The Arizona Wildcats had a strong 2023-24 season, their second under head coach Tommy Lloyd. The Wildcats finished with an overall record of 27-9 and 15-5 in Pac-12 Conference play. They reached the NCAA Tournament and advanced to the Sweet 16 where they lost to Clemson. It was an improvement from the previous season when they lost in the first round in an upset against Princeton. Following the end of the season, the Wildcats have seen several departures. But Arizona recently picked up a major transfer portal addition in former Oakland forward Trey Townsend as per Jonathan Givony of ESPN.
Trey Townsend is Arizona's first transfer portal addition this offseason. He may not be a household name, but he has the potential to make a major impact for the Wildcats for the 2024-25 season. Following his commitment to the Wildcats, Townsend told Givony that a big reason why he chose Arizona was because of Lloyd's penchant for producing pros.
“Arizona checked all the boxes I was looking for during this process,” Townsend said. “I look forward to getting to Tuscon and playing for coach Tommy Lloyd, who has a proven track record of producing NBA players similar to me.”
Trey Townsend can be a difference maker for Arizona
With five players in the transfer portal, Pelle Larsson and Keshad Johnson off to the NBA Draft, and Caleb Love's return an uncertainty, the Wildcats had a need to bolster their roster. Trey Townsend was one of the top players available in the portal.
Townsend was one of the 2024 NCAA Tournament's breakout stars. While Townsend's Oakland teammate Jack Gohlke was the talk of the Golden Bears during the tournament, and rightfully so, Townsend had a strong postseason run himself.
During Oakland's first round upset win against Kentucky, Townsend was the Golden Bears second leading scorer behind Gohlke with 17 points. He also had 12 rebounds, 4 assists, two steals and one blocked shot. He shot 6-15 from the field, 1-3 from the three point line and 4-9 from the free throw line.
In Oakland's round of 32 loss to NC State, he led the Golden Bears with 30 points to go along with 13 rebounds, one assist and one steal. He shot 11-25 from the field, 2-3 from the three point line and 6-8 from the free throw line.
Townsend played four seasons at Oakland and has one season remaining of college basketball eligibility. This past season, Townsend averaged 17.3 points per game, 8.1 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.3 steals with splits of 45.5 percent shooting from the field, 37.5 percent shooting from the three point line and 77.9 percent shooting from the free throw line. He started all 36 games he played in at a little over 36 minutes per game.
Arizona is looking to revamp roster following key departures
The Wildcats lost several key players this offseason. Pelle Larsson decided to forgo his remaining college eligibility and declare for the NBA Draft. Keshad Johnson was out of eligibility. Caleb Love also declared for the draft but will maintain his college eligibility for the time being.
The Wildcats also lost Oumar Ballo, Kylan Boswell, Dylan Anderson, Paulius Murauskas and Filip Borovicanin to the transfer portal.
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