Arizona senior forward Ira Lee suffered a concussion in practice a few weeks ago and is doubtful for the Wildcats' opener next Wednesday against NAU, UA coach Sean Miller said.
The Wildcats have not been visible to the public this preseason but Miller disclosed the injury during a Zoom press conference Friday when asked if the Wildcats have had any issues with COVID testing or tracing.
Lee still has not yet returned to practice and Miller said he wasn't sure if Lee would be able to practice early next week, making an appearance against NAU appear doubtful at best.
Lee also has a past history of concussion, suffering one toward the end of his freshman season in 2017-18 after which he sat out seven games over four weeks. Miller compared his injury to that of Stone Gettings, who missed a month after suffering a concussion in the Wooden Legacy over Thanksgiving week last season.
"He has a history there so obviously we're going to allow Ira to get through all of his symptoms," Miller said. "With concussions, it's a little like COVID in that everybody reacts differently to it. You have to really rely on the individual and go to great care and lengths to make sure they're protected. That's where Ira is right now.ย
"Will he be able to play against Northern Arizona? I don't really have an answer to that right now."
While still formulating his potential rotation, Miller said there are about three different starting lineups the Wildcats could deploy against the Lumberjacks.ย
The Wildcats are scheduled to start with four games over the first eight days of the season, facing NAU, Grambling State (Nov. 27), UTEP (Nov. 29) and Colorado (Dec. 2).
