Adia Barnes: Wildcats' three-person signing class 'great players ... better people'

It’s official. Arizona coach Adia Barnes announced Wednesday that Breya Cunningham, Jade Williams and Montaya Dew, all five-star prospects, had signed national letters-of-intent.

Arizona’s 2023 signing class was ranked No. 1 nationally by ESPN’s Hoop Gurlz heading into signing day. Arizona will drop a little after other top players sign with other schools, but is still expected to finish in the top five.

Coach Adia Barnes called the newest Wildcats “not only great players, but great people — they really are.”

Cunningham, who plays for La Jolla Country Day in San Diego, was the first to sign. She is rated No. 14 overall by ESPN Hoop Gurlz and is a 6-foot-4-inch post player.

Barnes calls her a true old-school post player.

“Breya is one a few in the country that is a five that wants to be a five; she can step out and she shots but she’s not trying to go dribble through her legs and shoot 3s,” Barnes said. “I love that about her cause she wants to be who she is. I think she is only going to get better. She’s a beast inside. She’s going to be a force to be reckoned with, for sure.”

Cunningham has a Tucson connection: She was born here and her mother, Christania Haughton, graduated from the UA. Cunningham grew up with Arizona stuff all over her bedroom — even before Barnes started recruiting her in the eighth grade.

Cunningham’s high school teammate, Williams, was the next one to sign. Barnes said the two “bring out the best in each other and trust each other.”

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Williams is rated No. 21, is a true point guard at 5 feet 6 inches.

While many have heard of Williams because of her NIL deals, she is also known as a connector.

“She’s got such high energy, people want to be around her,” Barnes said. “Some people just have the personality (where) they attract people. You can talk and feel like you’ve known forever after a few minutes. … One thing that really stuck out with me about (Jada) is how this all came to fruition. She was with USA basketball and I was going back looking at videos … she’s hurt and wasn’t playing. She’s the first person off the bench. She’s giving high fives. The first person meeting (teammates) at half court, walking back. Super engaged on the bench and as a coach, you look for those things. And most people don’t have that and she has that. She’s a natural born leader.”

Dew, who is rated No. 8 nationally, rounds out the class. The 6-2 forward attended Las Vegas Centennial and is headed to Tucson at the end of December. She will grayshirt next semester, practicing with the Wildcats but not appearing in games.

Barnes called Dew “just springy and a facilitator,” Barnes said. “She’ll probably play (power forward) in the beginning, just so she can learn our system.”

Barnes may end up playing Dew at four positions: point guard, shooting guard, small forward and power forward. Dew has been compared to former UA standout Sam Thomas, who also went to Centennial. Both came from a system that plays tenacious defense.

This class and the current freshmen know each other from playing together at elite camps, USA Basketball and other competitions, a fact Barnes says will help with chemistry once they all arrive on campus.