Arizona Wildcats Star Freshman Carter Bryant Is Ready To Break Out
The start of the 2024-25 college basketball season has been a shaky one for the Arizona Wildcats.
They are 4-4 and have struggled when stepping up in competition.
The mid-major and lower-tier schools they have faced haven’t given them any issues, going 4-0 against the Canisius Golden Griffins, Old Dominion Monarchs, Davidson Wildcats and Southern Utah Thunderbirds.
But, they are 0-4 against Quad 1 opponents in the Wisconsin Badgers, Duke Blue Devils, Oklahoma Sooners and West Virginia Mountaineers.
Their Big 12 schedule is going to be loaded with opponents in Quad 1 and 2, so they need to figure things out sooner rather than later to get on track.
This is a loaded roaster that Tommy Lloyd is working with, but some issues need to be ironed out.
Settling on a rotation still hasn’t happened, as he continues to mix and match his starting unit and bench minutes.
One of the players to keep an eye on as the campaign moves along is star freshman Carter Bryant.
The Wildcats brought back three key perimeter players from last season; Caleb Love, Jaden Bradley and K.J. Lewis. That pushed Bryant into a complementary role in the early going as two big men were started as well.
Alas, given some of the team’s struggles and his immense talent, Bryant’s role is starting to expand.
It is something that should benefit Arizona in the long run, as he looks like a player who is ready to break out.
Over at ESPN, Jeff Borzell ranked the top freshman in the country this season. The Wildcats star landed in the "Top-50 recruits waiting their turn" tier, so fans shouldn’t have to wait too much longer to see him unleashed.
“Bryant's size (6-8, 220 pounds) and ability to make shots from the perimeter made him a top-20 prospect entering Arizona. But with three veterans returning on the perimeter and Tommy Lloyd opting to go with two veteran bigs down low earlier in the season, Bryant took some time to carve out a consistent role. He might not have to wait much longer, though. He's started the past two games and had a well-rounded five points, nine boards and four assists last weekend against Southern Utah.”
He is currently eighth on the team in minutes played, averaging 14.9 per game.
Expect that number to continue ticking up, as he has yet to reach the 20-minute plateau in a single game this year.
His size is something the team could certainly use more of on the perimeter as Love, Bradley and Lewis are all 6-foot-4 and under.
When Bryant gets more comfortable on the court, his numbers will start to improve as well.
