After just two years at Arizona, 21-year-old center Christian Koloko is already the most veteran Wildcat.
Maybe not the oldest β that distinction belongs to 23-year-old Georgia transfer Justin Kier β but no player has been around the program longer than Koloko has.
Which means no player has seen more change.
βItβs a little bit weird,β Koloko said.
When Koloko arrived in Tucson two summers ago, his practice mates in the post included leading scorer Zeke Nnaji, former Duke player Chase Jeter, Cornell grad transfer Stone Gettings, high-motor forward Ira Lee and then-redshirting Nevada transfer Jordan Brown.
All those guys are long gone. Nnaji ran off to the NBA after one season and, after Lithuanian freshman Azuolas Tubelis quickly emerged from the post group last season, Brown (Louisiana-Lafayette) and Lee (George Washington) transferred last spring.
Coach Sean Miller was fired in April β and suddenly Koloko wondered where his future would be, too.
βWhen the coach who recruits you is leaving, you start thinking about βWhatβs my future?β Koloko said. βI started thinking about it and I had three meetings with Coach Tommy, and he convinced me to stay.β
Koloko has met with new coach Tommy Lloyd multiple times on and off the court since Lloydβs mid-April arrival. UAβs decision to fire Miller five weeks after its season ended β and when Lloyd became available because Gonzagaβs season ended β compressed the amount of time its players had to consider transferring.
βJust by talking to him about the way he wants us to play and his approach, the way he sees basketball, heβs a teacher,β Koloko said of Lloyd. βHe loves teaching the game, and thatβs something you want from a coach. You want someone who wants to teach you and wants you to get better. I knew by staying it was going to be a good thing for me.
βWe had two weeks to get to know each other and we had some workouts together. During those two weeks, I think i saw enough from him that I knew he was someone I could trust. I decided Iβd stay at Arizona.β.
Koloko has already established himself as a rim protector defensively, and itβs possible Lloydβs more fluid offensive style could also bring out more of his game on the other end of the court.
That was another pitch that convinced Koloko to stay.
βThe way he wants us to play, he wants us to move the ball, he wants us to run the floor,β Koloko said. βHe wants me to be a rim runner, basically all the time, to be always moving and be more involved in the possessions. Itβs a little bit different from what we had last year, but I think thatβs something that will help me and help the team also.β
After the Wildcatsβ spring workouts, Koloko went back to his home base in Los Angeles to work out on his own. He said he was much better off than in the 2020 offseason, when Koloko struggled to find an open gym or any equipment to work with because of Californiaβs strict COVID-19 restrictions.
Koloko also worked out briefly in Tucson with sophomore Benn Mathurin before the sophomore wing left to join the Canadian senior and U19 teams. Koloko has yet to face 7-foot Gonzaga transfer Oumar Ballo, who has spent most of the summer in his native Mali and playing for his national U19 team in Latvia.
For Koloko, who streamed some of the FIBA U19 World Cup games to watch his teammates, thatβs OK.
Koloko said he had a chance to at least get to know newcomers such as Kier, freshman wing Shane Nowell, and Utah transfer Pelle Larsson. Koloko has yet to meet transfer forward Kim Aiken Jr., but he played against him last December when the Wildcats edged Eastern Washington.
βI think from just spending time with those guys, I think weβre gonna be pretty good,β Koloko said. βThey want to learn. They want our team to be good and theyβre good guys. They love to work and they love to get better. Thatβs the kind of team you want to be part of and this is the kind of team we have this year. Iβm really excited to see whatβs going to happen when weβre all together.β