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5 questions entering the Pac-12

College basketball season is almost here!

Between now and Nov. 7th, we’ll take an in-depth look at different conferences around the country.

Today’s focus is on the Pac-12:

1. How will Pac-12 basketball move forward without UCLA and USC?
These two programs won’t officially leave the conference for another two years, but it remains to be seen just how nationally relevant the Pac-12 can be without two of its best basketball brands. UCLA’s presence in college basketball is self explanatory, but USC has quietly built a very consistent program under Andy Enfield, winning at least 21 games in six of the last seven seasons while making four of the last six NCAA Tournaments. The eventual exit of both UCLA and UCLA immediately opens the door for both Arizona and Oregon to regularly compete at the top of the league, but that also instantly raises questions about just how deep the Pac-12 can be without a regular presence in Southern California. Will the league add more teams? Will more teams leave for another power conference? Will Washington regain its form as a perennial Top-25 team? Can Utah and/or Stanford emerge as they did in the 1990s under Rick Majerus and Mike Montgomery respectively? There’s a lot of questions about a lot of things right now with the Pac-12.

2. Which Pac-12 player is most likely to be an All-American?
UCLA’s Jaime Jaquez. Multiple injuries slowed this 6-7 forward last season, but when he’s healthy, Jaquez is the best wing in college basketball. When he was at full strength during the 2021 NCAA Tournament, Jaquez averaged 15 PPG and 6.3 RPG while shooting 47.8 percent from the field and 45 percent from three-point range as the Bruins advanced to the Final Four. Last season while dealing with injuries, Jaquez averaged 13.3 points and five rebounds in the NCAA Tournament while just shooting 35.9 percent from the field and 14.3 percent from three-point range. With Johnny Juzang and Jules Bernard no longer in UCLA’s program, Jaquez is in position to thrive as this team’s go-to scorer. 

3. What will Arizona look like in Year Two under Tommy Lloyd?
The Wildcats may not have the same level of overall talent that they possessed a year ago in Lloyd’s first season, but they still have enough to contend at the top of the Pac-12 standings. Arizona lost three of the Top 33 picks — Bennedict Mathurin, Dalen Terry, and Christian Koloko — in the 2022 NBA Draft, but still return four players — Azuoloas Tubelis, Kerr Kriisa, Pelle Larsson, and Oumar Ballo — who averaged 15.3 minutes or more last season. 6-6 sophomore Adama Bal also seems primed to take a step forward after scoring six points in nine minutes against UCLA in the finals of the Pac-12 Tournament. Texas transfer Courtney Ramey (9.4 points, 3.5 rebounds) should also bring plenty of seasoning and toughness as he prepares for his fifth season of college basketball. Lloyd — last season’s AP National Coach of the Year — proved a season ago in his first year as a head coach that he’s more than capable of figuring out how to mold the clay. He’s got more than enough currently in Tucson to again have a quality season.

4. Can Oregon win playing “big”?
It would be a different dynamic than what we’ve seen in the past from this program. When Oregon went to the Elite Eight in 2016 and the Final Four in 2017 under Dana Altman, part of the secret sauce for the Ducks was using 6-7 forward Dillon Brooks — now with the Memphis Grizzlies — as a small ball four man. That trend has continued over the past few seasons as Oregon also advanced to the Sweet 16 in 2019 and 2021 with a similar formula. This team may not be built in the exact same model. The strength of this roster is its size, as the Ducks boast three players — N’Faly Dante, Nate Bittle, and freshman Kel’el Ware — who all stand 6-11 or taller. There’s a good chance that two of those players will be on the floor at the same time for long stretches with 6-8 veteran Quincy Guerrier at small forward. That type of makeup is a different alignment than Oregon and Altman have used in the past.

5. Who is the sleeper?
Stanford. The Cardinal haven’t been to the NCAA Tournament since Johnny Dawkins led this program to the Sweet 16 in 2014. Jerod Haase hasn’t been to the NCAA Tournament in his first six years as Stanford’s head coach, but he’s got a real chance this season. The Cardinal have two all-conference players on their roster in Spencer Jones (12 points, 4.5 rebounds) and Harrison Ingram (10.5 points, 6.7 rebounds), who flirted with the NBA Draft before opting to return to Palo Alto for his sophomore year. Stanford also returns a veteran point guard in junior Michael O’Connell and adds a perimeter shooter in Davidson transfer Michael Jones (11.8 points, 42.1 percent from three-point range). If things break right, this team should be in the top half of the Pac-12 and firmly in the bubble picture in February. 

Leftovers