By bringing in top-rated guard Shaedon Sharpe for an official visit this weekend, Arizona has already hosted all the Class of 2022 recruits it has offered scholarships to before the fall stretch run begins.
Thatโs in part because the Wildcats are believed to have only offered four players in the 2022 class: Sharpe; Jaden Bradley of Rochester, New York; Collin Chandler of Farmington, Utah; and Gilbert forward Dylan Anderson, who committed in April. Bradley, Chandler and Anderson all visited in June.
Thatโs it. In an era when Arizona and many other high-major teams turn over roughly half their rosters every spring, the Wildcats have offered โฆ four players.
Of course, first-year coach Tommy Lloyd was known for strong international recruiting ties as a longtime Gonzaga assistant, and thereโs always a chance he is chasing other 2022 targets across Europe below the recruiting radar.
Plus hundreds of more transfers pop up every spring, should Lloyd want to pursue more players for 2022-23 at that point. And Lloyd has made it clear that heโs bracing for the possibility that future NCAA sanctions could reduce the amount of scholarships he has to offer in the first place.
But in general, Lloyd says heโs following a selective recruiting strategy in which he only offers players he is dead serious about. Gone are the days when Arizona would offer two, three or even four scholarships for every available spot โ something that can require different levels of โpriorityโ within those offers.
Hereโs what you need to know about Arizonaโs new recruiting approach, in Lloydโs own words:
While Lloyd cannot discuss individual targets or his reported offers, he explained his recruiting philosophy in a recent interview with the Star.
โAt the end of the day, to me an offer is a really valuable thing, and thereโs significance to it. And just because you donโt offer a kid doesnโt mean you donโt think heโs a good player or whatnot. A lot of this comes down to timing and opportunity and the structure of our roster.
โIโve told people over and over, my No. 1 priority has been to the returning guys in this program, to make sure that their situation and their opportunities here will have a great chance to be fulfilled. I take that responsibility seriously. So I pour as much as I can into the returning players and Iโm excited that they came back. Iโm honored that they decided to stay here.
โWhen it comes to recruiting, my deal is that Arizonaโs an elite program and I think offers need to have an exclusivity to them. Thereโs got to be a real value in them and people know when they get offered from Arizona, that weโve put a ton of thought into it and we really envision that person being really successful in this program.
โItโs just an approach that that Iโve decided to take at this point. As we navigate and move the program forward, that plan may stay the same or we may we may change it a little bit. But I feel really good about it at this point.โ
However, Lloyd said with a chuckle, this philosophy might be โfrustratingโ for media looking for a constant drip of recruiting news to feed readership.
โRecruiting is a really important part of college basketball. But I think fans tend to overvalue it a little bit and at the end of the day, I want them to be really excited about the players that are here. Thatโs where I want their energy to go more towards, as opposed to their energy and distraction going to players that may or may not come here.
โRecruiting is a tough business. Iโve done it for 20 years. I know the ins and outs of it. And to me itโs something that Iโve always felt more comfortable handling between us and the families and their circle of friends, as opposed to doing it publicly.โ
Gilbert Perryโs Dylan Anderson, left, committed to the Wildcats in April.
In addition to offering a handful of prospects from U.S. schools, Lloyd indicated he may be after others across the pond.
โI mean, common sense, look at my track record. Eventually Iโd like to have this roster where we have, 50-50 U.S.-international guys or 60-40 โ 60% U.S. guys and 40% international. Eventually weโd like to get there and weโre always gonna scour the globe for guys that we think are the best fit โ that means character-wise and talent-wise to help Arizona basketball.
Outside of the prep schools โ including Glendale Dream City, where Sharpe now plays โ Arizona doesnโt have same number of recruitable players in its backyard that UCLA, Washington or even Cal has. Thatโs why Lloydโs ability to recruit internationally appeared to be one of the reasons why UA hired him, and why he chose the job.
โItโs changing. Arizona high school basketball is really on the upkick. But definitely that approach is something that we talked about, when we were talking about this job, kind of my overall recruiting philosophies and how it could fit here.
โI think itโs a great fit. You look at how NBA teams are constructing their rosters now and itโs really talented American players and really talented international players. Literally every team has a significant international player or two or three on their roster. Itโs a world game now, so why not take advantage of that?โ
Lloyd has been open about the possibility that future NCAA sanctions might cut the number of scholarships he can offer down from the maximum of 13. Heโs especially careful not to offer too many players.
โObviously thatโs part of the equation that Iโm going to consider when Iโm making decisions. I donโt have a crystal ball, but Iโm trying to be prepared as best I can because, at the end of the day, I inherited an incredible program.
โWeโre navigating through some NCAA issues but I want to make sure that at the end of this process, when we try to know whatโs going to happen and work through some of the NCAA sanctions that may be coming, that the programโs in position to move forward and be as strong as itโs ever been.โ
