Jerryd Bayless may always be known as the one scholarship player in the Lute Olson era at Arizona who did not actually play for Lute Olson.
He was the guy who left for the NBA in frustration, having spent his short Wildcat career as a heavily used combo guard in a deliberate Kevin O'Neill system that Bayless did not like. Then he slid unhappily to the No. 11 pick in June's NBA draft.
But none of that kept Bayless from showing up Friday to join a spirited pickup game between alumni and current players during the UA's annual skills camp.
"These are my guys,"
Bayless said. "Obviously, the year wasn't what we wanted. But all these guys are my best friends, and if I get an opportunity to come down here and spend time with them, I'm always going to do that."
Bayless turned his NBA draft experience into a positive force, too. Expecting a top-6 selection, he fell to double digits before Indiana picked him, then dealt him to Portland. Immediately, he began trying to prove some people wrong, starting by earning the top rookie award at the NBA's Las Vegas Summer League last month.
"It does motivate me,"
Bayless said. "I was disappointed at first. But everything happens for a reason. I think I showed everybody that obviously I'm better than other picks. But I've got to keep getting better."
The effort led to another good experience: After averaging 29.8 points a game in Las Vegas on 48.5 percent shooting, Bayless was named to the USA Select Team that was used to prepare the senior team for the Olympics.
"It was great. I got to learn a lot of things,"
Bayless said. "Seeing what the great guards will do, giving themselves an opportunity to score, and others an opportunity to score."
"That's what I took away from it."
Judkins arrives
Incoming freshman Garland Judkins arrived on campus Friday just in time to play in the pickup game with his future teammates.
Then again, everything about his arrival at the UA has been a bit rushed.
Judkins, a 6-foot-4-inch guard from Humble, Texas, had planned a fifth year of high school at Brewster (N.H.) Academy, figuring he could bulk up, then accepted when the UA changed its 2009 scholarship offer to a 2008 offer when Brandon Jennings bolted for Europe.
Judkins committed so late that he could not sign a letter of intent and attend the second summer session along with the other UA freshmen, or even start hanging out with the guys.
Until Friday.
"I'm a little exhausted, but I thought I'd come out here and play against these guys,"
Judkins said.
Showcase game
Featuring NBA players such as Bayless, Hassan Adams and Channing Frye, Friday's pickup game was not only able to impress the elite high school recruits. It also left an impression on the incoming Wildcats.
While Judkins matched up often with Bayless, and freshman Jeff Withey sparred underneath the basket with former UA standout Joseph Blair, Brendon Lavender took on the elastic Adams, who wound up for some of his signature dunks.
"It's fun to play against the professional basketball players,"
Lavender said. "The best thing is the atmosphere, the talking. Everyone's tired, but it was fun."
Returning Wildcats Nic Wise, Chase Budinger and Jordan Hill also played in the game, as well as departing UA forward Mohamed Tangara.
Rim shots
● Tangara said he will leave next week to begin his season at Division II Chaminade. He said he is already eyeing the Maui Invitational, where the host Silverswords will open against North Carolina on Nov. 24 on ESPNU. "It'll be definitely a great opportunity for me,"
Tangara said. "I'm looking forward to it."
● Withey has spent the summer in Tucson living with his parents, who recently moved from San Diego. His mother, Debbie, is now a fourth-grade teacher in the Amphitheater School District.
Jeff will move into a UA dormitory when the fall semester begins.
"It's been great,"
Withey said of the summer. "A lot of work."
