Jeff Borzello of ESPN named Koa Peat from Arizona in his profile of "Men's NCAA basketball early top 25 rankings: Impact newcomers." Peat has been an impact player this summer for the United States under-19 team, being coached by Tommy Lloyd.
Peat is the 10th-ranked player in the 2025 class by ESPN. Lloyd could start Peat with Tobe Awaka and Motiejus Krivas in a jumbo frontcourt for Arizona. Fellow five-star 2025 signee Brayden Burries and Peat will be counted on to be go to players for Arizona in 2025-26 with returning point guard Jaden Bradley.
At 6'7 and 235 pounds, Peat has the skills to play small forward or Lloyd could play him at center in a smaller lineup. Peat needs to work on his three-point shot. Peat has a chance to be a double-double machine for Arizona. In the three Group D games at the Under 19 World Cup, Peat averaged a double-double.
Arizona is fourth in the 2025 ESPN class rankings. Most of the impact newcomers named by Borzello are transfers. Harvard transfer point guard Evan Nelson is the only transfer Arizona added to its 2025-26 roster. Lloyd is banking on the highly ranked freshman class Arizona signed.
"Impact newcomer: Koa PeatJeff Borzello, ESPN
Another productive and ultra-successful high school player, Peat will be Arizona's frontcourt anchor. He won four state high school championships and three gold medals with USA Basketball, routinely putting up big numbers. Coach Tommy Lloyd will rely heavily on Peat's ability to create matchup problems with his face-up game and finishing prowess."
Peat is on the brink of adding a fourth gold medal with the USA national team playing in the Under 19 World Cup currently in Switzerland. Adding his fourth gold medal to four Arizona state titles shows Peat is a winner. Peat is getting a chance to learn Lloyd's system and play for him on the U19 team.
Burries and Peat will compete to be the impact player for Arizona in 2025-26. Burries and Peat form the foundation of the highest-ranked Arizona class since 2017, when the Wildcats signed DeAndre Ayton. Both Burries and Peat should be impact players for Arizona in 2025-26.