arizona State Sun Devils
Updated
University of Arizona vs Utah
Updated
Arizona vs UMBC
Updated
University of Arizona vs Chico State
Updated
University of Arizona vs Eastern New Mexico
Updated
Arizona Wildcats Red-Blue scrimmage
Updated
Emmanuel Akot
Updated
Emmanuel Akot reportedly quits Arizona Wildcats
Updated
Arizona declined to comment late Monday on a 247Sports.com report that sophomore forward Emmanuel Akot has quit the Wildcats and will transfer next season.
Akot could not be reached for comment. His high school coach, Curtis Condie, said Monday that he didnβt know if Akot was leaving. Akot would be the second Wildcat to leave the program this season. Belgian freshman Omar Thielemans left the team in October, and has since enrolled at Wright State.Β
Akot could play at another school next season, after the fall semester ends, if he were to leave the UA immediately and enroll somewhere else. However, 247Sports.com said Akot plans to finish out this semester at Arizona and transfer afterward. That would leave Akot with two full seasons of college eligibility remaining, but he’d have to sit out all of the 2019-20 season as a transfer.
Arriving in 2017 from Winnipeg, Manitoba via Utahβs Wasatch Academy, Akot possessed a four-star rating and a versatile skillset. He never found a consistent role at Arizona. He spent much of his freshman season battling knee tendinitis, and didnβt emerge as the defensive stopper coach Sean Miller said he could become.
Miller put Akot in the starting lineup after this seasonβs trip to the Maui Invitational in a move to help his confidence β and give the Wildcats extra shooting off the bench in former starter Ryan Luther β but Akotβs per-minute contributions remained similar.
Over 17 games this season, Akot averaged 3.8 points and 2.8 rebounds while playing an average of 19.3 minutes per game. As a bench player in the previous six games, he averaged 2.8 points, 2.7 rebounds and played 16.7 minutes per game.
Having Akot βstarting the game gives us a different look β we have another ball-handler on the court, we have almost another wing player to defend,β Miller said of the move in early December. βIβm gonna say weβre a little bit quicker, a little more fluid in terms of multiple ball-handlers.β
But Akot may have faced an uphill battle to earn more playing time the rest of this season, and next. On Wednesday, sophomore reserve Ira Lee made several critical plays in the final minute to spark UAβs 75-70 win at Stanford. Miller said on Friday he wanted Lee to play more often, especially alongside starting center Chase Jeter.
Akot scored two points on 1-for-4 shooting with three rebounds at Stanford, then posted six points and three rebounds in 23 minutes on Saturday at Cal.
Next season, UA is bringing in well-regarded forwards Terry Armstrong and Zeke Nnaji, along with five-star guards Nico Mannion and Josh Green.
Check out photos from Akot's brief Arizona career:Β