SB Nation DC: All Posts by Kevin Zimmerman

Arizona basketball in mix for Houston transfer Joseph Young

2013-06-19T14:41:35Z

Houston Cougars transfer Joseph Young, who averaged 18 points per game as a sophomore, could end up at Arizona. CBS Sports Network's Jon Rothstein reports that the 6-foot-3 shooting guard has the Wildcats on a shortlist that also includes Baylor, Florida and Oregon. The Texas Longhorns are also a possible landing spot.

Arizona, Baylor, Florida, + Oregon are all in the mix for Houston transfer Joseph Young, per multiple sources. 2 years of eligibility left.
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) June 19, 2013

Young made a large leap in between his freshman and sophomore campaigns. His scoring jumped by seven points in relatively the same amount of minutes thanks to improved shooting percentages and a much better ability to get to the foul stripe -- he went from 1.6 free throws per game to 5.0.

The 87 percent free throw shooter hit 42 percent of his three-pointers and 45 percent overall. According to KenPom ratings, he was one of the most efficient scorers who did the most out of relatively little usage. Per ESPN:

He averaged 18.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game, and he was extremely efficient to boot, shooting 42 percent from 3 and 87.5 percent from the free throw line. He finished with a 124.0 offensive rating on 22.7 percent usage, one of the best 30 marks at that usage tier in the country. He was really good. And now, after a not-small ordeal to get Young to Houston in the first place, he is moving on.

Young's father was brought on as the director of basketball operations in Houston. The practice of recruiting through job-offering family members is common across the NCAA, though it's important to know that Young's dad was a former Houston hoopster himself.

The Houston Chronicle has the full story on that.

But back to the Wildcats. Once again, surprising roster turnover (Grant Jerrett's jump to the NBA) won't inhibit Sean Miller's program but rather give it options.

The playing time might inhibit Young choosing the Wildcats with Nick Johnson locked into the shooting guard spot, but there's definitely a hole to fill at UA in terms of having a go-to scorer. Arizona could use more shooters, after all, because any mix of Aaron Gordon, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Brandon Ashley and Kaleb Tarczewski isn't going to cut it in terms of opening up the floor. Going small might help out.

Johnson has yet to prove himself as the type of player who might become an offensive threat to take over a game, and backup guards Jordin Mayes and Gabe York haven't had the chance to show they'll be relied-upon shooters.

Young is an intriguing grab. It's of course a to-be-determined situation but again, options are nice.

RichRod is Unforgiven: A 'Hard Edge' parody

2013-06-18T18:43:47Z

via cdn1.sbnation.com

Aaron Gordon, Marcus Smart and Damyean Dotson dunk-off for USA Basketball

2013-06-18T17:47:26Z

How do we celebrate Arizona recruit Aaron Gordon making the U19 roster? Dunk-off.

Arizona basketball: Aaron Gordon dunks, but he wants to be a point forward

2013-06-17T22:09:40Z

The above is a video clip from a recent Team USA practice. It's what you see of Aaron Gordon now.

Most people see the Arizona Wildcats incoming forward as being all that and only that, but Gordon wants more. In an interview with Sporting News, Gordon tells Michael DeCourcy that the Blake Griffin comparisons are more limiting than accurate. It's to-be-determined if Gordon's insistance that he's more than an insanely athletic power forward is true.

It's not unclear in how confident and driven he is, however.

When asked what he thinks of the common comparisons of his game to that of NBA star Blake Griffin-both are big, strong and phenomenally athletic-Gordon answers, "I think, I can play point guard and he can't. "He's an incredible player; he's the No. 1 pick," Gordon said. "I can't be too mad if people are comparing me to a No. 1 pick. But I can play point guard."

Those are big words. Gordon said that he'll do whatever it takes to "thrive" at Arizona and fit with the depth of wings or big men. Whatever he is, he thinks he'll figure it out.

Is it cocky? Maybe. But it's also refreshing to hear a player commit to specific goals. This isn't the common case of a player wanting to improve in all areas. That's code for a lack of direction or even a smokescreen for laziness. Gordon doesn't spew generalizations.

"I can stand here and hit open shots all day long. What I need to do is figure out a way to get my shot in the shooting pocket quicker and smoother in the flow of the game. Once I get that, then I think I'm there."

Direction is good to have. And if Gordon moves to Tucson with Miller wanting to truly help him with those goals, all the better.

Miller told The Sports News that Gordon isn't just making this stuff up.

If Gordon makes the USA U19 squad, there's even more experience he'll bring to Tucson while playing with talents already NBA-ready such as point guard Marcus Smart. The Oklahoma State guard would've likely been a top-5 pick but pulled himself out of the draft, to most experts' surprise. Also on the list of 16 players fighting for 12 tickets to Prague are fellow Pac-12 signee Nigel Williams-Goss, who will attend Washington, Arizona recruiting target Justise Winslow and Oregon Ducks guard Damyean Dotson.

So Gordon will make a case for himself as not only a physical presence but a ballhandling big.

But in the meantime, he'll continue to embarrass guys with physics-defying dunks.

Scouting Ashley and Hollis-Jefferson

Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and Brandon Ashley couldn't make the initial cut for the national team.

In Draft Express' breakdown of the camp, Jonathan Givony writes that Hollis-Jefferson excelled as a defender who had the ability to stay in front of opposing point guards and hold his own against big men in the post. He struggled offensively, however. The Wildcats small forward was hampered by his inability to stretch the court and also couldn't score off the dribble.

Givony was especially critical of Ashley, whose body is undeveloped in relation to where he was a few years ago. Ashley often floated around the perimeter and without a skillset of a small forward was rendered a ghost because of it. But the biggest issue was Ashley's motor, which apparently ended up in him getting beaten on the boards.

Rich Rodriguez films a cowboy movie

2013-06-17T19:51:58Z

Arizona football coach Rich Rodriguez is busy filming a cowboy movie at the Old Tucson studios, which is weird.

Doc Rivers, Kevin Garnett trade to Clippers is reportedly 'close to being done'

2013-06-17T18:50:18Z

The Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Clippers are reaching the finer points of a deal that would send forward Kevin Garnett and coach Doc Rivers to Los Angeles, according to the Los Angeles Times' Brad Turner.

Boston's Jason Terry and Courtney Lee were part of the most recent discussions, according to ESPN's Marc Stein and Ramona Shelburne. Either of their $5.2 million contracts could be shipped along with Garnett as the Celtics have put aside their aspirations to acquire Clippers guard Eric Bledsoe.

Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski reports Boston is now willing to find financial relief rather than push for draft picks in the deal.

For more on the trade talks: Visit Celtics Blog and Clips Nation

Additionally, it appears that Los Angeles small forward Caron Butler could be joining a package that includes center DeAndre Jordan and a first-round draft pick, Turner reports. Butler's $8 million per year deal expires after next season and combined with Jordan's $11 million would nearly align with Garnett's $12.4 million and either of Lee or Terry's deals that each have two years left.

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Sergey Karasev will remain in 2013 NBA Draft

2013-06-17T17:14:19Z

Sergey Karasev raised eyebrows by returning to Russia before going through a gauntlet of pre-draft workouts, but his agent told Draft Express on Monday that the swingman will remain in the 2013 draft.

Just 19 years old, Karasev never appeared to waver in coming out for the draft, but the Russian small forward returned to Moscow in early June, leading many to believe that he received a first-round guarantee. RealGM reported that Karasev remained open to interviewing with NBA executives representing teams from the No. 9 pick to the No. 22 pick but would not conduct any workouts for teams.

The 6'7, 200-pound forward projects well in the NBA as an accurate shooter and playmaker despite his athletic limitations. The youngster's basketball smarts earned him a spot on the Russian national team that competed at the London Olympics.

NBA teams got a good amount of scouting Karasev when he played for the World Select squad at the Nike Hoops Summit in April. And even though he hasn't gone through individual workouts, Karasev is still drawing enough interest to keep his name in the draft.

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Katz: Jason Gardner will join Josh Pastner in Memphis

2013-06-17T16:34:58Z

Katz: Jason Gardner will join Josh Pastner in Memphis

Former Arizona Wildcats guard Jason Gardner will join Josh Pastner as an assistant coach for the Memphis Tigers. Gardner is an assistant with Loyola University Chicago.

SB Nation DC: All Posts by Kevin Zimmerman

Arizona basketball in mix for Houston transfer Joseph Young

RichRod is Unforgiven: A 'Hard Edge' parody

Aaron Gordon, Marcus Smart and Damyean Dotson dunk-off for USA Basketball

Arizona basketball: Aaron Gordon dunks, but he wants to be a point forward

Scouting Ashley and Hollis-Jefferson

Rich Rodriguez films a cowboy movie

Doc Rivers, Kevin Garnett trade to Clippers is reportedly 'close to being done'

More from SB Nation:

Sergey Karasev will remain in 2013 NBA Draft

Worst-case mock

More from SB Nation:

Katz: Jason Gardner will join Josh Pastner in Memphis

Katz: Jason Gardner will join Josh Pastner in Memphis