Arizona is picked to win the Pac-12

[KansasCityCats]

https://www.azdesertswarm.com/basketball/2023/10/11/23912022/arizona-wildcats-mens-basketball-pac12-preseason-poll-media-prediction-ucla-usc-2023-2024

Since joining the Pac, Arizona has won 17 regular season titles...and UCLA has won 12.  Hopefully, we can make it 18 after the 2023-24 season.

I'm surprised that UCLA has votes to win.  Colorado has a stronger roster but I understand that Cronin is a better in-game coach than Boyle.

[arxpert]

https://www.azdesertswarm.com/basketball/2023/10/11/23912022/arizona-wildcats-mens-basketball-pac12-preseason-poll-media-prediction-ucla-usc-2023-2024

Since joining the Pac, Arizona has won 17 regular season titles...and UCLA has won 12.  Hopefully, we can make it 18 after the 2023-24 season.

I'm surprised that UCLA has votes to win.  Colorado has a stronger roster but I understand that Cronin is a better in-game coach than Boyle.

I think UCLA has the best roster overall. I am interested to see how Cronin coaches them because the players he has aren't the types that I would think are interested in grinding out 50pt games.

Arizona has the deepest roster. It remains to be seen what Tommy will do with his full tool belt.

USC and Colorado have some talent, not sure about "team" yet. I would lean toward USC because Bronny is going to give it a shot and may actually be underrated as much as people "hate" on the kid.

I would be elated to see Tommy take tradition seriously and in the final year of the Pac12, go out on top as Conference Champ and Conference Tournament Champ 3peat. That would close out a chapter of this storied program that everyone could be proud of. The Big Dance is what it is. Conference Title. Conference Tournament Banner. Make it happen Tom Tom.

[KansasCityCats]

UCLA just lost Tyger, Jacquez, singleton and Clark. That's a pretty hard group to replace.

With the exception of Bona, Cronin has to teach a new system to a lot of inexperienced players. He's a good coach so we'll see if they can earn a tournament bid at the end of the season.

[FCat]

UCLA just lost Tyger, Jacquez, singleton and Clark. That's a pretty hard group to replace.

With the exception of Bona, Cronin has to teach a new system to a lot of inexperienced players. He's a good coach so we'll see if they can earn a tournament bid at the end of the season.

UCLA is a 8/9th seed at best.

[arxpert]

UCLA just lost Tyger, Jacquez, singleton and Clark. That's a pretty hard group to replace.

With the exception of Bona, Cronin has to teach a new system to a lot of inexperienced players. He's a good coach so we'll see if they can earn a tournament bid at the end of the season.

You're just writing off Mara? or is he not going to show up to campus? That's probably #1 overall in this year's draft class. Top 3 at worst. A true Center, not a fake 7ft'er like our guys. Bona at PF with Mara C? I don't think you're giving enough thought to it.

I've been saying all offseason Ballo needs to play some PF this year for our roster to be able to tap into it's full potential. Bona at PF is the same concept.

I say PF loosely. This isn't Tim Duncan/KG PF. This is Ike Diogu PF. Double Double, overpower teams on the boards. Hank Vessaar gets a chance to step out in this format, but he is the taller player so I will call him the C eventhough he is a PF in your mind probably.

So leave out the semantics and just accept the fact that Tommy has to be able to play another big beside Ballo. Too many good sized players at our disposal to not play them in waves. Koloko+Ballo was very strong in tandem.

[KansasCityCats]

I was only referencing experience. Mara is a freaking talent but he's still an 18 year old international player that hasn't stepped on an American college court.

UCLA has a heft rebuild and I expect USC and Colorado to finish ahead of the Bruins, which would be a wonderful way to see them leave for the Big Ten. Good riddance to their fairweather fanbase, who only shows up for Arizona and (occasionally) USC. They're still living in the 1970's...

[arxpert]

I was only referencing experience. Mara is a freaking talent but he's still an 18 year old international player that hasn't stepped on an American college court.

UCLA has a heft rebuild and I expect USC and Colorado to finish ahead of the Bruins, which would be a wonderful way to see them leave for the Big Ten. Good riddance to their fairweather fanbase, who only shows up for Arizona and (occasionally) USC. They're still living in the 1970's...

Tommy needs to be willing to play 2 bigs. Too many advantages that we would be throwing away to not do it.