ÃÛÌÒÓ°ÏñAV

At the same point this year, he’s pretty much full.

While standout guard Caleb Love has a stay-or-go decision to make after the G League Elite Camp and NBA Combine play out next week in Chicago, the Wildcats have added Campbell transfer Anthony Dell’Orso to a perimeter crew that appears capable of soaking up Love’s minutes and shots if he stays in the draft.

The Wildcats have the maximum 13 scholarship players as of now, and could probably operate with 12 if Love leaves, albeit that means losing the 2023-24 Pac-12 Player of the Year.

They aren’t expected to drop below 12 since UA’s other draft-testing players are expected to return.

But nothing is for certain in college basketball these days. So when asked if he’s done recruiting for next season’s team, Lloyd paused.

“To be honest, you never know,� Lloyd said Tuesday, before a “Wildcat Welcome Tour� stop at Union Public House in Tucson. “Situations play out. One decision impacts another decision and things can change from one week to the next.

“Our job is just to make sure that we’re putting in Arizona basketball in the most sound, solid place to be successful. Along the way, you’re having to make tough decisions, you’re having to make quick decisions. And hopefully you’re making the right ones.�

While Lloyd said last week that post transfers Trey Townsend (Oakland) and Tobe Awaka (Tennessee) helped create a frontline that “has a chance to be really, really good,� he wasn’t able to get into the details of his key new perimeter additions.

UA hasn’t received paperwork for Dell’Orso, meaning Lloyd isn’t allowed to speak about him publicly. Additonally, five-star guard Joson Sanon technically remains in the high school class of 2025, so he can’t sign anything yet — even as he says he plans to reclassify in order to join the Wildcats a year earlier.

If Sanon reclassifies, he is scheduled to arrive at Arizona sometime this summer and expected to take a starting role if Love leaves, or at least become a key backup if Love returns to UA. Dell’Orso is also expected to play at least a key reserve role.

Assuming they return from the NBA Draft, guards KJ Lewis and Jaden Bradley are both expected to start next season. Bradley is expected to take over at point guard for Kylan Boswell, who transferred to Illinois, while Pelle Larsson’s departure to the NBA Draft opens a perimeter spot for Lewis.

UA is also bringing in four-star freshman wing Jamari Phillips and returns backup point guard Conrad Martinez.

Arizona could wind up losing all five starters from last season if Love stays in the draft, but Lloyd says he’s comfortable with how his roster is shaping up.

“I feel good, I feel really good,� Lloyd said. “I know maybe it’s hard for some people to understand when they see certain guys leave … we still have good relationships with the guys who left. It’s not like there’s any resentment on either side. It’s just kind of how things fell.

“We feel really good about the foundation we have, and the pieces we’ve been able to add. We expect to be at the same level we’ve been playing in the past couple years.�

Somethin’ Bruin for UA, UCLA?

Arizona and UCLA are moving toward a nonconference matchup in Phoenix next season, after both Lloyd and UCLA coach Mick Cronin expressed interest in continuing to play after the Pac-12’s breakup.

Lloyd hinted toward the possibility during a Wildcat Welcome Tour stop last Thursday in Phoenix and, while he declined to comment further, all signs indicate the deal is close to being finalized.

“One thing I’m going to try to do more and more is get our team to play up here,� Lloyd said at the Phoenix rally. “I don’t want to start any rumors where there might be another game happening up here this next season.

“We’re hoping it’s team that you guys have seen us play against a few times. I think it’d be really exciting and we just hope to get that thing finalized.�

Arizona would have to modify its planned 2024-25 schedule to make a UCLA game happen outside of Tucson.

The Wildcats currently are scheduled to play five nonconference games away from McKale Center; that’s the most they can play while meeting their home-game minimum. It includes a Nov. 14 game at Wisconsin and participation in the three-game Battle 4 Atlantis in the Bahamas during Thanksgiving week. However, Arizona’s planned game against Alabama in Birmingham is not yet contracted for a specific date.

Exit barrier

While Arizona gave Lloyd a new five-year contract in February that will pay him $5.25 million next season, the coach apparently has another incentive to stick around a while.

That would be his wife, Chanelle.

While on the stage at the Wildcat Welcome Tour stop Tuesday, Lloyd thanked UA fans for helping “provide me and my family an incredible life,� and said it wasn’t just about finances.

“Just the quality of our life for my wife and I living in Tucson is incredible,� Lloyd said. “Some other schools may or may not have called, but I’ll guarantee you: My wife tells me, `Hell, no.’ She’s like `You’re going by yourself because Tucson’s home.’�

Family rivalry

When UA director of operations Evan Manning recently spoke to his father, the two jokingly agreed not to talk until after next season.

That’s because Danny Manning, the former Kansas and NBA star, had just joined Colorado’s coaching staff as an assistant – putting him back in the Big 12, against rivals that will include Arizona.

“No more (sharing) secrets� Evan said, smiling.

Yessoufou sets UA visit

Five-star class of 2025 power forward Tounde Yessoufou told 247 Sports he has scheduled a June 15 visit to Arizona, the first visit he has scheduled so far.

A native of Benin who has been playing high school ball in Santa Maria, Calif., Yessoufou is also being recruited by Kansas, UCLA and several other high-major programs.

He told 247 that he planned to take other visits later but said Arizona “has been great� during his recruitment.

“They’ve been coming to my games, practices and just to see me sometimes,� Yessoufou told 247. “I talk with them on the phone and coach Lloyd and the staff are great people. They’re always reaching out to me to see how I’m doing and tell me what I need to improve on.�

“They like how I play hard, attack the basket, and get the other team in foul trouble. Defensively they want me to keep being me but be more intense in getting every rebound and pushing as much as I can.�