PHOENIX โ Longtime Southern California scout Frank Burlison said he told an Arizona coach recently that new UA commit Dalen Terry reminded him a bit of Solomon Hill because of his height and versatility.
"But Solomon Hill was already thicker when he got there from Fairfax" High School in Los Angeles, Burlison said Tuesday, at the NCAA's basketball camp at GCU. Terry is "long and lean."
Then Burlison brought up another comparison others are already using: Former Utah guard Delon Wright, now of the Dallas Mavericks.
Wright was also long, lean and versatile, able to score in multiple ways and handle the ball when necessary.
Turning just 17 earlier this month, Terry has the same potential.
"He can play anywhere on the perimeter," Burlison said. "He can guard anywhere on the perimeter. His shot's gotta get more consistent and sometimes he'll try to do a little too much with the ball but he's good."
Anywhere on the perimeter includes point guard, even at 6-6.
"I think so because he's got such great court vision and he's an energetic, enthusiastic player," Burlison said. "He's always playing hard and he's always got good energy. He and Ziaire Williams might be the two more versatile players at their size in the West.""
If you don't count T.J Leaf, who committed to Arizona then decommitted and played for UCLA instead, Terry became the first Compton Magic player to commit to the Wildcats since Gabe York did so in 2011.
But Terry is the fourth player with Arizona ties to commit to the Wildcats in the past 12 months, and the 11th Arizona scholarship player recruited by Miller.
The list of Arizona players recruited by Miller to commit to the Wildcats:
โข Dalen Terry, Tempe
โข Nico Mannion, Italy/Phoenix
โข Josh Green, Australia/Phoenix
โข Terry Armstrong, Michigan/Scottsdale*
โข Ira Lee, Phoenix/Los Angeles
โข Alex Barcello, Chandler
โข Deandre Ayton, Bahamas/Phoenix
โข Talbott Denny, Tucson
โข Nick Johnson, Gilbert
โข Matt Korcheck, Tucson
โข Daniel Bejarano, Phoenix
* Armstrong opted to sign professionally in Australia instead of playing for UA.
Notes: Mesa's Brendon Lavender played during Miller's first three seasons but signed for Lute Olson. Lee grew up in the Phoenix area but moved to Los Angeles before his teenage years.
A point guard for the "1997 Arizona Wildcats" at the NCAA's West Region basketball camp, Gilbert Higley rising junior Jaleon Israel just happens to be one of the few actual Arizona players at the camp.
He knew that not only his teammates were unfamilar, but also because his teammates were unfamiliar with Arizona.
"I talk to different people from different areas, and it's kind of funny. They're complaining about the heat," Israel said. "They were complaining tonight when we walked outside. I said, 'This is good.' "ย
It was still 97 degrees even after their 9 p.m. game ended.
The son of Dwyane Wade, Zaire Wade doesn't have to deal with being the son of a famous basketball player alone this week.
His roommate is Shaqir O'Neal, a son of Shaq and Shareef's younger brother.
"That's my guy, Shaqir," Wade said. "Another NBA son, so me and him have the same mindset, to make a name for ourselves."
They'll have to face each other on Wednesday at 4:45 p.m. at GCU Arena. Admission for arena games is free; other games and drills are held at GCU's Activity Center and closed to the public.
