EXCLUSIVE: Arizona's Jaden Bradley Is Ready to Make An Impact

Over the past two seasons, Arizona and head coach Tommy Lloyd have watched as point guard Jaden Bradley has grown within the program and developed into the starting guard he is today. Overall, Bradley has played three seasons of college basketball with his freshman year at Alabama and the last two with the Wildcats.

During that time, Bradley went from an option off the bench, averaging 20.3 minutes per game and scoring seven points per contest to the starting point guard last season. While in the starting lineup, he averaged career highs in points (12.1), rebounds (3.4), assists (3.7), steals (1.8) and minutes played (34.1) in 37 total games.

“It’s just countless work, countless hours, being at one place for a long period of time definitely helps you get comfortable,” said Bradley to Arizona Wildcats On SI. “But, building that trust with the coaches, learning the system, knowing the little tricks and all that stuff. Being here for a while has definitely helped.”

Becoming a steady force at the starting point guard role, Bradley helped lead the team to a 24-13 finishing third in the Wildcats’ first season in the Big 12. The team was able to make the Sweet Sixteen before falling to No. 1 seed Duke 100-93 to end the season.

Following the end of the season, many of the top basketball players from across the country went through the pre-draft process to see where they stacked up and sit in the eyes of NBA scouts giving players an idea if they should officially enter the draft, or return to college basketball for another season.

After his sophomore season and first year in Tucson, Bradley went through that process before deciding to return for his junior year.

“I actually decided not to do it this year,” said Bradley when asked about the pre-draft process. “So, I just worked out with my trainers and just locked in focusing my whole attention on coming back and focusing on Arizona.”

This time around, Bradley didn’t go through that process. Instead, he knew he wanted to return for his third season under Lloyd and wanted to get ready by working out with strength and conditioning coach Chris Rounds.

“It just put all my eggs in one basket [allowing me] to focus on one thing at a time knowing I was going to be coming back and trying to get ready for the season instead of trying to workout and prepare for the NBA workouts,” said Bradley. “So, I was working on stuff that I’m going to be able to do in college and the system I’m already comfortable in.”

Although it was an impressive season for Bradley as a first time starting guard and he averaged career highs, there were still areas in his game that needed improving. He recognized those issues and has worked this off-season with Rounds and the coaching staff to better his game and get ready for the 2025-26 season.

Throughout the season and in the middle of Big 12 play, the 34 minutes per game seemed to be taking a toll on Bradley where he had issues during the game looking a little worn down.

“I definitely got tired. Not worn down but there were games where I was probably more tired than others,” said Bradley. “But, I’ve [been getting] to work and getting in shape and we’re doing that right now with Rounds and on the court stuff we’re doing. So, we are just trying to build that up so that down the line there’s no wear and tear and you feel fresh like the beginning.”

Not only is endurance an area where Bradley wants to improve on but he wants to cut down on turnovers and work on his 3-point shot.

Last season, Bradley shot 32% from the 3-point line, which was a 14% drop off from the previous season. However, he did take 1.3 more attempts per game from beyond the arc sitting at 2.1 deep balls taken per contest.

“Definitely consistency, being able to knock down a 3-ball at a high rate,” said Bradley. “Working on defending at a high rate, making pick-and-roll reads, scoring the ball from all three levels. And just trying to help my team win games.”

Going into the 2025-26 season, Arizona will have plenty of talent after landing the No. 1 overall recruiting class on Rivals. But, with that comes a lot of young players that have never played at the college level.

In total, Arizona will be bringing in seven freshmen and will need leaders on the current roster to help them grow and develop as players and men on and off the court. One of those leaders will be Bradley as he enters his fourth season in NCAA basketball and third with the program.

“I haven’t seen all the guys (freshmen) yet. But, the ones that I have seen [are] high-level. They want to compete,” said Bradley. “They came in right away and it isn’t easy coming into college right away and trying to learn something new. But, these guys are picking it up fast.”

Arizona over its history has been known as ‘Point Guard U’ a nickname the program received because of its run of elite-level and all-time great point guards such as Steve Kerr, Damon Stoudamire, Mike Bibby, Jason Terry and many other players that have made their mark at the position.

Now, Bradley has a chance of leaving a legacy and becoming a standard for guys to come after him and play for Lloyd during this era of Arizona hoops.

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