CHICAGO — One of the Arizona Wildcats’ defining characteristics this season, according to coach Sean Miller, was their sometimes fragile mindset.
“We’ve had to be delicate in how much to push and what to say to keep the confidence of this team,” Miller said before the Wildcats’ final home games. “We’re not a team that has great confidence across the board.”
With committed guard Kobi Simmons, and possibly the rest of UA’s still-in-progress 2016 recruiting class, that may not be much of a concern.
Before, during and after the McDonald’s All American Game on Wednesday, Simmons displayed an unmistakable confidence and flair to his game while scoring 12 points over 20 minutes.
Simmons was one of the last East players to get on the floor but quickly made himself noticed. He missed a quick three-pointer and an 18-footer but then dunked in a loose ball after 270-pound East teammate Udoka Azubuike tried to dribble into the paint and let the ball roll away.
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Later, Simmons took a pass on a breakaway and, seeing he was all alone, threw the ball up off the backboard and then leaped to grab it and dunk it in.
Simmons finished shooting 5 of 11 overall but missed four of the five 3s he took, also recording two assists, two turnovers and a steal.
“I loved every minute of it,” Simmons said after the game. “I took in every moment. Coming out here on ESPN and playing my last game before we go to college was just a great experience.”
Simmons matched his on-court play with some off-court swagger, too. During an interview with the Star before the McDonald’s game, he took joking pride in his aggressive “recruiting” approach with uncommitted five-star prospects Terrance Ferguson and Josh Jackson, while speaking optimistically about his role with the Wildcats.
It’s about “just hopefully going in there and leading the team to the national championship, and finishing our recruiting class this year,” Simmons said. “It’s not completely done. We’re still recruiting two more. Hopefully, we can finish it up well.”
Simmons is expected to start or play a major role in the backcourt as a scoring-minded point guard. He’ll be competing with junior-to-be Parker Jackson-Cartwright, a true point guard, and senior-to-be combo guard Kadeem Allen, a natural scoring guard who started most of this season at the point.
Asked about how he’ll fit in with the returners’ skillsets, Simmons said: “I feel like I have both. Whatever they have, I have both.”
If that sort of confidence sounds reminiscent of former UA guards MoMo Jones or Mark Lyons, maybe it’s not surprising that Lyons posted this tweet early Thursday morning after the McDonald’s game:
“Hearing great things about @JordanKobi,” Lyons posted, referring to Simmons, “let’s get it young bul!”
Simmons made it clear this week he wants a lot more talent around him at UA, too. He playfully posted a video to Twitter introducing Jackson as a “new U of A commit” and said he hoped Ferguson’s comment that he was the Texas guard’s “hardest recruiter” helps seal a commitment from Ferguson.
Just landing Simmons in the first place helped put UA’s 2016 recruiting class back on the national recruiting scene. Arizona had only one player in the class, Finnish forward Lauri Markkanen, on board before Simmons committed to the Wildcats on Jan. 16.
The news came as some surprise because Simmons had not visited UA and did not initially have them among a list of finalists that included Kentucky, Ohio State and UNLV. But Simmons said he has long had strong ties with Miller and assistant coach Book Richardson.
Arizona “was always on my mind even when I didn’t put them in there,” Simmons said. “They were always reaching out. They came to every one of my AAU games. Seeing all that and just putting everything together, that’s where I wanted to go.”
When Simmons announced his commitment, he felt the love again. That night, Arizona hosted Washington State but, early the next morning, Miller and Richardson hopped a plane to Atlanta to attend a celebration over Simmons’ commitment and his invitation to the McDonald’s game.
It wasn’t a surprise to Simmons the UA coaches were there.
“My relationship with them was huge,” Simmons said. “I think it was something I was looking past. They were always there but we never discussed basketball. We just built relationships, and I felt like the coaches really cared about me.”
Simmons’ commitment gave UA two five-star talents while a third committed on March 7: Similarly confident New York wing Rawle Alkins, who said of the Pac-12 that he’ll “probably try to dominate that conference.”
From here, the Wildcats are hoping Ferguson and/or Jackson join them, while there’s plenty of room for transfers and others, too.
Arizona still has at least three other scholarship openings. The number will grow to five if Allonzo Trier (who may turn pro) and Elliott Pitts (who left the team for an undisclosed reason) don’t return.
The Wildcats have recently expressed interest in Delaware transfer Kory Holden, according to ESPN. The second-team All-Colonial Athletic Association guard averaged 17.7 points and 4.2 assists.
UA also set a mid-April visit for 6-foot-8-inch, 245-pound Tulane transfer Dylan Osetkowski, according to CBSSports.com.
Both Delaware and Tulane fired their coaches this spring. In addition, UA has made a scholarship offer to Brewster Academy power forward Taurean Thompson, according to Scout.com.
If enough talent rolls in with Simmons, maybe Arizona won’t wash out of the NCAA tournament in the first round as it did this season.
Simmons watched UA’s 65-55 loss to Wichita State and wondered what might have happened if he were on the floor.
“I did,” Simmons said. “I see things but there’s nothing I can do about it. Just get ready for next year.”
