When the floodgates to the transfer portal opened earlier this week, Arizona men's basketball wasted no time chasing its most certain need.
The Wildcats secured a visit next week with transferring Oregon point guard Jackson Shelstad, according to reports from both 247 and On3. That should give them a crack at replacing Jaden Bradley with a quick, veteran point guard who proved himself directly against the Wildcats as a freshman and sophomore before missing most of his junior year this season with a hand injury.
Shelstad is also scheduled to visit Louisville this weekend, but On3’s Pete Nakos predicted the Wildcats would ultimately land him.
In the semifinals of the 2023-24 Pac-12 Tournament, the 6-1 Shelstad scored 21 points against the Wildcats while hitting 7 of 16 field goals (3 of 7 3-pointers) and blocking three shots in the Ducks’ 67-59 win over Arizona.
A year later, in an NCAA Tournament second-round game at Seattle, Shelstad poured in 25 points on 9-for-14 shooting (3 of 6 3s) with two assists and a steal, although Arizona won that game 87-83 to reach the Sweet 16.
Oregon guard Jackson Shelstad, left, drives to the basket against Arizona guard KJ Lewis, right, after stealing possession during the first half in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, March 23, 2025, in Seattle.
Named a third-team all-Big Ten pick last season, Shelstad was off to a promising start this season before a hand injury shut him down after 12 games. He broke his hand a month before the season began and missed Oregon’s season opener, but averaged 15.6 points and 4.9 assists with a 2.7-1 assist-turnover ratio over the next 12 games.
Then Shelstad reinjured his hand against Omaha on Dec. 28, and Oregon coach Dana Altman said he also suffered ligament damage, according to Ducks Wire, shelving him for the rest of the season. The Ducks lost 10 of their next 11 games without Shelstad and stumbled to by far their worst record in Altman’s 16 seasons, just 10-20.
Shelstad announced his decision to leave Oregon on March 24.
"These last three years have been truly special," he posted, thanking coaches teammates and others. "After a lot of thought, I've made the difficult decision to enter the transfer portal and pursue other opportunities next year."
Although Shelstad isn’t eligible for a medical redshirt year under current NCAA rules, Altman said upon his December injury that “definitely we’ll try to get him another year.”
Current NCAA rules state players are eligible for a medical redshirt only if they suffer a season-ending injury, don’t play past the halfway point of a season and not in more than 30% of a team’s games. But 12 games represented 37.5% of Oregon’s games this season, meaning Shelstad would have only one more year of college eligibility barring a successful appeal or rule change.
Many of Arizona’s other offseason needs will be determined by decisions among its current players. While seniors Bradley, Anthony Dell'Orso and Tobe Awaka are out of eligibility under current rules — and freshmen Brayden Burries and Koa Peat have been widely expected to leave for the NBA Draft — several others have college eligibility remaining to play at Arizona or elsewhere.
Early predictions
With so much uncertainty ahead in the spring roster transition season, Arizona predictably fell all over the map in the usual postseason spate of “way too early” Top 25 rankings for next season that surfaced earlier this week.
Arizona ranged from No. 3 in The Athletic’s ranking all the way to No. 18 in Sporting News, while ESPN and Fox had them at No. 5, and On3 put them at No. 8.
Arizona forward Ivan Kharchenkov (8) puts up a floater in the lane late in the second half against Michigan in their Final Four game in Indianapolis, Ind., on April 4, 2026.
“One never knows who might stick around following a season as successful as the Wildcats,’" wrote Sporting News columnist Mike DeCourcy, “but there is plenty reason for center Mo Krivas and wing Ivan Kharchenkov to continue their careers in Tucson. And if they’re in place, Arizona could be top-10 good.”
The decisions of those two players appeared to be central to most predictions, while of the other UA players with eligibility remaining, freshman forward Dwayne Aristode appears to be another wildcard.
Aristode said after UA’s semifinal loss to Michigan only that he “hadn’t been thinking” about his future, though Fox analyst Casey Jacobsen wrote that Aristode is expected to break out next season and that incoming five-star guard Caleb Holt is “legit.”
The Athletic's CJ Moore said he based his pick on an assumption that both Kharchenkov and Krivas would return, and that the key was whether UA coach Tommy Lloyd “could land a stud point guard and some reinforcements on the bench.”
“Lloyd is one of the best international recruiters in the game, so odds are he’s able to find his guy between the transfer portal or international portal,” Moore wrote. “Caleb Holt is one of the best high school prospects in this class and a perfect Brayden Burries replacement. Similar to Koa Peat, he has the built-in advantage of having played under Lloyd for USA Basketball.
Prolific Prep's Caleb Holt (2) in action against Dynamic Prep during a high school game at the Hoophall Classic, Jan. 19, 2026, in Springfield, MA.
“Also, do not be surprised if (UA freshman forward) Sidi Gueye becomes a solid contributor after barely playing as a freshman. This is the Gonzaga way. Lloyd has a history of developing big men who wait their turn and excel once given the opportunity.
Wildcats No. 3 in final Associated Press Top 25
Arizona finished at No. 3 in the Associated Press Top 25 postseason poll, behind national champion Michigan and runner-up UConn.
Picked 13th in the preseason poll, Arizona (36-3) rose to No. 1 for nine iterations of the poll in midseason, then entered the NCAA Tournament at No. 2 behind only Duke. The Blue Devils (35-3) finished at No. 4 after losing to UConn in the Elite Eight.
In the computer metrics, the Wildcats finished No. 2 in Kenpom behind Michigan, and third in NCAA NET ratings behind Michigan and No. 2 Duke.
Michigan (37-3) beat Arizona 91-73 in the national semifinals on Saturday before also beating UConn 69-63 on Monday to win the NCAA title.
Arizona wound up 7-1 against teams ranked in the final Top 10, and 10-3 against all teams in the postseason AP Top 25.
Among the Wildcats' other opponents this season, Purdue (30-9) finished at No. 6 in the AP poll, Houston (30-7) was ranked No. 8, Florida (27-8) was No. 9, Arkansas (28-9) No. 13, Alabama (25-10) No. 16, Kansas (24-11) No. 20 and Texas Tech (23-11) No. 21.
