If it wasn't clear already that the top of the Pac-12 will be viewed as wide open next season, the proof is starting to roll in.
ESPN's Eamonn Brennan placed Arizona at No. 15 in his current Top 25 for next season, behind Cal (12) and Utah (13). Gonzaga, UA's top nonconference opponent, was ranked 11th.
Those rankings don't include Oregon, which is already also being picked to win the league. The Ducks not only haveΒ Dana Altman's ability to surpass normal expectations but also return nearly everyone except Joseph Young (and former UA commit Tyler Dorsey will probably scoop up a lot of his shots...)
Sounds like 2016 five-star guard Frank Jackson is all butΒ headed to Duke, with Stanford still a possibility. Jackson told Scout last week he has canceled his visit to Arizona while CBS Sports said he could be "Duke's next Jabari Parker."
While Jackson was one of the assist leaders at last weekend's Adidas Nations event, several other UA recruiting targets played. Among them:
Frank Jackson, shown last weekend at the Adidas Nation event in Southern California, appears to be Duke-bound.
Markelle Fultz (2016 guard) averaged 14.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists. He is still expected to visit Arizona this fall.
Jaylen Hands (2017 guard) averaged 8.7 points and had 30 assists to his 12 turnovers over six games. Hands said last month he planned to visit Arizona this weekend.
Billy Preston (2017 forward) averaged 12.2 points and 4.6 rebounds.
Terrance Ferguson (2016 guard) averaged 15.3 points.
All the Adidas stats can be found here.
Utah's players are dropping body fat this summer while Larry Krystkowiak gets a feel for his new options.
