UPDATE: A more accurate second round of projections can be found HERE
The expected roster turnover has come to fruition, with many Arizona Basketball players taking their talents to other schools via the transfer portal or to the NBA combine in hopes of getting drafted in June.
Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd has gotten to work and pulled together a new crop of Wildcats that — although not the flashiest bunch like last offseason — addresses the major holes left by departing players. Let's run through how I project the starting lineup to look for the 2024-25 season.
1: Point guard
Starter: Jaden Bradley (Junior)
The only two players who will certainly find their way to an NBA roster are Pelle Larsson and Keshad Johnson, and Bradley's professional prospects are still up in the air this early in his career. However, he did declare for the 2024 NBA Draft and is in the pool of early entrants, albeit without making any public announcements.
Putting two and two together, it seems likely that he's just evaluating where his draft stock could go after another successful season at Arizona. After spending a very solid freshman season at Alabama, the rise of Jahvon Quinerly — who eventually landed at Memphis anyway — pushed Bradley out of Tuscaloosa and into Tucson.
Now, the ascendance of Bradley as a reliable two-way player who emphasizes his defensive capabilities has pushed last year's starting point guard Kylan Boswell out the door to his hometown Illinois, so Bradley will take up the mantle as Arizona's next court general and look to improve his offensive metrics from last season.
Backup: Conrad Martinez (Sophomore)
Martinez, a sophomore who came to Arizona all the way from Spain à la Helena Pueyo, only saw sparing time on the court last season. The assist artist known as "El Jefe" by Lloyd — Spanish for "The Chief" — is extremely light on his feet and will be a huge asset in fast-paced situations.
Listed at a seemingly generous 6 feet tall on the roster, he moves exactly the way the smallest guy on the court should move: like he was shot out of a cannon while still being able to cut on a dime. He only played in 19 games for an average of 3.6 minutes per contest and mostly in garbage time. In this limited time, he shot 43.8% from the field and averaged 0.6 assists and 0.9 points.
In 12 minutes against Morgan State, Martinez notched four assists. Most players need a full game to reach that number, and Boswell logged a game with zero assists at point guard against Washington State. Martinez reads the court extremely well and can make split-second decisions. Putting him on the court more will help develop him more and he could be a big asset to Arizona down the line.