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Arizona Basketball: Top 5 recruiting classes under Sean Miller

By David Rosen

TUCSON, AZ - JANUARY 12: Head coach Sean Miller of the Arizona Wildcats watches from the sidelines during the first half of the college basketball game against the Arizona State Sun Devils at McKale Center on January 12, 2017 in Tucson, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
TUCSON, AZ - JANUARY 12: Head coach Sean Miller of the Arizona Wildcats watches from the sidelines during the first half of the college basketball game against the Arizona State Sun Devils at McKale Center on January 12, 2017 in Tucson, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
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ANAHEIM, CA – MARCH 24: Derrick Williams #23 of the Arizona Wildcats reacts after defeating the Duke Blue Devils during the west regional semifinal of the 2011 NCAA men’s basketball tournament at the Honda Center on March 24, 2011 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
ANAHEIM, CA – MARCH 24: Derrick Williams #23 of the Arizona Wildcats reacts after defeating the Duke Blue Devils during the west regional semifinal of the 2011 NCAA men’s basketball tournament at the Honda Center on March 24, 2011 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images) /

No.3  – Class of 2009

National rank: 6th

Pac-12 rank: 2nd

Players: Solomon Hill, Kyryl Natyazhko, Lamont Jones, Kevin Parrom, and Derrick Williams

Leading freshman scorer: Derrick Williams led the entire team in scoring with 15.7 points and 7.1 rebounds per game.

In Sean Miller’s first year as head coach for Arizona Basketball, he immediately set the bar high with this recruiting class. Even though there weren’t any five-star rated commits, overall this class produced with Derrick Williams and Solomon Hill leading the way. Both of them have gone on to establish themselves as legit players in the NBA and overseas.

The Wildcats did not make the postseason during the 2009-10 season, but that didn’t stop these two freshmen from making an impact while they were on the court. Williams made such an impact that he was part of the 2009 Pac-12 All-Freshman team. At 6 foot 7 and 210 lbs, he had a variety of moves down low and was very confident with his shot.

Hill was slightly smaller in size and strength, but had an arsenal of moves and had good ball handles as well. He had the second-highest field goal shooting percentage behind Williams at 49%. Because of their ability to shoot a high percentage, both played over 25 minutes per game.

Lamont “Momo” Jones did start in just one game but was able to average 6.6 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game. Kevin Parrom only played in 17 games and averaged 4.6 points per game. Both of these players would go on to have more significant roles at Arizona. Lastly, Kyryl Natyazhko did play in all 31 games, started in 3 of them and only averaged 1.9 points per game his freshman season.

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