Arizona Wildcats: What Ever Happened To Point Guard University?

Steve Kerr.  Damon Stoudamire.  Jason Terry.  Mike Bibby.  Jerryd Bayless.  Jason Gardener.  Nic Wise  Add to the list, Khalid Reeves, Miles Simon, Gilbert Arenas, Salim Stoudamire and Nick Johnson.

For roughly two decades, the Arizona Wildcats were also known by their alias, Point Guard U.  From 1988 through the early 2000’s, the Wildcats roster collectively featured more nationally known point guards than any other program in the NCAA. Out of the 11 players listed above, only Gardener and Wise were unable to find a place on a NBA roster, though Gardner has found plenty of success playing overseas, while Wise has yet to settle in long term with a club.

Although some may counter that Reeves, Simon, Arenas, S. Stoudamire and Johnson weren’t the main point guards on their respective squads, they did at some point (excuse the pun) share ball handling duties with their peers.

If you were to remove the combo guards from the list, the last time that an elite floor general was on the floor for the Wildcats was in 2010, Wise’s last season in Arizona. When you look at the aforementioned list of talent, one would have to put Wise on the lower portion of the point guard totem pole.  Though in Wise’s defense, he also was the only player on the list who had to deal with four different head coaches and four different offenses in his tenure at Arizona. Before that, it would have been Bayless during his one season in 2007-08.

So what has happened the last few years at Point Guard University?  The most recent Wildcats teams have seen more of their focus go towards players such as Jordan Hill, Chase Budinger, Derrick Williams and Aaron Gordon.  And when you consider the results that coach Sean Miller and the Wildcats have achieved over the past five years, there is no justification of complaints with a pair of visits to the Elite Eight and a trip to the Sweet 16.

Last year the Wildcats welcomed the services of Duquesne junior transfer and pass first point guard T.J. McConnell.  In his first year in the desert, McConnell helped take the team to the Elite Eight while averaging 8.4 points and 5.3 assists per game.  Definitely solid numbers, but not at the superstar level.

McConnell’s understudy this season is a five-star freshman from Los Angeles. Ranked among the top 10 point guards of his class, the 5’7″ Parker Jackson-Cartwright will have the opportunity to learn the game in his first season before taking over the reins next year.  Although his size may be a concern to some, others compare the recruit to Gardner, who measured in at 5’10” on a good day.  Scouted as a pass-first point guard, Jackson-Cartwright is looking to make amends for a senior season gone wrong at Loyola High School.

Will PJ-C bring the return of the Point Guard University tag back to the University of Arizona?  Odds are we will have to wait at least until his junior year to determine.  But for those that were around in it’s hayday, being a certified member of “PG University” was an honor in itself.