Although he is Arizona’s starting point guard, Mark Lyons is second in assists behind Nick Johnson (USA Today Sports Images/Douglas C. Pizac)

Arizona senior Mark Lyons can play the position, but he is not a pure point guard. Arizona coach Sean Miller, who was a pure point guard while at Pitt, banked on Lyons to run that spot for the Wildcats after Lyons played the off-guard position for three years at Xavier.

A pure point guard plays with an unselfish style, sets up teammates for scoring opportunities, distributes the ball while penetrating and keeps the defense honest with scoring opportunities off the dribble either driving to the hoop or drawing fouls. Lyons flickers from time to time, handling that role, but to be successful at that position it must be a constant flame.

Steve Kerr, one of the best point guards the Arizona program has produced, hired former NBA point guard Terry Porter to coach Phoenix when Kerr was the Suns’ general manager. Porter, now a Minnesota Timberwolves assistant, gave the Minneapolis Star-Tribune this definition for a point guard:

“You have to be a leader,” said Porter, a two-time NBA All-Star. “You can’t worry about yourself. You’ve got to have a pretty good feel for your personnel. Then, you have to be vocal at times. You’ve got to be willing to take some grief. I got yelled at by guys on my team for not passing it to them and things of that nature. You just have to say, ‘Hey, I didn’t want it to be a turnover.’ That falls on your shoulders because if you make a turnover, coach is yelling at you. He’s not yelling at the other player.

“You have to know everybody’s position. You also have to know everybody’s weaknesses and strengths because you’re delivering the ball to them. The point guard is setting everybody up. He’s got time and score and tempo, how the matchups are, who he wants to try and attack. There’s a lot on his shoulders in terms of how the game is being played.”

Not only has Lyons been a work in progress at point guard this season, he is Miller’s fourth starting point guard, after Nic Wise, Lamont “MoMo” Jones and Josiah Turner, in the coach’s four years at Arizona.

The Wildcats’ previous four starting point guards before Miller’s hire in 2009 — Jason Terry, Jason Gardner, Mustafa Shakur and Wise — spanned a total of 12 years.

Duquesne transfer T.J. McConnell will likely be Miller’s fifth starting point guard in five years next season.

Sean Miller is starting his fourth point guard in as many years (ESPN screen shot)

Continuity at basketball’s quarterback position is not essential — look at what Larry Drew II is doing at UCLA in his lone season in Westwood — but it helps to have experienced point guards who are natural at that position.

Jones, Turner and Lyons started their first seasons at point guard with Arizona and Miller. Drew had 53 starts with North Carolina in three seasons before transferring to UCLA.

If Turner, a five-star recruit, played to his potential and did not run afoul and leave after one season, he would be near the end of his second season with Arizona. Turner and Nick Johnson, a proven backcourt at the AAU level, would be more in sync with two seasons at the collegiate level.

Miller and his staff took a risk with Turner, who was kicked off his team his senior year in high school at Sacramento, Calif. Miller targeted Turner despite Jones being in the midst of helping the Wildcats to an Elite Eight appearance in 2010-11. Jones transferred to Iona at the end of that season, citing the need to be closer to his ailing grandmother in New York, but he realized Turner was destined to start.

After the Turner experiment failed, Miller was in search of an immediate fix because of a lack of talent at the position. Backup Jordin Mayes was beset by two injuries to his left foot and started only 16 games in his first two seasons.

Former UA point guard MoMo Jones is the third-leading scorer in the NCAA at Iona (USA Today Sports Images/Nicole Sweet)

Lyons became available after completing his undergraduate requirements at Xavier. He left the Musketeers after he reportedly wanted to play the point guard position, but coach Chris Mack had other plans. Mack’s foresight looks like 20-20 now.

Jones is now the NCAA’s third-leading scorer averaging 23.2 points per game, but he also is not a pure point guard with 107 assists compared to 102 turnovers. Lyons has 89 assists with 77 turnovers with the Wildcats. Johnson has numbers more typical of a point guard — 91 assists and 53 turnovers.

The same situation occurred in Arizona’s Elite Eight season under Miller with off-guard Kyle Fogg leading the Wildcats with 99 assists with only 55 turnovers. Jones had 93 assists with 72 turnovers. Derrick Williams’ Pac-12 Player of the Year performance was enough to overcome the UA’s lack of a pure point guard that season.

Jones also had memorable performances including a game-winning shot at Stanford as a freshman in 2010, 27 points in the UA’s triple-overtime win at Cal in 2011 and 16 points with six assists and no turnovers in Arizona’s Sweet 16 win over Duke in 2011.

Lyons, a New Yorker like Jones, similarly has produced game-winning performances this season against Florida, ASU and Stanford.

This team does not have a Derrick Williams, but it has balance and more resources, elements Arizona sorely lacked when Williams had to carry the team with a broken finger in 2011.

Now Miller and his staff are counting on the Wildcats’ balance to carry them through their pure point-guard deficiency. Instead of a broken finger as an obstacle, the Wildcats have a broken psyche, losing four of their last seven games after starting 20-2.

WILDABOUTAZCATS.net publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. Check out his site and his college football blog for Lindy’s Sports magazine.

Toronto's Jerryd Bayless was the highest rated former Arizona player in the NBA during the 2011-12 season according to one ESPN.com system

Arizona’s 2011-12 All-NBA first team, according to player-efficiency ratings (PER) conducted by ESPN.com’s John Hollinger, includes a decent lineup.

Hollinger’s top rated former Wildcat is Jerryd Bayless of Toronto, who would take the off-guard spot. The next rated player is wing player Andre Iguodala of Philadelphia.

According to Hollinger, the PER is a rating of a player’s per-minute productivity.

“To generate PER, I created formulas — outlined in tortuous detail in my book ‘Pro Basketball Forecast’ — that return a value for each of a player’s accomplishments,” Hollinger writes at ESPN.com. “That includes positive accomplishments such as field goals, free throws, 3-pointers, assists, rebounds, blocks and steals, and negative ones such as missed shots, turnovers and personal fouls.

“Two important things to remember about PER are that it’s per-minute and is pace-adjusted.”

He adjusts each player’s rating for his team’s pace, “so that players on a slow-paced team like Detroit aren’t penalized just because their team has fewer possessions than a fast-paced team such as Golden State,” he writes.

Bayless’ PER is 17.80, which ranks him 70th among NBA players who averaged at least 6.09 minutes per game. Iguodala’s rating is 17.59.

Rounding out Arizona’s 2011-12 All-NBA first team, by order of the ratings, are point guard Jason Terry (15.80, 111th among NBA players) of Dallas, post player Jordan Hill (15.80, 111th) of the Los Angeles Lakers and forward Channing Frye (14.92, 139th) of Phoenix. Houston’s Chase Budinger (14.92, 139th) had an equal player-efficiency rating as Frye, but Frye gets the nod for the first team because Budinger and Iguodala are basically at the same position.

The other former Wildcats who qualified for the ratings include Minnesota’s Derrick Williams (12.98, 215th), Golden State’s Richard Jefferson (11.15, 263rd) and New York’s Mike Bibby (7.82, 335th).

Those who did not qualify were Luke Walton of Cleveland and Gilbert Arenas of Memphis because of their lack of playing time.

Among players with at least 500 minutes in 2011-12, the highest rating was Miami’s LeBron James at 30.80. The lowest was Charlotte’s Cory Higgins at 4.41.

In case you missed it: The Top 10 Badass Defensive Players and the Top 10 Badass Offensive Players in Arizona football history

Semifinals Arizona Elite Eight Event Matchup:
>> Poll: 1996-1997 versus 2000-2001. Story: TucsonCitizen.com game story
>> Poll: 1987-1988 versus 1993-1994. Story: TucsonCitizen.com game story

First Round Arizona Elite Eight Event Matchups:
>> Poll: 1987-1988 versus 2010-2011. Story: TucsonCitizen.com analysis
>> Poll: 1993-1994 versus 2004-2005. Story: TucsonCitizen.com analysis
>> Poll: 1996-1997 versus 2002-2003. Story: TucsonCitizen.com analysis
>> Poll: 1975-1976 versus 2000-2001. Story: TucsonCitizen.com analysis

EDITOR NOTE: The following is a fictional depiction of what could occur between the 1996-97 and 2000-01 teams.

We take you back to McKale Center …

Indicative of the 1996-97 team’s resiliency, it never gave up after falling behind by as many as 22 points. Mike Bibby, Miles Simon and Co. forced the 2000-01 team into an uncharacteristic 21 turnovers, including 12 during the game’s final 11 minutes. Conversely, the 1996-97 team committed just six turnovers the entire game and outscored the the 2000-01 team in points off turnovers by a 25-6 margin.

After a resounding dunk on a breakaway by Richard Jefferson gave the 2000-01 team its largest lead of 54-32 with 11:21 left in the game, the 2000-01 team committed turnovers on four straight possessions giving the 1996-97 team life and momentum. The 1996-97 team took advantage of the sloppy passes, slicing the 2000-01 lead to nine points — 54-45 — with 6:35 to play.

Mike Bibby had the opportunity to put the 1996-97 on top with a four-point play in the waning seconds

The 2000-01 team, behind two three-pointers from Gilbert Arenas, used an 8-3 spurt and took what looked like an insurmountable 14-point lead — 62-48 — with only 4:37 remaining.

That’s when Bibby started to take over, scoring 11 of the next 18 points for the 1996-97 team. The 2000-01 team would score just five points during the next four minutes. That stretch included four turnovers by the 2000-01 team, which also went 3-for-6 from the free throw line in that span. A Bibby three-pointer cut the lead to seven points with 1:46 left in regulation, followed by a Bennett Davison free throw and layup from Michael Dickerson that cut the 1996-97′s deficit to 64-60 with 59 seconds to play.

Jason Gardner, a career 77.8 percent free-throw shooter, then split a pair at the charity stripe for the 2000-01 team before Bibby, who was fouled by Wright on an aggressive move to the basket, swished two free throws to get the 1996-97 team within 65-62 with 44 seconds left.

Again, the 2000-01 team split two free throws (by Loren Woods) on their next possession before A.J. Bramlett scored on a tip-in to get the 1996-97 Wildcats within 66-64 with 26 seconds remaining. With the McKale Center crowd on its feet, and the roar deafening, the 1996-97 team put up a strong press on the inbounds. The 2000-01 team managed to get the ball up the floor before Jefferson was fouled with 12 seconds left.

Richard Jefferson had a solid game for the 2000-01 team

Jefferson split yet another pair of free throws for the 2000-01 team to give it a 67-64 lead. That’s when unthinkable happened. Bibby took the inbounds and handled the ball to the other end of the court. He pulled up at the top of the key for an off-balance three-point attempt that hit nothing but net with six seconds left while being fouled by Gardner, who lost his balance and barreled into Bibby. That tied the game at 67 and gave Bibby the chance to put the 1996-97 team ahead.

Lute Olson called a timeout to try to ice Bibby, who teammate Jason Terry once said had “ice water in his veins.” Olson also devised a plan in the huddle — for each team — depending on the outcome of Bibby’s free-throw attempt.

The 1996-97 team, invoking memories of its improbable comeback win over South Alabama in the first round of the 1997 NCAA tournament, used a 35-13 run over the final 10:02 to tie the game at 67 and put the game in Bibby’s hands with six seconds remaining.

Bibby calmly sized up the free throw, gave a slight deep breath and swished the free throw completing the four-point play and putting the 1996-97 team ahead for the first time since the 17:56 mark of the first half.

The 2000-01 team tried to get a clean shot off but the 1996-97 defense was strong enough to cause Gardner to come up short on a contested three-point shot at the buzzer. The 1996-97 survived with the 68-67 victory. It advances to the Arizona Elite Eight Event championship against either the 1987-88 or 1993-94 teams.

NOTES:

Reserve forward Eugene Edgerson played for both teams. He was a member of both squads, as was reserve forward Justin Wessel. … Bibby finished with a team-high 21 points for the 1996-97 team and he also had eight assists with only three turnovers. Arenas poured in 24 points for the 2000-01 team. … The 2000-01 team lost despite out-rebounding the 1996-97 team 37-26. Michael Wright led the 2000-01 team with 11 boards. Richard Jefferson had a strong game for the 2000-01 team with 13 points, seven rebounds and three assists).

BOXSCORE

(1996-97) ARIZONA 68, (2000-01) WILDCATS 67

1996-97 ARIZONA: Mike Bibby 6-12 6-6 21, Miles Simon 5-13 4-4 14, Michael Dickerson 3-5 4-6 13, Bennett Davison 2-7 1-2 5, A.J. Bramlett 3-7 2-3 8, Jason Terry 3-6 1-2 7, Eugene Edgerson 0-2 0-0 0, Donnell Harris 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 22-54 18-23 68.

2000-01 WILDCATS: Jason Gardner 2-2 5-6 10, Gilbert Arenas 8-14 5-7 24, Richard Jefferson 3-7 7-10 13, Michael Wright 2-5 4-5 8, Loren Woods 2-4 1-2 5, Luke Walton 1-5 1-2 3, Eugene Edgerson 1-2 1-2 3, Justin Wessel 0-0 1-2 1. Totals 19-39 25-36 67.

Halftime score: (2000-01) Wildcats 40, (1996-97) Arizona 24.

3-point goals: (1996-97) Arizona 4-8 (Bibby 3-5, Dickerson 1-2, Terry 0-1, Simon 0-2). (2000-01) Wildcats 4-9 (Arenas 3-4, Gardner 1-2, Jefferson 0-2, Walton 0-1).

Rebounds: (1996-97) Arizona 26 (Bramlett 9, Davison 4, Simon 3, Edgerson 3, Bibby 2, Dickerson 2, Harris 2, Terry), (2000-01) Wildcats 37 (Wright 11, Jefferson 7, Woods 6, Walton 4, Edgerson 4, Gardner 3, Arenas 2).

Assists: (1996-97) Arizona 18 (Bibby 8, Simon 3, Terry 3, Dickerson 2, Bramlett, Davison). (2000-01) Wildcats 17 (Gardner 9, Walton 3, Jefferson 3, Arenas 2).

Turnovers: (1996-97) Arizona 6 (Bibby 3, Davison 2, Simon). (2000-01) Wildcats 21 (Gardner 6, Arenas 5, Jefferson 4, Wright 3, Woods 2, Edgerson).

Steals: (1996-97) Arizona 11 (Terry 3, Bibby 3, Dickerson 2, Davison, Simon, Bramlett). (2000-01) Wildcats 5 (Gardner 2, Jefferson 2, Wright).

Blocked shots: (1996-97) Arizona 4 (Bramlett 2, Davison, Dickerson). (2000-01) Wildcats 3 (Woods 2, Wright)

Personal fouls: (1996-97) Arizona 23 (Bramlett 4, Simon 4, Edgerson 3, Davison 3, Bibby 3, Dickerson 2, Terry 2). (2000-01) Wildcats 21 (Arenas 4, Woods 4, Jefferson 4, Wright 3, Walton 3, Wessel 2, Gardner).

Technicals: None. Attendance: 14,724.

In case you missed it: The Top 10 Badass Defensive Players and the Top 10 Badass Offensive Players in Arizona football history

2000-01 Arizona Wildcats (28-8)
–Beat Illinois 87-81 in the Midwest Regional Final; beat Michigan State 80-61 in the Final Four; and lost to Duke 82-72 in the national title game. To note: Four players were drafted in the first two rounds of the 2001 NBA draft — Richard Jefferson, first round, 13th pick overall (Rockets); Gilbert Arenas, second round, 30th pick (Warriors); Michael Wright, second round, 38th pick (Knicks); and Loren Woods, second round, 45th pick (Timberwolves).

1996-97 Arizona Wildcats (25-9)
–Beat Providence 96-92 in overtime in the Southeast Regional Final; beat North Carolina 66-58 in the Final Four; and defeated Kentucky 84-79 in overtime to win its first NCAA championship. To note: The Wildcats had five players drafted in 1998 and 1999, three of them in the first round — Mike Bibby, second pick overall in 1998, Grizzlies; Michael Dickerson, 14th pick in 1998, Rockets; and Jason Terry, 10th pick in 1999, Hawks.

First Round Arizona Elite Eight Event Matchups:
>> Poll: 1987-1988 versus 2010-2011. Story: TucsonCitizen.com analysis
>> Poll: 1993-1994 versus 2004-2005. Story: TucsonCitizen.com analysis
>> Poll: 1996-1997 versus 2002-2003. Story: TucsonCitizen.com analysis
>> Poll: 1975-1976 versus 2000-2001. Story: TucsonCitizen.com analysis

EDITOR NOTE: The following is a fictional depiction of what could occur between the 1996-97 and 2000-01 teams. The quotes used are also fictional.

VOTE ON HOW YOU FEEL THIS GAME STORY SHOULD END AT WILDABOUTAZCATS.NET!!!

The buzz at a standing-room-only McKale Center before this semifinal game of the Arizona Elite Eight Event — pitting the only two Wildcat teams to advance to an NCAA title game — centered around which starting lineup matchup was most intriguing.

Mike Bibby of the 1996-97 team engineers a dramatic comeback against the 2000-01 team but is the effort good enough for a victory?

Mike Bibby vs. Jason Gardner — A couple of young leaders who pioneered Point Guard U., their retired jerseys hanging from the rafters.

Miles Simon vs. Gilbert Arenas — Simon and his Final Four MVP credentials going against one of Arizona’s most potent shooting guards in the program’s history.

Michael Dickerson vs. Richard Jefferson — Dickerson with his equally strong defensive and offensive capabilities against the athletic Jefferson, who always had the capability to go for 19 points and eight rebounds.

Bennett Davison vs. Michael Wright — The wiry athletic Davison with springs for legs against the burly, strong Wright, who owned the paint around the basket.

A.J. Bramlett vs. Loren Woods — The efficient Bramlett who ended his career as a very strong rebounder against shot-blocking extraordinaire Woods.

Indicative of the 1996-97 team’s resiliency, it never gave up after falling behind by as many as 22 points. Bibby, Simon and Co. forced the 2000-01 team into an uncharacteristic 21 turnovers, including 12 during the game’s final 11 minutes. Conversely, the 1996-97 team committed just six turnovers the entire game and outscored the the 2000-01 team in points off turnovers by a 25-6 margin.

“The one thing I can always can count on with that ’96-97 team is that no situation was too much to overcome,” said Arizona coach Lute Olson, whose team beat three No. 1 seeds en route to the 1997 NCAA championship. “Mike (Bibby) and Miles (Simon) and those guys always know how to make things interesting don’t they?”

Gilbert Arenas' two three-pointers in one quick stretch late in the second half seemed to restore the dominance the 2000-01 team enjoyed for most of the game against the 1996-97 team

After a resounding dunk on a breakaway by Jefferson gave the 2000-01 team its largest lead of 54-32 with 11:21 left in the game, the 2000-01 team committed turnovers on four straight possessions giving the 1996-97 team life and momentum. The 1996-97 team took advantage of the sloppy passes, slicing the 2000-01 lead to nine points — 54-45 — with 6:35 to play.

The 2000-01 team, behind two three-pointers from Arenas, used an 8-3 spurt and took what looked like an insurmountable 14-point lead — 62-48 — with only 4:37 remaining.

“It was back and forth like a prize fight,” Arenas said afterward. “They took our best punch but kept coming back; we were not about to back down ourselves.”

That’s when Bibby started to take over, scoring 11 of the next 18 points for the 1996-97 team. The 2000-01 team would score just five points during the next four minutes. That stretch included four turnovers by the 2000-01 team, which also went 3-for-6 from the free throw line in that span. A Bibby three-pointer cut the lead to seven points with 1:46 left in regulation, followed by a Davison free throw and layup from Dickerson that cut the 1996-97′s deficit to 64-60 with 59 seconds to play.

Gardner, a career 77.8 percent free-throw shooter, then split a pair at the charity stripe for the 2000-01 team before Bibby, who was fouled by Wright on an aggressive move to the basket, swished two free throws to get the 1996-97 team within 65-62 with 44 seconds left.

“No such thing as an easy free throw with all that pressure on the line,” UA assistant coach Jim Rosborough said.

Again, the 2000-01 team split two free throws (by Woods) on their next possession before Bramlett scored on a tip-in to get the 1996-97 Wildcats within 66-64 with 26 seconds remaining. With the McKale Center crowd on its feet, and the roar deafening, the 1996-97 team put up a strong press on the inbounds. The 2000-01 team managed to get the ball up the floor before Jefferson was fouled with 12 seconds left.

Jefferson split yet another pair of free throws for the 2000-01 team to give it a 67-64 lead. That’s when unthinkable happened. Bibby took the inbounds and handled the ball to the other end of the court. He pulled up at the top of the key for an off-balance three-point attempt that hit nothing but net with six seconds left while being fouled by Gardner, who lost his balance and barreled into Bibby. That tied the game at 67 and gave Bibby the chance to put the 1996-97 team ahead.

Richard Jefferson and the 2000-01 team made free throws down the stretch; the problem was they mostly made 1 of 2, giving the 1996-97 team a chance

Olson called a timeout to try to ice Bibby, who teammate Jason Terry once said had “ice water in his veins.” Olson also devised a plan in the huddle — for each team — depending on the outcome of Bibby’s free-throw attempt.

The 1996-97 team, invoking memories of its improbable comeback win over South Alabama in the first round of the 1997 NCAA tournament, used a 35-13 run over the final 10:02 to tie the game at 67 and put the game in Bibby’s hands with six seconds remaining.

“Man oh man,” Terry said shaking his head with that familiar smile. “I can envision Coach O saying that a thousand times … ‘Man oh man’.”

The outcome is not only in Bibby’s hands now. It’s also in yours. Vote on what you think would/should happen next in this classic matchup at WILDABOUTAZCATS.net. Here are the scenarios to choose from:

Scenario 1: Bibby makes the free throw, completing the four-point play and putting the 1996-97 team ahead 68-67 with six seconds left. The 2000-01 team tries to get a clean shot off but the 1996-97 defense is strong enough, causing Gardner to come up short on a contested three-point shot. The 1996-97 team wins 68-67 in regulation to advance to the Arizona Elite Eight Event championship against either the 1993-94 team or the 1987-88 team.

Scenario 2: Bibby misses the free throw and the game remains tied. The 2000-01 team does not call a timeout and Gardner races the length of the floor and puts up an off-balance jumper on top of the lane that bangs off the rim. The game goes into overtime and the 1996-97 takes over and completes the dramatic comeback for a victory. The 1996-97 team advances with the extra-period effort to the Arizona Elite Eight Event championship against either the 1993-94 team or the 1987-88 team.

Scenario 3: Bibby misses the free throw and the game remains tied. The 2000-01 team does not call a timeout and Gardner races the length of the floor and puts up an off-balance jumper on top of the lane that bangs off the rim. The game goes into overtime and the 2000-01 gathers itself and prevails. The 2000-01 team survives in the extra period and advances to the Arizona Elite Eight Event championship against either the 1993-94 team or the 1987-88 team.

Scenario 4: Bibby makes the free throw, completing the four-point play and putting the 1996-97 team ahead 68-67 with six seconds left. The 2000-01 team tries to get a clean shot off against the tough 1996-97 defense. Gardner gets free off a pick by Woods and launches a three-pointer at the buzzer that … hits nothing but the net. The 2000-01 team survives with a 70-68 victory in regulation and advances to the Arizona Elite Eight Event championship against either the 1993-94 team or the 1987-88 team.

In the last vote a couple of years ago, the league presidents voted 8-2 to not allow Terry’s No. 31 to be retired at McKale Center. School officials made another attempt recently, but all of the league presidents who voted against Terry remain in their position.

Arizona athletic director Greg Byrne supports the idea of retiring Terry’s number, the school official told me.

Terry, who won his first NBA title Sunday night with the Dallas Mavericks, took more than $11,000 from two agents before his senior season at Arizona in 1998-99. The NCAA forced the UA to forfeit the $45,362 for its NCAA tournament appearance in 1999, when the UA lost to Oklahoma in the first round in Terry’s last game as a Wildcat.

Terry has since repaid Arizona the $45,362 and has talked about his desire to be among others whose jersey numbers have been retired — Sean Elliott, Steve Kerr, Mike Bibby and Jason Gardner. The UA’s criteria to have a number retired is for the athlete to be a national player of the year.

Terry, 33, is the only player in Arizona history to collect more than 1,000 career points and 200 career steals. He capped his senior year by being selected First Team All-America by AP; National Player of the Year by Sports Illustrated, CBS/Chevrolet and Rawlings/Basketball Times; and the Pac-10 Player of the Year.

“Hopefully one day my jersey will be up in the rafters,” Terry told me last summer. “I don’t know when. It would be a tremendous honor.”

Fourteen years after winning a national title with Arizona, Jason Terry is an NBA champion (US Presswire/Matthew Emmons)

RELATED LINK: Jason Terry still coming up clutch (Percy Allen, Seattle Times)

No words were better spoken than by Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, a true maverick when it comes to professional sports ownership, after his franchise won its first NBA title Sunday night.

“(Jason Terry) shoved it up everybody’s ass,” Cuban was quoted as saying in an ESPN report.

“Jet had to take all that criticism,” Cuban said. “The media was killing him: ‘He can’t perform in the playoffs. He’s not clutch in the playoffs. He’s too this, he’s too that.’”

Terry has also received criticism from Arizona fans after he mentioned that he would cheer for Washington guard Isaiah Thomas against the Wildcats this year. He told a Seattle radio station last month that if he was recruited out of his alma mater — Seattle Franklin High School — again, that he would choose the Huskies over the UA because Lute Olson is retired.

Many UA fans, administrators, and, most importantly, the Pac-10 (soon to be Pac-12) presidents do not forgive Terry for accepting more than $11,000 from two agents before his senior season of 1998-99. Although Terry has repaid the $45,362 the UA had to forfeit to the NCAA for its tournament appearance in 1999, stubborn Wildcat followers hope his jersey number “31″ is never retired.

Note to the league presidents, who currently are overwhelmingly against Terry’s jersey number retirement: Terry is much more positive for the conference’s image than negative. That’s not even worth debating.

And it has nothing to do with Terry crowned for the first time as an NBA champion. Never mind that Terry outplayed the ballyhooed LeBron James in the Finals. Who would have thought that? And how fitting?

Terry is all about substance, whereas others like James come off as a Ken doll.

Last summer, I sat down with Terry at the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, an event veteran players usually do not attend but he was there to survey the Mavericks’ hopefuls. Guess what he was excited about?

“This year, my sixth-grade (AAU) girls took second place. Unbelievable,” he said in his usual jovial manner. “You know, coaching kids and being out in the community that’s something I love to do and that’s something I’ll probably do in the future.”

Sixth-grade girls team that finished second and Terry was proud. He was elated because he knew those girls gained a sense of achievement and self-pride. He saw a lot of himself in them: A kid who grew up in an impoverished neighborhood in Seattle trying to get the most out of his existence.

One of the more telling comments Terry made to me that night: “I will always be a Wildcat at heart.”

“I watch (Arizona’s) program,” said Terry, who aspires to coach at Arizona, even if it means coaching under Sean Miller, when his NBA career is completed. “I’m great with recruiting. I have an edge in that department. You know, just coming back, making that part of my legacy.

“You know, I’m a Lute (Olson) disciple. It will be the same system that he ran.”

The system Olson ran — much like Miller’s system — includes players who are not selfish. The spirit of Bobbi Olson, Olson’s late wife, would not allow that. Terry, perhaps the most unselfish player in Arizona hoops history, was one of Mrs. Olson’s favorites. I’ll never forget their embrace after Arizona won the NCAA title in 1997 at Indianapolis.

Terry had that boyish wide grin — like we saw Sunday night in Miami — and when he hugged Mrs. Olson, he lifted her off the ground.

He took on the challenge of being the sixth man as a sophomore, easing the transition of freshman Mike Bibby becoming the starting point guard, and reveled in that role.

The ageless Terry, 33, continues to come off the bench for Dallas and he scored a game-high 27 points in the most significant game of his NBA career Sunday. Bibby failed to start for the first time in the Finals for Miami and he did not play. Knowing Terry, he felt compassion for his former Arizona teammate who remains without an NBA title after 13 years in the league.

But to the doubters and critics, as Mark Cuban suggested, Terry has a different mindset.

The climb had its traps and pitfalls, but Terry is finally on top. Now it’s a matter of standing strong there, warding off criticism from an unrelenting few.

With the issue of his Arizona jersey retirement unresolved, and many harboring ill-will toward him because of his admiration for Isaiah Thomas, etc., Terry has not gained a total reprieve in Wildcat Nation.

For those stubborn in that regard, I defer to Cuban’s quote in the headline of this blog.

Jason Terry may not have learned how to crack up his teammates by being around the publicly reserved Mike Bibby in their two years together at Arizona (1996-98).

Terry, however, called his former point-guard mate a “jokester” on Saturday.

“Oh, he’s always funny,” Terry told a gathering of media leading up to the NBA Finals, which start tonight between his Dallas Mavericks and Bibby’s Miami Heat. “He’s a jokester, but my favorite thing about Mike is that he was never scared of the moment.

“Being a freshman, going to the NCAA tournament, leading your team (to an NCAA title in 1997). He took every big shot. He hit every big free throw.”

Although Terry is a year older than Bibby, he said he learned a valuable lesson from his ex-Arizona teammate.

“I just remember the quote they used: ‘He has ice water in his veins.’”, Terry said. “It’s always stuck with him, even in his career in the NBA.

“He’s always been willing to take and make big shots and that’s something that I implemented in my game and I’ve been the same player ever since.”

Another former teammate Josh Pastner told me Thursday that Bibby and Terry get along to this day, which exemplifies Terry’s team-first mentality because Bibby started ahead of him despite being a class younger.

Terry talked about how “excited” he was about Bibby making it to his first NBA championship series. Terry has experienced it before, in 2006 when Dallas lost to Miami, 4-2.

“Oh, I’m very excited; I’m very excited for him,” Terry said. “Again, one of us is going to walk away with that trophy. Either way it goes, I know we’re going to be excited for each other.”

Bibby continues to be a starter for the Heat because coach Erik Spoelstra trusts the way he manages the floor, and he believes Bibby’s recent shooting woes are an aberration.

Bibby established a career-high for three-point accuracy this season, but has struggled in the playoffs.

“This isn’t the first time – there have been times I can’t hit a shot,” Bibby told the Miami Herald. “It’s all in my head, not mechanical. I’m hard-headed. I miss a shot and put too much stress on the next one.”

Bibby finished sixth in the league in three-point accuracy (44  percent) and ninth in three-pointers (153). But his playoff percentage is 24.5 on attempted threes (12 for 49) and 26.3 overall.

His assist-to-turnover ratio is un-Bibby-like (18- 14), but Spoelstra likes Bibby’s overall steady style of play.

“This is what you wait your whole life for, dreaming since you were a little kid,” Bibby said of his first NBA Finals appearance.

The fire of Terry matched with the ice of Bibby made Arizona’s chemistry flow 14 years ago when the Wildcats won the NCAA title. Now they will try to offset the other for their first NBA ring.

“They were always different,” former teammate Josh Pastner said this morning from his Memphis basketball office, where he is approaching his third season as the Tigers’ head coach. “J.T. was always outgoing, the funny guy. Mike was the quiet one.

Jason Terry #31 of the Dallas Mavericks takes a jump shot against Mike Bibby #10 of the Sacramento Kings at the American Airlines Center in a 2007 game at Dallas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

“But as competitors they’re very much the same. Very intense. They had absolutely no conflicts (with Bibby starting as a true freshman and Terry the top sub as a sophomore in 1996-97). They actually got along and respected each other.”

More than 13 years after they played their last game together with the Wildcats — an Elite Eight loss to Utah in 1998 after winning it all in 1997 — Bibby and Terry still have championship aspirations. Bibby and the Miami Heat host Terry and the Dallas Mavericks Tuesday in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.

Seventeen Arizona alums have appeared in the last 16 seasons, including Terry in 2006 when the Mavericks lost to the Heat. This is Bibby’s first trip to the championship round.

Overall, the UA alums have won a total of 12 NBA championships. The last time a pair of former Wildcats met in the NBA Finals was in 2003, when Steve Kerr and San Antonio defeated Richard Jefferson and New Jersey, 4-2.

Aside from their skills — Terry’s defense and timely shooting and Bibby’s playmaking and setting the tone — Pastner said one significant reason why they are in the NBA Finals goes back to their two years together at Arizona.

“Look at it this way: A lot of their development occurred when they went against each other every day in practice at the UA,” Pastner said. “I mean, you’re talking about two lottery picks competing hard against the other for two years under a Hall of Fame coach like Lute Olson.

“For those guys to be still going strong after all these years speaks volumes for what Coach Olson did for those guys and that program.”

The beginning of the 1996-97 season was not easy for Terry, who realized Bibby was a highly-touted recruit from Phoenix Shadow Mountain brought in to be the starter. Terry played approximately 10 minutes a game as a freshman in 1995-96, biding his time behind Reggie Geary.

Three games into the 1996-97 season, Terry was shooting only 34.4 percent from the field. In a pivotal bounce-back win after the Wildcats lost at New Mexico, Terry led the UA over Utah and All-American forward Keith Van Horn in Anaheim. Terry scored 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting, had four assists and only one turnover.

“A lot of it, I was thinking too much,” Terry told me after the 69-61 win over the Utes (I covered the UA for the Arizona Daily Star that season). “When I was in high school, I would just go out there and have fun.

“My high school coach called me and we got to talking. He told to remember I should have fun, instead of getting down on myself.”

Former UA assistant coach Jim Rosborough credits Terry’s team-first mentality as “one of the most significant reasons why we won a national title that year.”

“I can’t say enough about what Jason did for us that season,” Rosborough, who spends some of his time as a volunteer coach with the UA women’s tennis team, told me today. “A lot of people don’t know this, but he approached Coach Olson and basically told him, ‘I’m OK with being the Sixth Man. I’ll be the Sixth Man because we have Mike Bibby, Miles Simon and Michael Dickerson already out there.’

“He never pouted and was always upbeat. He came off the bench his first three years and then in his senior year, he became a national player of the year. That goes to show you that if you pay your dues something good will come out of it.”

(Left to right) Mike Bibby, A.J. Bramlett, Jason Terry and Miles Simon of the Arizona Wildcats talk during a 1997 NCAA Final Four game against the North Carolina Tarheels at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis. Arizona won the game 66-58. (Getty Images)

I posed this question to Rosborough: How important was it that Bibby and Terry had contrasting personalities? If they were alike, would that have affected the chemistry between them and the team? For example, if Bibby was as outspoken as Terry would they have clashed?

“If they were alike I can see how things could have been different,” Rosborough said. “It worked to our advantage that they added their own personality to our team.

“But the bottom line is all those guys enjoyed their time together. I think a lot of that had to do with Jason being around.”

Rosborough recalled the time George Raveling broadcasted the Wildcats’ 93-75 win at Stanford in the 1997-98 season, Bibby’s last of two with the UA. Raveling, citing the Wildcats’ playful demeanor in pregame drills, predicted a Wildcat win at Maples Pavilion despite the fact that Stanford was 18-0 and the UA was 18-4.

“I remember him saying, ‘Why did I predict it? Stanford was uptight in the pregame drills and Arizona was over there slapping each other (in the midsection),’” Rosborough said with a laugh.

“We had a lot of good times back in the day,” Pastner added. “Those teams had great chemistry. To this day, J.T. and Mike still add something to their team, and I think that’s amazing given all these years.

“I am just happy to know that one of them will finally win an NBA championship.”

Much to the chagrin of his biggest supporter — his mother Virginia — Bibby gave up $6.2 million guaranteed next year with Washington by seeking a trade to Miami so he can play for his first NBA title. Terry continues to revel in his role as the sixth man for the Mavericks.

Terry has known most of his career about how sacrifices can be beneficial in the long run. As Bibby’s career winds down, he realizes the same.

Pastner and Rosborough ducked the question about who they want — Terry or Bibby — to win his first NBA title. Who do you want?

“Mike is surrounded by some great players, so if he gets the opportunity to re-sign with Miami, he can play maybe for a couple of more years,” Rosborough said. “Jason is looking as strong as ever. He works his butt off during the off-season. I know because I’ve seen him work. He could sign another three-year contract.

“But who’s to say if either of them get this chance (for a championship) again? It’s taken five years for Jason to get back. I wish they both could win it, but at least one of them will.”

Nick Saban having a statue at Alabama after only 43 wins in Tuscaloosa, Ala., begs the question: What’s taking Arizona so long to erect one of Hall of Famer Lute Olson?

Other than the meaningful statue of John “Button” Salmon outside McKale Center, the Wildcats offer a statue of two bobcats playing with each other. Why not a statue of Olson flanked on each side by a likeness of Sean Elliott and Steve Kerr — the father, son and holy toast of the town?

Other long overdue peripheral objectives that should be on the desk of athletic director Greg Byrne at this very moment:

• It’s time to give Jason Terry his just due by retiring No. 31. Terry, who received illegal benefits from agents as a senior, repaid Arizona the $45,363 it forfeited from the 1999 NCAA tournament. Terry was made ineligible for jersey retirement and induction to the UA Sports Hall of Fame. The school supposedly has petitioned the Pac-10 to retire his jersey, but how serious is Arizona after 12 years and counting? We know how serious Terry is to Arizona’s image as a marketing tool. He is one of 11 NBA players this season who are former Wildcats. We also know how serious Terry is to giving back to the community. Terry comes from an impoverished background in Seattle so he knows how important it is to not be passive in our society. Retiring Terry’s number is a no-brainer for Byrne, who thankfully is a progressive athletic director. With Terry’s effervescent personality, having him on stage at McKale Center being honored with his jersey number retirement, the nation — through the ESPN cameras — will take note.
• Get Coniel Norman at midcourt in front of a standing ovation of a packed McKale Center. How many leading scorers of a program become destitute on the streets, wondering if or when they’ll get another paycheck? Norman has what appears to be an untouchable Arizona record — a career average scoring mark of 23.9 points a game from 1972-74. His name is synonymous to Arizona’s development as a basketball school. His story is not only touching but educational, especially for players of this generation who believe a ticket to a sustained NBA career can easily be punched.
• It’s ridiculous that UA career rushing leader Trung Canidate is not on Arizona’s Ring of Fame in Arizona Stadium. Even more silly is the fact Tedy Bruschi was left off the jersey-number retirement ceremony last November. OK, OK, the official criteria is a player must have won a national player of the year award or earn induction into the College Football Hall of Fame. The school should modify it to include consensus All-Americans who established a career NCAA record while at Arizona. Bruschi was a consensus All-American who left Arizona with 52 sacks, which tied a career Division I-A record. Moreover, Bruschi has that star appeal, similar to Terry, that would help Arizona’s image with a much-publicized ceremony.

Be practical, Arizona, not stodgy. This is not Cooperstown.

Derrick Williams could become the first Arizona player to be selected as the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft

Derrick Williams, who announced Wednesday that he will enter the 2011 NBA draft and hire an agent, did not win a national player of the year award like former Arizona standouts Steve Kerr, Sean Elliott, Jason Terry and Jason Gardner.

He was not a consensus first-team All-American like Elliott, Mike Bibby and Damon Stoudamire.

He did not lead the Wildcats to a Final Four appearance like Kerr, Elliott, Stoudamire, Khalid Reeves, Miles Simon, Michael Dickerson, Bibby, Richard Jefferson and Jason Gardner.

Despite all these lack of accolades, some would argue Williams is the best player to wear an Arizona uniform, given his amount of production in only a two-year span. Many NBA scouting analysts agree that Williams will be the first player taken in the draft, becoming the first Wildcat with that distinction.

Bibby was the No. 2 pick in 1998 and Elliott the No. 3 in 1989.

In two seasons, Williams averaged 17.8 points and 7.7 rebounds per game in 69 career appearances (68 starts). He connected on 58.6 percent of his field goal attempts (388-of-662) in that span, a figure that ranks fourth on the UA career field goal percentage list.

He finished his career with 1,227 career points, which ranks 27th on the UA career scoring list. Williams scored more points in his first two seasons as a Wildcat than any other player in school history. He also is tied for seventh on the Arizona career scoring average list (17.8 points a game).

He is sixth on the career free throws list with 405 and seventh on the career free throw attempts list (563). No player in Arizona history averaged more free throw attempts per game than Williams’ average of 8.2 per game.

Elliott finished with a UA-record 2,555 points in his career, which at the time of his departure after four years was also a Pac-10 record. If Williams stayed and maintained his scoring pace, he would have finished with 2,454 points, challenging Elliott’s mark.

Arguably, in a two-year span Williams is the best to wear an Arizona uniform. How about overall, especially if he is selected as the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft?

That’s highly debatable, especially considering what many NBA scouts believe is a very weak draft.

Williams obviously belongs among the pantheon of Arizona greats, definitely in the top five, in my opinion, with Elliott, Stoudamire, Bibby and Kerr.