Dave Heeke already had Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd under contract for four more seasons with the Wildcats, but the first one was enough for the Arizona athletic director to tear it all up.
The Arizona Board of Regents unanimously approved Heeke’s request for revised five-year contract for Lloyd that will give him a $1 million raise, with a total school-paid compensation of $3.6 million next season, during its meeting Thursday afternoon in Flagstaff.
It was an end to a process Heeke began envisioning during a magical first season for Lloyd, in which the Wildcats went well beyond expectations to win the Pac-12, earn a No. 1 NCAA tournament seed and go 33-4.
UA drew up a contract through 2026-27 that also gives Lloyd $100,000 salary escalators every year, up to $4.0 million in total school-paid compensation in the final season, plus an extra roughly $200,000 each from Nike and IMG every season.
In return for the raise, Lloyd agreed to pay the school $12 million buyout if he leaves UA before the end of 2023-24.
“I believe and we believe in Tommy Lloyd,” Heeke said Thursday by phone from Flagstaff, where he spoke to the Regents in advance of their vote. “It was very clear to me that we should step up and make the commitment and move forward in a really significant way. Because that’s what this basketball program deserves.”
Of course, there was more to it than on-court success. Lloyd brought a down-to-earth, engaging style that pumped a new personality into the Wildcats after taking over in April 2021 for fired former coach Sean Miller. Arizona still faces an NCAA infractions case that resulted from alleged violations that occurred during Miller’s tenure.
In his comments to the Regents, Heeke said Lloyd has brought integrity, developed appropriate relationships in recruiting and engaged with his players, former players and the community.
“He’s a person who has really provided stability at a critically important time for our program, for our athletic department and the community,” Heeke said. “So this really is a move to enter a commitment on both sides to have Coach Lloyd lead our program for a very long time, to continue to build the program and be a key member of our university community.”
Still, even as Lloyd received several national coach of the year honors, it wasn’t an automatic sell. Lloyd’s compensation package solidly puts him among the top three Pac-12 coaches and just outside the Top 10 nationally, and chair Lyndel Manson said the Regents had discussions about the “magnitude” of changes to the new contract.
“While it is difficult to swallow — it is a lot of money, we understand that — it is also extraordinarily important to the University of Arizona,” Manson said. She also said Lloyd brought success and integrity in his first year while praising Heeke for his recent hires.
“It’s been a huge change and I think very much in the right direction,” Manson said. “I’m very appreciative of that. And I think that environment sets the tone for a lot of the university.”
Then there was the public input, with Arizona’s proposed deal having been made public last week after it was filed with the Regents.
“There’s no doubt that coaching salaries and investments in elite-level coaches are significant, but they also produce tremendous results,” Heeke said. “Certainly in our society, everyone has their opinions, but we’ve had strong support for Tommy, and for continuing his role as our head basketball coach. … We will continue to do things that we think will help our basketball program.”
Lloyd’s $4 million guaranteed package, which also includes about $200,000 each from Nike and IMG, likely makes him the Pac-12’s second-highest paid basketball coach, behind only UCLA’s Mick Cronin.
As a private school, USC is not obligated to release the salary of coach Andy Enfield, who is also among the league’s highest-paid coaches (a school tax filing said Enfield made $3.29 million in fiscal 2020.)
Had it been on the books last season, Lloyd’s $4 million package would have ranked just outside the Top 10 nationally last season, according to USA Today’s college basketball coaching salary database.
The deal through 2026-27 will raise Lloyd’s salary $100,000 after every season through 2026-27, when he’ll be contracted to earn a school-paid package of $4.0 million plus the Nike and IMG income.
In a statement UA released after the deal was approved, Lloyd gave thanks all around.
“I am thankful for the continued support of Arizona basketball, but our players and staff deserve credit for making my first year a special one,” Lloyd said. “Everyone played an important role in helping us win two Pac-12 championships while competing at the highest level.
“I would also like to give a special thank you to the Arizona Board of Regents, president Dr. Robert C. Robbins and Director of Athletics Dave Heeke for their unwavering commitment to our program, who, along with our incredible fans, make Arizona such a special place.
Lloyd led the Wildcats well beyond expectations in what was his first season as a head coach. The Wildcats went 33-4, won the Pac-12 regular-season and tournament titles, then earned a No. 1 NCAA Tournament seed.
In the proposal UA submitted to the Regents last week, the school said it wanted to rework Lloyd’s contract after his “overwhelmingly successful” first season, while also stiffening up the buyout provision intended to lock the coach in. Lloyd will have to pay UA $12 million if he opts to leave within the first two years of the deal, up from a $5 million buyout if he had left in the first two years of his previous deal.
Lloyd will have to pay $6 million if he leaves in the third year of the contract, and $2 million if in the fourth, fifth or in any additional years that might be given to him if NCAA sanctions hit the program.
“I think that’s a tremendous commitment by Tommy to say, ‘I want to be here,’” Heeke said. “Compensation and buyouts are the commitments on both sides. That buyout is a big lift. There is a commitment on Tommy’s side to be here.”
UA says it will propose a sixth year for Lloyd if NCAA sanctions stemming from the current infractions case result in a postseason ban, the loss of two or more scholarships or other “material restrictions” in recruiting for a year. Under the new proposal, a sixth year now would come with a school-paid package of $4.1 million. UA said a second extra contract year at $4.2 million would be proposed if the sanctions are handed down for more than one year.
Cedric Henderson Jr. of the Campbell Fighting Camels drives to the basket during a Big South Tournament game against Presbyterian on March 2. Henderson committed to the UA on Thursday.
Campbell transfer commits to Arizona
Arizona added some much-needed depth to the wing Thursday when Campbell graduate transfer Cedric Henderson Jr. committed to the Wildcats following an official visit.
A 6-foot-6-inch forward from Memphis, Henderson announced his decision via Instagram. He visited Arizona earlier this week after having also recently visited N.C. State and Texas Tech.
An honorable mention pick in the Big South last season — meaning he was voted one of the league’s top 15 players — Henderson averaged 14.0 points and 5.6 rebounds per game.
Playing mostly at power forward in an undersized lineup, Henderson shot 38.4% from 3-point range and 53.8% from 2. He also proved himself during the Camels’ only game against a high-major opponent last season, collecting 18 points and 11 rebounds in Campbell’s 67-56 loss at Duke early last season.
The son of Cedric Henderson, a 1993 McDonalds All-American who went on to play at the University of Memphis and in the NBA, Cedric Henderson Jr. began his college career playing for his father at Southwest Tennessee Community College in 2018-19. He was named the Tennessee Community College Athletic Association’s Freshman of the year that season while averaging 17.9 points a game.
Henderson Jr. went on to start the next three seasons for Campbell, then entered the NBA Draft and transfer portal this spring.
Arizona now has 10 players hand for 2022-23, but still need another guard and/or big man after losing three starters to the NBA Draft and super senior guard Justin Kier to graduation. The Wildcats are also pursuing Texas guard Courtney Ramey, Illinois forward Jacob Grandison and Washington State forward Efe Abogidi, among others.
On3 says its intel suggests that Ramey will commit to Arizona within a week. He is also considering West Virginia.
Pinder named to Aussie national team
Former Arizona forward Keanu Pinder will make his first appearance for Australia’s national team during upcoming World Cup qualifying games in Melbourne.
Pinder was one of 12 players named to Australia’s “Boomers” senior team, which will face China, Chinese Taipei and Japan in games from June 30-July 4.
Pinder, who played for the Wildcats in 2016-17 and 2017-18, picked up the Most Improved Player award last season in Australia’s NBL after averaging 10.9 points and 7.6 rebounds per game for the Cairns Taipans. Pinder shot 55% from the field and blocked an average of one shot per game.
Others named to the Australian team included: Matthew Dellavedova, Mitch McCarron, Will McDowell White, Sam McDaniel, Wani Swaka Lo Buluk, Todd Blanchfield, Clint Steindl, Jack White, Jack McVeigh, Thon Maker and Sam Froling.
Wildcats record 3.14 GPA
Arizona said the men’s basketball program had a 3.14 grade-point program average during the spring semester, setting a team GPA record for the second straight semester.
Of the 16 players on UA’s roster last season, including walk-ons, UA said 12 had at least a 3.0, with eight of those over 3.5, including one with a 4.0.
In the fall semester, Arizona first broke the men’s basketball GPA record set in fall 2003 with a 3.04 mark. It said then that four players had 4.0 GPAs, while four others had between a 3.5 and a 3.99.
Rim shots
Former UA wing Bennedict Mathurin was one of the first players invited to the “green room” at the NBA Draft for expected top picks, according to ESPN, with more invitations to come next week.
The NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel approved allowing officials to call Class B technical fouls to players who “flop” or fake being fouled, after players previously were issued warnings first.
