Tim Floyd never did coach at Arizona but now he's only 265 miles away at UTEP

Former UCLA coach Steve Lavin could seek an assistant at St. John’s with New York ties such as Arizona’s Book Richardson.

The fact of the matter is Lavin, who does not have a recruiting background in New York City, needs at least one assistant with recruiting contacts in the Big Apple.

The New York Daily News is reporting that Lavin has been afforded an “impressive budget” to hire a staff of proven recruiters. The Daily News reports that Manhattan coach Barry Rohrssen and former Virginia coach Dave Leitao are expected targets.

With Lavin at St. John’s now and the fact that he was always an avid admirer of former UA coach Lute Olson and the Wildcat program how long will it take for him to schedule a series with Arizona? That would be ideal for Miller and Richardson to gain more visibility in the New York. That would be a Catch-22 for Lavin, however, because he knows Miller and Richardson have already raided New York for talented players such as Lamont “MoMo” Jones and Kevin Parrom.

Tim Floyd, former candidate to permanently replace Lute Olson at Arizona, is now coaching in the vicinity (265 miles) of the UA at UTEP, avoiding obscurity after being part of an NCAA probe as head coach at USC. This could impact the Wildcats’ recruitment of talent in the southwest, including in the state and extending to perhaps L.A. Expect Floyd to continue recruiting the southeast, namely Louisiana, but after coaching at USC for four years, he established a recruiting base in southern California.

The current UTEP roster amassed by Tony Barbee includes a player from Arizona and Los Angeles. Former ASU player Christian Polk, who is from Glendale, and L.A. product Isaac Gordon were part of the Miners’ NCAA tournament team this season.

Former UA assistant coach Phil Johnson will likely be reunited with Floyd at UTEP after he was let go at USC by Kevin O’Neill. How about this potential meeting in the NCAA tournament down the road: USC vs. UTEP. I’d buy a ticket.

These notes are part of a blog I posted at WILDABOUTAZCATS.com that includes audio of UA coach Sean Miller on the Petros and Money radio show this afternoon

Jesse Perry told Scout.com that he chose Arizona because of UA coach Sean Miller's honest approach

Opponents will find it more difficult to defend Arizona next season because of the verbal commitment Sunday night of Logan (Ill.) Junior College forward Jesse Perry.

The Wildcats often became stagnant in their halfcourt sets this season, which is a significant reason why they finished 16-15 overall and without an NCAA tournament appearance for the first time in 26 years.

Perry, a 6-foot-8-inch versatile forward, averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds for Logan this season. He also shot a reported 48 percent from three-point range and at one point this season made 27 consecutive free throws. He is an aggressive player who can create his own shot off the dribble.

“He has the ability to play both forward spots, has excellent ball skills and solid range on his jump shot,” reports Van Coleman of Hoopmasters.com. “He can face at the arc and takes bigs off the dribble or roll and post, using his quicks and bounce to score in the paint.”

That description did not fit any of the current Wildcat wing players on a consistent basis this season.

UA freshman wing player Solomon Hill on occasion showed the ability to play inside and outside, but he was inconsistent mostly because of his youth. Fellow freshman Kevin Parrom missed significant playing time on two occasions during the season because of a stress fracture in his right foot. Parrom should be more of a benefit to the Wildcats in the vicinity of the basket next season.

Jamelle Horne, who will be the Cats’ lone senior next season, showed a decent shooting touch from three-point range this season, making 43.5 percent from beyond the arc. However, he was only slightly better in shots within the three-point stripe: 46.1 percent. Horne had one of the most peculiar stats among the Wildcats — he made 50 of 115 shots from three-point range and 53 of 115 shots within that range.

The most glaring reality of these stats is that Horne was not aggressive enough around the basket as a 6-7 forward who can leap as well as anyone in the Pac-10. The quality that Perry brings to the Wildcats that Horne has lacked thus far is the ability to put the ball on the floor, penetrate and create shots for himself or his teammates.

This new dimension for the Wildcats should keep defenders honest, forcing them to extend and therefore creating more room for Pac-10 Freshman of the Year Derrick Williams and for guards to penetrate.

Defensively, Perry is relentless, according to Logan assistant coach Kyle Smithpeters.

“When he first showed up here two years ago, he was like a twig at 179 pounds,” Smithpeters said. “He has become stronger and put on weight, which means he can hold his own defensively. He also has a good nose for the ball because he has a good basketball IQ.”

This is Miller’s first recruitment of a junior college player in his six years as a head coach (the first five at Xavier). He had a few transfers from other colleges while at the Cincinnati school, but he never signed one that played at the junior college level.

Perry was not recruited by Arizona until November, when UA assistant coach Archie Miller scouted Perry’s teammate, point guard Lazeric Jones. The Millers watched Perry play again soon after that and offered him a scholarship.

“The real reason I decided was because I felt that was the place that could make me better,” Perry told Scout.com. “Coach Sean and Archie [Miller] and the other guys on the staff I created a relationship with each and every coach and the players that are there. That’s a place I can go play and be a big impact player.”

Perry was also recruited out of Logan by UCLA, South Carolina, Southern Illinois and Iowa State. When he graduated from St. Louis Gateway High School in 2008, he was recruited by St. Louis coach Rick Majerus.

The Wildcats’ Class of 2010 now includes Perry, shooting guard Daniel Bejarano of Phoenix North High School and combo guard Jordin Mayes of Los Angeles Westchester High School. Bejarano has signed a national letter of intent, while Perry and Mayes have offered non-binding verbal commitments.

Other potential Class of 2010 recruits for Arizona include Manhattan (N.Y.) power forward Kadeem Jack, Baltimore Lake Clifton point guard Josh Selby and Mouth of Wilson (Va.) Oak Hill Academy combo guard Doron Lamb. All three have completed official visits to Arizona.

The spring signing period starts April 14.

Please visit WILDABOUTAZCATS.com to read more reader commentary about Perry’s commitment and other UA sports items

Logan (Ill.) Junior College assistant Kyle Smithpeters (pictured here) said the recruitment of forward Jesse Perry is essentially down to Arizona, UCLA and South Carolina

Logan (Ill.) Junior College forward Jesse Perry will conclude his two-day official visit to Arizona on Monday morning with the possibility that he will still visit UCLA and South Carolina, according to Kyle Smithpeters, one of Logan’s assistants coaches.

“You could say it’s basically down to those three schools,” Smithpeters told me Sunday night. “He has some others still calling him, but it looks like if he takes more visits, it will be those two schools (UCLA and South Carolina).”

Smithpeters has assisted Perry during the recruiting process. He spoke to him over the phone after Perry arrived in Tucson.

“He’s taking everything in,” Smithpeters said. “He’s done a lot of talking with the academic people and the coaches. He’s learning a lot about the school and more about the program.”

Smithpeters added that Perry departs from Tucson at 10 a.m. Monday and that he is uncertain if whether Perry will be ready to verbally commit to the Wildcats at that time.

South Carolina scheduled an official visit with Perry last weekend but was forced to postpone it because of scheduling conflicts with the coaching staff.

Perry, 6-foot-8, 220 pounds, would help fill two needs for the Gamecocks: Perimeter shooting on the wing and some rebounding help. South Carolina’s leading three-point shooters — guards Devan Downey and Brandis Raley-Ross — have exhausted their eligibility. One of the Gamecocks’ leading rebounders — 6-7 forward Dominique Archey — was also a senior.

In terms of UCLA, the Bruins were shorthanded on talent all year and now UCLA coach Ben Howland must find adequate perimeter scoring with seniors Michael Roll and Nikola Dragovic no longer around. The Bruins have also recruited Perry’s teammate at Logan — point guard Lazeric Jones, who verbally committed to UCLA in December.

Arizona never found a consistent perimeter threat and a solid rebounder to back up freshman forward Derrick Williams, who played out of position at the post. Perry would fill those two needs — reliable scorer on the wing and rebounding — for UA coach Sean Miller.

This note on Perry is from the “Nothing But The Notes …” column at WILDABOUTAZCATS.com:

How good is the shooting touch of potential UA recruit Jesse Perry? His reported 48 percent shooting from three-point range only tells part of the story. Despite being a 6-8 frontcourt player, he made 27 consecutive free throws with Logan (Ill.) Junior College this season. “That makes him that much more dangerous,” Logan assistant coach Kyle Smithpeters told us. “He plays with an aggressive style, which means he can draw fouls. For him to be that good of a shooter at the line really makes teams pay.” Perry is visiting the UA campus this weekend. Recruiting outsiders are giving the Wildcats the edge in landing St. Louis product. Tracy Pierson of Scout.com wrote this while analyzing Perry’s recruitment by UCLA: “UCLA got in on Perry a bit late, so there is an uphill battle. He will officially visit Arizona this weekend, and many believe he’ll verbally commit to the Wildcats.” Perry has no other known scheduled visits at this time.