Because freshman guard Kylan Boswell arrived on campus over the summer already with a broken foot, Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd has become used to gently working him into things.
So, even with Boswell on track to play in the Wildcats’ exhibition Tuesday against Western Oregon, Lloyd didn’t think twice about it when he noticed Boswell was just “sitting over there” early in Friday’s practice.
“I didn’t know if he was gonna go” in practice,” Lloyd said afterward. “I guess he just wanted to sit out the charge drill.”
Would be hard to blame Boswell for that, since the charge drill requires players to take contact that slams them to the floor twice, then dive after a loose ball.
(Actually, it was trainer Justin Kokoskie who told Boswell to sit out the drill as a precautionary move after he twisted an ankle on Thursday.).
Still, chances are that Boswell probably could have gone through the drill without trouble. It’s just that the Wildcats continue to ease him into practices, allowing him to do just about anything but not do it all the time.
Plus, as Lloyd has pointed out, Boswell is still only 17, having reclassified to skip his senior year of high school, and has a pretty full plate these days.
“Kylan literally just started practicing, so a lot” of adjusting is happening, Lloyd said. “He’s talented. He’s a great kid. I think he’s got a high IQ. Now it’s just about learning the specifics of the system and playing basketball at this level.
“These kids come with a lot of habits and they’re not bad habits but they might not necessarily be the best habit for the system. So we’ve got to kind of make sure those things eventually come together.”
Boswell could get a chance to make more progress by playing in the Wildcats’ exhibition game Tuesday, though Lloyd said he wasn’t sure yet if Boswell would participate.
“I haven’t thought about it that much ahead but it’s definitely a possibility,” Lloyd said. “Right now it’s just making sure he’s responding day-to-day. I think today was his first day he went back-to-back (practicing) so it’s encouraging.”
Junior wing Pelle Larsson knows the timeline. He actually had the same injury in the summer of 2021 and was just getting cleared to play in late October 2021, needing well into the season to hit his stride.
But Larsson already had a year of college basketball experience behind him at Utah in 2020-21.
Boswell was supposed to be a senior at AZ Compass Prep this fall.
“He’s healthy. It’s just that he hasn’t played for a long time and he hasn’t played on this level,” Larsson said. “So I think he’s doing a great job adjusting. And, I mean, the kid is a bucket. He’s really good on offense and defensively. So it’s just a matter of time but I think he can really help us this year.”
Henderson wears blue
Lloyd said he has mixed up the players with his first group, but during a practice that was open to media on Friday, had grad transfer Cedric Henderson wearing a blue jersey along with starters Kerr Kriisa, Courtney Ramey, Pelle Larsson, Azuolas Tubelis and Oumar Ballo.
“Ced kind of bounces back and forth just to make sure he gets enough reps,” Lloyd said. “And if that is your starting lineup (blue team), you maybe go 40% of the game with him in there. You’re always making different combinations.”
Having Henderson on the blue team during Friday’s practice allowed Lloyd to quickly shift from his big starting lineup to a smaller one, in which Campbell and Tubelis were the post players and Ballo sat out.
“I think once he finds his way and we get few more things on film, I think he’ll be a guy who will be really interesting in these scenarios of putting up points in different ways,” Lloyd said.
Rim shots
Lloyd said freshman wing Adama Bal has played well since spraining an ankle earlier in the preseason. Bal showed promising flashes as a freshman last season and also played well for France’s U20 team over the summer. “I’m interested in seeing where Adama is,” Lloyd said. “I’m expecting he’s gonna make a big jump this year. Ever since he sprained his ankle, he’s been pretty good. I think he’s trending up.”
Former UA and NFL star Rob Gronkowski took in some of practice and spoke briefly to the Wildcats in a huddle afterward. Gronkowski will serve as an honorary team captain for UA’s football team against USC on Saturday.
