Bumped down to a reserve role on Arizona's Final Four team last season, Anthony Dell'Orso will still get a shot at the NBA.
The Aussie wing reportedly agreed to play for the Sacramento Kings' summer league team after he was not taken in the NBA Draft this week, meaning five Wildcats from last season will likely be playing in the NBA summer league.
UA had three players taken in the NBA Draft earlier this week — guard Brayden Burries to Milwaukee at No. 10, forward Koa Peat to Phoenix at No. 30 and guard Jaden Bradley to Toronto at No. 50 — while forward Tobe Awaka signed a two-way deal with the Chicago Bulls as an undrafted free agent. All NBA rookies, drafted and undrafted, typically play in summer-league games.
A transfer from low-major Campbell in 2024, Dell'Orso made an immediate impact on the Wildcats in 2024-25. He averaged 7.2 points and shot 41.3% from 3-point range as a starter, while clinching the Wildcats' trip to the 2025 Sweet 16 when he hit all four free throws he took in the final nine seconds of UA's 87-83 win over Oregon in the second round.
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With the arrival of highly regarded freshmen Brayden Burries, Ivan Kharchenkov and Koa Peat last summer, Dell'Orso was shifted into a key reserve role in 2025-26, and his 3-point shooting dipped to 33.3%. Still, Dell'Orso's average minutes rose from 18.2 to 21.0 last season, and his scoring average increased to 8.5, while he played big roles toward the end of the season.
Arizona guard Anthony Dell'Orso looks to his bench after dropping in a long three against Kansas in the early going of the second half of their Big 12 game in Tucson on Feb. 28, 2026.
Dell'Orso excelled during a late February stretch when Peat (leg injury) and forward Dwayne Aristode (illness) were sidelined, and when Burries was playing through bronchitis. Dell'Orso had 22 points each in UA's wins over BYU and Houston, and shook off an ankle injury he suffered late in the game at Houston.
And while Bradley's buzzer beater gained the attention of the Wildcats' 82-80 Big 12 Tournament semifinal win over Iowa State, Dell'Orso was Arizona's overall leader in that game, scoring 26 points while hitting 6 of 9 3-pointers in a scintillating tit-for-tat shooting battle with Cyclones forward Milan Momcilovic.
"Delly, he's crazy, literally," Bradley said after that game. "I'm proud of Delly. He had his ups and downs this season, but we all believe in him. His shot-making ability, his defense has gotten so much better.
"We just trusted him. We've just got so many guys that can get it going at any night, and tonight was Delly's night."
Contact sports reporter Bruce Pascoe at bpascoe@tucson.com. On X(Twitter): @brucepascoe
Bruce Pascoe
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