Let's talk '25

[dmjcat]

[Fishclamps]

I thought he was a goner and that's why the picked up Aristode?

[gronk4heisman]

I thought he was a goner and that's why the picked up Aristode?

He is, including Arizona to boost up the bidding price.

[gronk4heisman]

I thought he was a goner and that's why the picked up Aristode?

He is.

[ChooChooCat]

Peat and Burries are the only remaining ‘25 targets that are ‘25 guys for sure. Some ‘26 guys could be reclassification candidates.

[luteformayor2]

Choo - whats the deal with Muurinen in 2026? Any shot with another Finnish guy?

[ChooChooCat]

Choo - whats the deal with Muurinen in 2026? Any shot with another Finnish guy?

Sorry just saw this now, if we're not involved with him now it's not likely we'll get involved with him at all based on all the big schools already on him.

[84Cat]

He picked BYU so we'll see him in conference

[84Cat]

[Beachcat97]

I like our chances with Koa.

[dmjcat]

[Merkin]

Don't know a lot about recruiting, but that does not seem a good sign.

Yessoufou was a lock too, until Baylor coughed up more dough than the UA could afford. UA even signed his teammate Kuykendall to no avail.

[ChooChooCat]

Don't know a lot about recruiting, but that does not seem a good sign.

Yessoufou was a lock too, until Baylor coughed up more dough than the UA could afford. UA even signed his teammate Kuykendall to no avail.

Kuykendall was literally his foster brother.

Nothing to really take from Koa's decision to put it off. Literally isn't a good sign for any of the 3 main schools involved (Arizona, Houston, Baylor). He wants to see something from them all I guess.

[TheCat]

This is the kind of Bullshit we will have to face next year and beyond.

The Players Era Festival, anchored by Houston, Alabama and Rutgers, plans to give $1 million in NIL payouts to every participating team.

[dmjcat]

This is the kind of Bullshit we will have to face next year and beyond.

The Players Era Festival, anchored by Houston, Alabama and Rutgers, plans to give $1 million in NIL payouts to every participating team.

And its only going to get worse. Begining in the fall of 2025 NCAA schools will be able to directly share TV revenue with the players.

https://www.foxsports.com/articles/cfb/ ... f-the-bill

If the UA is recruiting any player (football or basketball) that has an offer from a B1G or SEC school its probably not going to be much of a recruiting battle. NIL has already negatively affected football and I believe its starting to affect the UA basketball program. Townsend/ODO/Awaka were from the 2nd tier of the transfers in the portal last year.........Its probably all that CTL could afford with his NIL budget. Indiana, A B1G team, was able to offer Ballo a 7 figure NIL deal to transfer (which the UA had NO hope of matching).

Another one of the new rules coming into effect in 2025 (which isn't going to help the have-nots like the UA) is that schools will be able to offer more scholarships in all sports (up to 105 scholarships in football). The monied SEC/B1G schools will be able to lure/stockpile even more players leaving even less talent available for schools like the UA. If Michigan or Oregon or Kentucky wants to offer 15 scholarships in basketball (and they will be able to offer 7 figure NIL deals) the UA is going to face a smaller talent pool of players they will be able to sign.

[Irish27]

[KaibabKat]

Can he play the point?

[Beachcat97]

Can he play the point?

Feel like his interest in AZ has nothing to do with his dad's having played here and everything to do with his and his dad's perception of the program's current direction and coaching staff.

[Merkin]

Players who came out a year early really haven't panned out for Arizona. Thinking Mannion and Boswell.

[AZCatGirl]

[84Cat]

So if we're getting NBA kids to the UA then Arenas is next. It would be cool to see Gil & Bron in McKale

Edit: Apparently he's good friends with Burries so maybe that's why we were interested in him

[dmjcat]

3 star prospect, not even ranked in the top 150.

Have to wonder if this is a sign of things to come.........signing players that we can afford.

[SunnyAZ]

not really a D1 level athlete but ok

[Irish27]

Maybe LeBron will pay his tuition so they can use that scholarship on another player.

[dmjcat]

Maybe LeBron will pay his tuition so they can use that scholarship on another player.

Lebron should be paying CTL some NIL funds to take this kid.

[Irish27]

Maybe LeBron will pay his tuition so they can use that scholarship on another player.

Lebron should be paying CTL some NIL funds to take this kid.

Maybe LeBron will help somehow with recruiting.

[Chicat]

Anyone thinking having Lebron’s kid on the squad is a bad thing isn’t thinking clearly.

[dmjcat]

Anyone thinking having Lebron’s kid on the squad is a bad thing isn’t thinking clearly.

Clearly??? Your thinking is cloudy at best.

The last thing CTL needs is a 3 Ring Lebron James Circus on his team.

Having Bronny James on USC's team was nothing but a distraction.

The UA needs actual players and talent. This latest signee is NOT that. Prep Hoops doesn't even have this kid ranked in the Top 400.

Unless daddy is coughing up a lot of $$$$$ to the UA NIL efforts this is a wasted scholarship.

[Chicat]

We have the scholarship to spare and can now offer kids the opportunity to be in LJ’s orbit. In this day & age of top recruits having agents and business/marketing managers, that’s a very nice bonus to be able to offer.

This isn’t a Bronny situation because there’s no expectation he will play significant minutes. I trust that Tommy wouldn’t have taken him if he thought this would be like USC last year.

[Merkin]

With the new rules, there will now be 16 scholarships with no walk-ons.

Very few teams go more than 8 deep, no harm having him sit end of the bench and be a practice player.

[Postmaster]

Anyone thinking having Lebron’s kid on the squad is a bad thing isn’t thinking clearly.

Is he better than Frasoi reed?

[dovecanyoncat]

We have the scholarship to spare and can now offer kids the opportunity to be in LJ’s orbit. In this day & age of top recruits having agents and business/marketing managers, that’s a very nice bonus to be able to offer.

This isn’t a Bronny situation because there’s no expectation he will play significant minutes. I trust that Tommy wouldn’t have taken him if he thought this would be like USC last year.

I trust your judgement in this matter waay more than mine, but I gotta admit I my initial thought was Tommy better see something of substance here, because if not, it's a bad litmus test result for our optionality as a basketball school.

[LuteIsGod]

We have the scholarship to spare and can now offer kids the opportunity to be in LJ’s orbit. In this day & age of top recruits having agents and business/marketing managers, that’s a very nice bonus to be able to offer.

This isn’t a Bronny situation because there’s no expectation he will play significant minutes. I trust that Tommy wouldn’t have taken him if he thought this would be like USC last year.

I trust your judgement in this matter waay more than mine, but I gotta admit I my initial thought was Tommy better see something of substance here, because if not, it's a bad litmus test result for our optionality as a basketball school.

This is a HUGE signing for the Cats. I’ve watched James play and the closest comparison is to the highly heralded and explosive player by the name of John Ash!

[84Cat]

I'm assuming this is the main reason we recruited him

James becomes the second commitment in the 2025 class behind Dwayne Aristode and is close friends with multiple Arizona targets, including elite 2025 point guard Brayden Burries.

The commitment of James does not negatively impact any of Arizona's other targets, which are Burries, Koa Peat, and Alijah Arenas. If anything, the commitment of the three-star James likely helps the Wildcats with a few of them.

https://247sports.com/college/arizona/a ... 243214949/

[Merkin]

I'm assuming this is the main reason we recruited him

James becomes the second commitment in the 2025 class behind Dwayne Aristode and is close friends with multiple Arizona targets, including elite 2025 point guard Brayden Burries.

Unfortunately I don't think that carries the weight it used to.

Will Kuykendall was literally the foster brother of Tounde Yessoufou who was considered a strong Arizona lean until Baylor came with a huge bag of cash.

[TucsonClip]

Yeah, who would ever want a link to Klutch Sports (rep Koa and Burries), benefitting from the marketing reach of Brons businesses, and someone on the team who is very influential with a few elite '25 and '26 recruits?

[Postmaster]

With the new rules, there will now be 16 scholarships with no walk-ons.

Very few teams go more than 8 deep, no harm having him sit end of the bench and be a practice player.

Does this mean we have to add 20 women's scholarships?

[Merkin]

Women's wrestling is kind of a head scratcher, but OK.


NCAA Scholarship Limits for D1 College Sports Programs
Sport* Current New Increase
Tumbling (W) 14 55 41
Baseball (M) 11.7 34 22.3
Basketball (M) 13 15 2
Basketball (W) 15 15 0
Beach volleyball (W) 6 19 13
Cross country (M) 5 17 12
Cross country (W) 6 17 11
Field hockey (W) 12 27 15
Football (M) 85 105 20
Golf (M) 4.5 9 4.5
Golf (W) 6 9 3
Gymnastics (M) 6.3 20 13.7
Gymnastics (W) 12 20 8
Ice hockey (M) 18 26 8
Ice hockey (W) 18 26 8
Track (M) 12.6 45 35.4
Track (W) 18 45 27
Lacrosse (M) 12.6 48 35.4
Lacrosse (W) 12 38 26
Rowing (W) 20 68 48
Soccer (M) 9.9 28 18.1
Soccer (W) 14 28 14
Softball (W) 12 25 13
Stunt (M/W) 14 65 51
Swim (M) 9.9 30 20.1
Swim (W) 14 30 16
Tennis (M) 4.5 10 5.5
Tennis (W) 8 10 2
Triathlon (W) 6.5 14 7.5
Volleyball (M) 4.5 18 13.5
Volleyball (W) 12 18 6
Water polo (M) 4.5 24 19.5
Water polo (W) 8 24 16
Wrestling (M) 9.9 30 20.1
Wrestling (W) 10 30 20

[dovecanyoncat]

Yeah, who would ever want a link to Klutch Sports (rep Koa and Burries), benefitting from the marketing reach of Brons businesses, and someone on the team who is very influential with a few elite '25 and '26 recruits?

If Clip and Chi advocate the tertiary derivatives at work here ...... then play on.

[dmjcat]

Yeah, who would ever want a link to Klutch Sports (rep Koa and Burries), benefitting from the marketing reach of Brons businesses, and someone on the team who is very influential with a few elite '25 and '26 recruits?

Klutch Sports is going to advise any elite recruits (UA or otherwise) to sign with whomever has the biggest NIL bag. Thats how agents make there money....the more money their client gets the more money they do.

So having links to Klutch Sports is pretty much worthless.............Having a big pile of NIL is not.

[GlobalCat]

Yeah, who would ever want a link to Klutch Sports (rep Koa and Burries), benefitting from the marketing reach of Brons businesses, and someone on the team who is very influential with a few elite '25 and '26 recruits?

Klutch Sports is going to advise any elite recruits (UA or otherwise) to sign with whomever has the biggest NIL bag. Thats how agents make there money....the more money their client gets the more money they do.

So having links to Klutch Sports is pretty much worthless.............Having a big pile of NIL is not.

Your past 3-4 posts have been trash.

This is a very big deal for Arizona and the publicity it brings outside of Tucson.

And elite agents focus on near and longer term objectives. Shit ones focus only on the immediate deal.

[TucsonClip]

Yeah, who would ever want a link to Klutch Sports (rep Koa and Burries), benefitting from the marketing reach of Brons businesses, and someone on the team who is very influential with a few elite '25 and '26 recruits?

Klutch Sports is going to advise any elite recruits (UA or otherwise) to sign with whomever has the biggest NIL bag. Thats how agents make there money....the more money their client gets the more money they do.

So having links to Klutch Sports is pretty much worthless.............Having a big pile of NIL is not.

You're right. Having any legit inroads to one of the top agencies in basketball means absolutely zilch. Take the highest offer, even if it's from ASU.....

[Chicat]

So having links to Klutch Sports is pretty much worthless...

I get it that you’re entrenched in this mindset that for every top recruit it’s only a numbers game as far as taking the biggest bag even if it’s just a few dollars more than another offer, but that’s not how it works for a lot of these kids.

Having links to Lebron and Klutch could be very lucrative for the player AND their representation. And Arizona is a marquee program that attracts national attention that will get even more from the Lebron connection. Your statement above is absurd and reeks of being defensive of your stance that every halfway decent recruit is looking for a one-time cash haul no matter the other circumstances surrounding things like visibility, playing time, program success, team fit, academics, future opportunities and so on. Not all of these players are as shortsighted as you are. Most are looking at all of the things a program can offer them, and a connection to Lebron James is absolutely not “pretty much worthless”. Like I said, just an absurd statement.

[azcat49]

Look no further than Fifita and TMac last year. They passed up a much larger payday to stay and play at Arizona.

Just like any of us when we get a job offer, we think, ponder our options and put value to the peripheral opportunities

[dmjcat]

So having links to Klutch Sports is pretty much worthless...

I get it that you’re entrenched in this mindset that for every top recruit it’s only a numbers game as far as taking the biggest bag even if it’s just a few dollars more than another offer, but that’s not how it works for a lot of these kids.

Having links to Lebron and Klutch could be very lucrative for the player AND their representation. And Arizona is a marquee program that attracts national attention that will get even more from the Lebron connection. Your statement above is absurd and reeks of being defensive of your stance that every halfway decent recruit is looking for a one-time cash haul no matter the other circumstances surrounding things like visibility, playing time, program success, team fit, academics, future opportunities and so on. Not all of these players are as shortsighted as you are. Most are looking at all of the things a program can offer them, and a connection to Lebron James is absolutely not “pretty much worthless”. Like I said, just an absurd statement.

The only thing absurd is thinking that engaging in gimmicks/novelties (like throwing a wasted scholarship at a sub 400 player like Bryce James) is a good sign for UA basketball recruiting. Obviously if the NIL money between the UA/competing school is negligible the player will look at other things that differentiate the school, but that hasn't been the case in either UA football or basketball recruiting.

I'm still concerned that this is an act of desperation by CTL, who knows that he can't match the NIL offered by SEC/B1G schools (or even asu for Peat). You certainly don't see Major basketball powers (Duke/Kentucky/UConn, etc) throwing away scholarships hoping to make friends with agents. Maybe we will get lucky and Lebron will front the NIL check for Burries, but I'm not holding my breath.

[gronk4heisman]

A few points. First I find it comical that the one guy constantly crying about how we can't compete in this day and age with NIL is now crying about us doing something that actually moves the needle in that game. Second, calling it a wasted scholarship when we went into this season not even using two of our scholarships is also hilarious. This is so clearly a smart move that anyone without tunnel vision can see and easily the smartest thing Tommy has done in recruiting since he has been here. Outside of the NIL opportunities Brayden Burries is good friends with Bryce. Alijiah Arenas works out with Bryce and everyone knows Gil is shallow enough to want to be were eyes will be. Koa Peat is a Klutch client already and you can say Klutch will push clients to the highest bidder but when the head guy at Klutch has a vested interest in Arizona's success you better believe all things equal there will be a slightly bigger push one direction.

And finally, regardless of what many haters here say there was no drama at USC caused by Lebron. There sure were a lot extra eyes and unearned ESPN attention. There was a tragic health incident outside everyone's control. But there was not Lebron forcing the coach's hands or causing drama within the locker room. He has not shown he is a Lavar Ball type dad and has shown he is nothing but a supportive parent who is an A list celebrity and brings eyes with him wherever he goes. The James, family from everything I have seen, seem like great people and there are definitely a lot of people trying to bring them down at every turn and to this point the biggest negative dirt is "the decision" which was stupid but also raised something like $5M for the YMCA and other charities at the cost of making him a villain.

Bottom line, if you can not see the good in this signing and think it is us reaching for a lowly rated player. You are need to think a little deeper.

[dmjcat]

A few points. First I find it comical that the one guy constantly crying about how we can't compete in this day and age with NIL is now crying about us doing something that actually moves the needle in that game. Second, calling it a wasted scholarship when we went into this season not even using two of our scholarships is also hilarious. This is so clearly a smart move that anyone without tunnel vision can see and easily the smartest thing Tommy has done in recruiting since he has been here. Outside of the NIL opportunities Brayden Burries is good friends with Bryce. Alijiah Arenas works out with Bryce and everyone knows Gil is shallow enough to want to be were eyes will be. Koa Peat is a Klutch client already and you can say Klutch will push clients to the highest bidder but when the head guy at Klutch has a vested interest in Arizona's success you better believe all things equal there will be a slightly bigger push one direction.

And finally, regardless of what many haters here say there was no drama at USC caused by Lebron. There sure were a lot extra eyes and unearned ESPN attention. There was a tragic health incident outside everyone's control. But there was not Lebron forcing the coach's hands or causing drama within the locker room. He has not shown he is a Lavar Ball type dad and has shown he is nothing but a supportive parent who is an A list celebrity and brings eyes with him wherever he goes. The James, family from everything I have seen, seem like great people and there are definitely a lot of people trying to bring them down at every turn and to this point the biggest negative dirt is "the decision" which was stupid but also raised something like $5M for the YMCA and other charities at the cost of making him a villain.

Bottom line, if you can not see the good in this signing and think it is us reaching for a lowly rated player. You are need to think a little deeper.

A few counter points:

1) Buddying up with Klutch Sports does NOTHING with regards to NIL. Only $$$$$$ contributed to the UA's NIL fund will do that

2) Signing up the buddy/brother/sister of potential UA recruits in order to convince them to sign with the UA has historically (going back decades) been a major LOSER for the UA. As Merkin pointed out we tried that with Tounde Yessoufou. Baylor countered with a very large bag of NIL. The $$$$$$$ won out.

[Chicat]

Convincing yourself this is a bad thing takes a level of cognitive dissonance I’m honestly in awe of. Like watching a sunset at Gates Pass and loudly exclaiming to everyone that the same sun will eventually expand and swallow the earth so what are they so happy about?

[dmjcat]

Convincing yourself this is a bad thing takes a level of cognitive dissonance I’m honestly in awe of. Like watching a sunset at Gates Pass and loudly exclaiming to everyone that the same sun will eventually expand and swallow the earth so what are they so happy about?

Convincing yourself that throwing away a scholarship (and inviting a 3 ring circus to your basketball team) is a good thing is a level of stupidity that I am NOT in awe of.

[pc in NM]

Convincing yourself this is a bad thing takes a level of cognitive dissonance I’m honestly in awe of. Like watching a sunset at Gates Pass and loudly exclaiming to everyone that the same sun will eventually expand and swallow the earth so what are they so happy about?

Convincing yourself that throwing away a scholarship (and inviting a 3 ring circus to your basketball team) is a good thing is a level of stupidity that I am NOT in awe of.

You guys should have paid better attention when you attended the U of A and were exposed to concepts like "cognitive dissonance" and "stupidity"...