Arizona sophomore guard Allonzo Trier could play this season. Then again, he may not.
No one’s sure what’s going to happen, not even his coach.
”I hope that Allonzo has an opportunity to play sometime this year. I’ll leave it at that,” Arizona coach Sean Miller said. ”If I knew more, l would say. If I would be able to, I would say. But this is far, far higher up the ladder than me. I’m just soldiering the army, following orders.”
Expected to be a key cog this season for the 15th-ranked Wildcats, Trier has missed all 17 of Arizona’s games due to a suspension for unspecified reasons. Miller and the school have repeatedly been asked about Trier’s status and the answer has been the same every time: We can’t comment.
”Allonzo, the one thing I can comment on is he practices with us every day,” Miller said. ”He’s in school. He’s doing a great job as always. Our practice environment has been really good this year. I’ll knock on wood because I know it can change quickly, but I hope that continues to the finish line because if it does that bodes well.”
Trier came to Arizona as the marquee player in Miller’s recruiting class and had a strong freshman season in 2015-16. The athletic 6-foot-5 guard averaged 14.8 points and shot 46 percent from the floor on a team led by upperclassmen.
Trier took a look at leaving school early for the NBA before announcing that he would return to Tucson for his sophomore season.
Trier was suspended before the first game and his absence has added to Arizona’s lack of depth.
Terrence Ferguson, the top recruit in Miller’s latest class, opted to play overseas over enrolling at Arizona. Ray Smith was expected to be a key contributor but he retired from basketball after tearing his ACL for a third time.
The Wildcats also played six games without point guard Parker Jackson-Cartwright.
Arizona has continued to find ways to win, entering this week’s game on a nine-game winning streak. Adding Trier would be a huge boost to the Wildcats, but they don’t know when or if that will happen.
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