1 HR AGO - Welcome back to our annual series in which we try to determine if the Arizona Wildcats’ position groups are in strong, stable, unstable, or critical condition heading into fall camp, which opens Aug. 6. Next up? The defensive backs! Key returners: Christian Young (Jr.), Rhedi Short (R-Jr.), Isaiah Mays (Jr.), Jaxen Turner (So.), Christian Roland-Wallace (So.) Key additions: Gunner Maldonado (Fr.), Isaiah Rutherford (So.), Jakelyn Morgan (Fr.) Key departures: Lorenzo Burns, Bobby Wolfe Last year Arizona was so thin in the secondary it listed all its cornerbacks and safeties as “defensive backs” to mask the dearth of available bodies. Rhedi Short, who hadn’t appeared in a game in his three seasons with the Wildcats, ended up starting all five games at safety. No offense to Short, who played admirably and led the team in unassisted tackles, but it wasn’t a good look. This year the UA secondary will look completely different, not just because it got a much-needed influx of talent. Collapse

22 HRS AGO - Photo by Ron Hoskins/NBAE via Getty Images After two strong seasons with the Pacers, T.J. McConnell is staying in Indiana. The former Arizona Wildcats guard is inking a four-year, $35 million deal with the Pacers, according to Shams Charania of Stadium. TJ McConnell has agreed to a four-year, $35M deal to return to Indiana, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 2, 2021 McConnell averaged 8.6 points, 6.6 assists, 3.7 rebounds and 1.9 steals per game on 56 percent shooting—all career highs—this season. He averaged 26 minutes per game and started in three of the 69 games in which he appeared. The Pacers went 34-38, finishing ninth in the Eastern Conference. They will be coached by former Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle next season. McConnell was previously on a two-year, $7 million deal with the Pacers. That was after he spent the first four years of his career with the Philadelphia 76ers after signing as an undrafted free agent. Collapse

1 DAY AGO - Photo by Adam Hagy/NBAE via Getty Images Women’s professional basketball isn’t for the weak. The top players in the world play year-round. Former Arizona Wildcat star Aari McDonald will be no different, as the WNBA rookie will head to Hungary to join Uni Gyor MELY-UT after she finishes playing for the Atlanta Dream. McDonald is currently averaging 5.9 points in 13.6 minutes per game with Atlanta. She is hitting 33.3 percent of her 3-point shots and 94.1 percent of her free throws. She is also dishing out 1.6 assists and grabbing 1.2 rebounds per game. Her rookie season in the WNBA has been full of instability in terms of team management and playing time. On the court, McDonald has played as many as 24 minutes and also has a DNP-Coach’s Decision from a game when the head coach said he forgot to put her in. Off the court, both the general manager and the head coach who drafted her were gone before the season started. President and GM Chris Sienko was fired within days of the Collapse

1 DAY AGO - Photo via Burnett’s Instagram The Arizona Wildcats continue to gain momentum on the recruiting trail, adding a big-time player to the 2022 class. Keyan Burnett, a 4-star tight end from Anaheim, Calif. who is the son of former Wildcats linebacker Chester Burnett, has announced his commitment to UA. Burnett is the Servite High School teammate of Arizona quarterback commit Noah Fifita. The talented gunslinger and his family have been recruiting Burnett and fellow teammate Tetairoa McMillan, who is one of the top players in the country, to join Fifita in Tucson. Burnett committed to USC on March 5, but on Saturday he announced his decommitment after a 7-on-7 tournament with Fifita. Burnett had other offers from the likes of California, Colorado, Miami (FL), Nebraska, Oregon State, Utah, and Washington. The 6-foot-5, 215-pound pass catcher is ranked by 247Sports as the No. 213 player nationally, No. 7 tight end, and the No. 15 player in California. Chester Burnett for Arizona Collapse

2 DAYS AGO - TOKYO, JAPAN – Continuing basketball action at the Olympics, former Wildcat Nico Mannion scores 14 points, helping propel Italy past Nigeria.  As basketball action continues to heat up at the Summer Olympics, former Wildcat Nico Mannion continued his strong play as he scored 14 points, grabbed four rebounds, and dished one assist in Italy’s 80-71 […] Former Wildcat Nico Mannion’s 14 points propels Italy past Nigeria - Zona Zealots - Zona Zealots - An Arizona Wildcats Fan Site - News, Blogs, Opinion and more. Collapse

3 DAYS AGO - Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images The Arizona Wildcats have had a fair amount of success on the recruiting trail this year, particularly for a team riding a 12-game losing streak and with an all-new coaching staff. On Saturday, though, it finally experienced some failure. TJ Hall, a 3-star athlete from Fresno, has decommitted from the UA according to 247Sports’ Greg Biggins. He was ranked by 247Sports as the No. 858 player in the 2022 recruiting class, the No. 67 athlete in the country and the 62nd-best prospect from California. The 6-foot-2, 175-pound Hall committed to the UA on July 13 but since then received a scholarship offer from Washington, running his total to nine. Hall had been offered by the Wildcats in February but had yet to take an official visit to Tucson. Hall’s decommitment still leaves Arizona with 12 pledges for 2022, six of which are higher-rated than Hall. He’s not the first recruit from the ‘22 class to back out a commitment to Arizona, though, as Collapse

3 DAYS AGO - Photo by Chris Coduto/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images We’re a little more than one month away from the season opener against BYU in Las Vegas and the Pac-12 just held its media day in Los Angeles. With the season fast approaching, we’re still waiting on an answer to the biggest question facing the program. Maybe the answer can be found in some of the team’s promotional videos and images, or perhaps in some of Fisch’s comments since taking the job. It’s possible the school’s athletic director spilled the beans, though he didn’t provide much in the way of specifics. Yet for all the bread crumbs that have been left, we still don’t know the true answer to the question every Arizona fan wants to know the answer to, and that’s how the team will look this season. No, not in terms of wins and losses, where the Cats — picked to finish last in the Pac-12 South by the conference media — are expected to struggle. It would be great if they won more than they lost, but it’s really Collapse

4 DAYS AGO - Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports The Arizona Wildcats didn’t have any players selected in Thursday’s NBA Draft, a rare occurrence for a program that usually produces one or two draft picks per year. 2021 marked just the third time since 2013 that no UA players were selected. Yet, the night can still be considered a success for new head coach Tommy Lloyd. Two of his former Gonzaga players were picked in the top 15. Jalen Suggs went No. 5 overall to the Orlando Magic. Corey Kispert went No. 5 overall to Washington Wizards, where he will be reunited with Rui Hachimura, another Zag who was selected in the first round in 2019. It’s the first time two Zags have been selected in the top 15 in the same draft. Filip Petrusev went 50th overall, too. You can bet Lloyd will mention these guys on the recruiting trail. It’s a pitch that should resonate with prospects far and wide. Suggs was a top-15 recruit in his class. And even though he was a freshman surrounded by veterans, Lloyd and Collapse