Wasn’t really a surprise that Athlon Sports' newly released college basketball annual ranked Arizona No. 3 nationally and picked the Wildcats to win the Pac-12.
But some of the magazine’s all-league picks may be of interest.
Athlon made freshman Stanley Johnson the Pac-12’s Player of the Year and a third-team all-American. It also put Brandon Ashley on the all-league first team – but had forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson on the second team and T.J. McConnell on the third team.
“Oh, dear,” responded the Sporting News’ Mike DeCourcy after I tweeted that info.
Added Yahoo’s Jeff Eisenberg: "I'm with @tsnmike. Not sure there are five returning players in the country better than Rondae, let alone five in the Pac-12.”
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DeCourcy had Hollis-Jefferson a second-team all-American in his national Sporting News picks while I put Hollis-Jefferson, McConnell and Johnson on the 10-man all-league team I submitted for SN's Pac-12 preview.
Lindy’s Pac-12 picks, made by Southern California scout/analyst Frank Burlison, had Hollis-Jefferson the only UA player on its five-man all-conference first team, with McConnell and Johnson on the second team, and Ashley on the third team.
Here are all the lists of all-Pac-12 picks among the three basketball annuals:
Athlon
First team
Ashley
Johnson
Chasson Randle, Stanford
Josh Scott, Colorado
Delon Wright, Utah
Second team
Askia Booker, Colorado
Anthony Brown, Stanford
Hollis-Jefferson
Nigel Williams-Goss, Washington
Joseph Young, Oregon
Third team
Kevon Looney, UCLA
McConnell
David Kravish, Cal
DaVonte Lacy, WSU
Norman Powell, UCLA
Player of the Year: Johnson
Best Defensive Player: Kravish
Most Underrated Player: Lacy
Top Newcomer: Johnson
Lindy’s
First team
Randle
Wright
Young
Hollis-Jefferson
Scott
Second team
Booker
Johnson
McConnell
Kravish
Jordan Loveridge, Utah
Third team
Lacy
Williams-Goss
Powell
Ashley
Brown
Player of the year: Wright
Newcomer of the year: Johnson
Top shooter: Young
Top rebounder: Scott
Top defender: Wright
Top playmaker: McConnell
Most versatile: Wright
Top NBA prospect: Hollis-Jefferson
Most entertaining: Wright
Sporting News
All-conference team (10 players, one team only)
Young
Wright
Randle
Johnson
Hollis-Jefferson
McConnell
Lacy
Williams-Goss
Scott
Jabari Bird, California
ICYMI, Bob Elliott is planning to nominate former UA coach Fred Snowden for the Basketball Hall of Fame. Snowden, the first African-American coach at a major college basketball program, will have to go through this process if he's to be elected. It's unlikely he will be considered via a committed for "Early African-American Pioneers" according to a spokesman.
Lorenzo Romar says he's looking forward to having Fresno State transfer Robert Upshaw helping the Huskies, after it was uncertain Upshaw would be on the team this season.
Tyler Dorsey is visiting Colorado this weekend, and if he committed there ... well, you may recall how onetime UA recruit Xavier Johnson has taken to the Wildcats lately.
Stephen Zimmerman welcomed a much-smaller Tom Crean into his house.
Isaiah Briscoe was only too happy to welcome John Calipari into his.
And the beat goes on in the athlete compensation debate: Some current lawsuits could even eliminate limits on compensation.
