Is Arizona an elite college basketball program?

How do the Wildcats stack up against the sport's royalty?

Editor's note: Welcome Ivan Leonard to the website!

When it comes to elite in college basketball terms, the same schools usually come to mind as basketball powerhouses. The first I think of is UCLA and John Wooden dominating the 60’s along with Kentucky and their championship coaches such as Adolf Rupp, Tubby Smith, Rick Pitino and John Calipari as the higher ups of hoops.

After that the Dukes, Carolinas, Indianas, and UConns come to mind, and that had me pondering where exactly the Arizona Wildcats were in the pecking order of basketball royalty. A good portion of our fanbase likes to think of the Wildcats as elite, and sure, the Wildcats have had two-straight seasons of regular season dominance and a spot in the top-ten all season. And that still somewhat fell short of expectations.

Granted, the Wildcats took on and beat a handful of tough opponents during the regular season, and won the majority of them before losing to an extremely talented Wisconsin team both years. Those Elite Eight games might have gone the other way if a play or two did not happen. So Arizona is right on the cusp of greatness, but just needs that breakthrough. Last season’s team watched career 34% three-point shooter Sam Dekker score 15 of his 27 points from deep while Frank Kaminsky added another 29 points, and the ‘Cats still only lost by five.

Bo Ryan is a recent example of how luck can change for a coach and program as he took over for the Wisconsin Badgers in 2001 and did not lead the Badgers to the Final Four until these past two seasons. Prior to last year’s championship run and their 2014 run that came within a basket of the title game, Wisconsin had only one Elite Eight run under Ryan, and more first weekend flameouts than Sweet Sixteen appearances. Coach K did not lead Duke to a Final Four until his sixth season --- which Sean Miller is currently in --- but before that, Duke was not surpassing the round of 32 in the postseason. With top-five recruiting classes coming in every year, it is only a matter of time before Miller stakes his claim in basketball royalty.

If I were to compare us to another sports team I would say the New Orleans Saints for a multitude of reasons. They are typically a lock for the postseason, dominant on one side of the ball while adequate on the other, and almost unbeatable at home. The Duke’s and Kentucky’s of recent times are akin to Aaron Rodgers and Peyton Manning while the Wildcats are Drew Brees, which is not bad by any stretch of the imagination. It just means the Wildcats are not the top dog, but in the next tier and within striking distance.

And I am fairly confident a Final Four will occur in the next three seasons.

Poll

Is Arizona an Elite basketball program

• Yes
• No
• Right on the cusp

  30 votes | Results

from Arizona Desert Swarm - All Posts http://ift.tt/1Ly2vB2
via IFTTT