Arizona Basketball Recruiting: Meet the Wildcats' 2013 Class

Sean Miller landed another stellar recruiting class in 2013 for Arizona basketball. With three top-100 players, it is Miller's third straight top-10 crop of recruits (the last two years in the top five).

With two McDonald's All-Americans and a sharp shooting wing, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Elliott Pitts and Aaron Gordon make Arizona a national title contender in 2014.

And with the news that Grant Jerrett will be departing, the role for each of the three recruits just got a little bigger.

Without further adieu, let's meet Arizona's 2013 class.

Elliott Pitts

Hometown: Dublin, California

High School: De La Salle Spartans

Height: 6'5''

Weight: 180

Rating: 4-Star (ESPN) 

Strengths: Elliott Pitts is currently the No. 100 player in ESPN's recruiting rankings.  He has great court awareness and intelligence. He is a savvy 2-guard with good size, great shooting ability and even has a mid-range game (imagine that). He will be able to create his shot at the college level with a good first step and score when he gets playing time.

 

Weakness:

Pitts is not a freak of an athlete. He needs to get stronger. While he is a good shooter, he is streaky. Being more consistent is going to be important when he is trying to get on the floor.

 

Projected Role: He will be the Gabe York of next season. He won't get off the pine much until his sophomore year.

Rondae Hollis-Jefferson

Hometown: Chester, Pennsylvania 

High School: Chester

Height: 6'7''

Weight: 215

Rating: 5-Star (ESPN) 

Strengths:

Hollis-Jefferson is the fifth-best small forward and the No. 16 overall player in the 2013 class. The 6'7" wing played well in both the McDonald's All-American Game and the Jordan Classic.

Hollis-Jefferson is a jack-of-all-trades type of basketball player. He is good at just about everything. He can shoot, pass and penetrate. He can play as a 4 or run some point. He is a very good athlete. He has great basketball smarts.

Most importantly, all he does is win. In Pennsylvania's very competitive 4-A division, Jefferson won two straight state championships and went to the title game this year. 

At 6'7'' and with a 7'0'' wingspan, he is a tenacious defender who always seems to be in the right place at the right time. With his win-at-all-costs and defensive mindset, he is a quintessential Sean Miller guy.

 

Weakness:

While Hollis-Jefferson does just about everything really well, he isn't amazing at anything either. All that means is he has tons of room to improve, which is a scary thing for a guy this good already.

He is not a consistent shooter. This has a lot to do with his shot mechanics, which aren't perfect at this point. He is also a skinny kid for a college small forward, but he will gain some weight this summer. He also heavily favors his left hand in everything he does on the court.

 

Projected Role: He is going to fill in where Solomon Hill left off, without the starting part. He will play 20 minutes per game coming off the bench. When it matters most, though, he will be on the court a lot.

Aaron Gordon

Hometown: San Jose, California

High School: Archbishop Mitty High School

Height: 6'8"

Weight: 210

Rating: 5-Star (ESPN)

High School Senior Season Stats: 21.6 ppg, 15.7 rpg

Strengths:

Where do I begin? If you watched the McDonald's All-American game, you saw his freakish athletic ability. He is big for the position he wants to play, long and bouncy—a great combination for a small forward. His motor is incredible, and he has a real desire to be very good on the defensive side of the ball. He can shoot, has good ball control and will be a very good passer by the time March rolls around.

Weaknesses:

He needs to become a better shooter. And uh, um...I don't know what else to criticize. He has a really polished game for a guy his size. He is going to dominate the college level.

Projected Role: Easily the best player on the team. He should pound the competition from the opening tip of next season.