Kyle Fogg should be one of the experienced leaders of the UA next year, but he will be challenged by younger talent

Amid the hoopla of a pep rally on campus Thursday night, UA basketball coach Sean Miller talked about the program’s future beyond Sunday’s important game against ASU at McKale Center.

Miller discussed his plans for the recruiting class of 2010. Of course, he did not talk about particular players, per NCAA rules, but he did mention that he and his coaching staff hope to land two more recruits before the April signing period. Miller already has in tow Phoenix North guard Daniel Bejarano (who signed a national letter of intent in November) and Los Angeles Westchester guard Jordin Mayes (who verbally committed to the UA last month).

The most frequently asked question: How will Miller bring in a four-player class when he only has three spots to fill?

Let’s take a look at the 2010-11 roster as it presently stands if the Wildcats stay intact:

1. Jamelle Horne, senior forward. Although Miller’s patience has run thin sometimes over Horne because of Horne’s lack of rebounds, there’s no reason to believe Horne will not be back for his senior season.
2. Kyle Fogg, junior guard. Will Fogg, mired in a funk for the last couple of weeks, accept being a bench player next year behind a freshman (either Bejarano or Doron Lamb, for example)?
3. Brendon Lavender, junior guard. Lavender has shown signs of life of late beyond the three-point line, but will he accept what looks to be a reserve role for the rest of his career at Arizona?
4. Alex Jacobson, junior center. Don’t expect Jacobson to go anywhere. Jacobson, an asset in practice for his size around the hoop, does not want to lose another year after redshirting as a freshman.
5. D.J. Shumpert, junior forward. Shumpert is another holdover from the Lute Olson era who has hardly played for the Cats. Miller promised Shumpert a scholarship for as long as he is eligible. Can that scholarship be an academic one instead, or might UA academic advisors find other ways to keep Shumpert around?
6. Kevin Parrom, sophomore forward. Has developed into the backbone of Arizona’s starting lineup with his aggressive yet steady style of play. He’s going nowhere.
7. MoMo Jones, sophomore guard. Like Parrom, Jones provides the Cats some toughness, mentally as much as physically. He should be back because a starting assignment is a strong possibility.
8. Solomon Hill, sophomore forward. He has a strong upside because of his versatility. He’s not jumping ship.
9. Derrick Williams, sophomore forward. Interesting angle here is Williams will likely be the Pac-10 freshman of the year. How will that play on his mind when the NBA draft deadline comes around? UCLA coach Ben Howland thought Jrue Holiday would be back this season and Holiday is gone to the NBA.
10. Kyryl Natyazhko, sophomore center. The Ukrainian has shown promise as of late. However, any coach must have guarded optimism that a foreign player will stay his entire career because of family being far away.
11. Daniel Bejarano, freshman guard. He will immediately challenge for a starting spot because of his perimeter shooting ability.
12. Jordin Mayes, freshman guard. His basketball smarts and controlled play will be a necessary component Arizona lacks this season.

This leaves one available scholarship. Again, the ways for another to open up include a player transferring, going pro or attending the UA via other means. Miller would not target a four-player class if he did not think any of these scenarios are possible.

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Baltimore Lake Clifton high-profile guard Josh Selby is one of 24 candidates to become a McDonald's All-Amercan

During Super Bowl Sunday, Louisville coach Rick Pitino was not watching football. Pitino and his protege Billy Donovan of Florida were in New York City to catch the Flushing (N.Y.) Christ the King vs. Manhattan (N.Y.) Rice showdown.

Their focus: Rice center Kadeem Jack, who has visited only Arizona to date. Jack’s mentor Damian Leslie has indicated that Jack will take more official visits, although it’s questionable whether the young Trinidad and Tobago native will take his allotment of five.

Jack (6-9 and 205 pounds) finished with 10 points and seven rebounds in Rice’s 60-52 loss to Christ the King.

Louisville was not mentioned as part of his list of suitors when Jack visited Tucson last month. Don’t be surprised if Jack visits at least UCLA and Florida after the Rice season is complete. Providence, Miami and UConn are also possibilities

While Arizona considers Jack a priority to help shore up its inside next year, Louisville reportedly views him as a backup if Pitino is unable to land Huntington (W.V.) center Gorgui Dieng.

ASU recruit a McDonald’s All-American possibility. Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei, which in the past was a pipeline to Arizona with players like Miles Simon and Reggie Geary, has a player it seems who will make ASU fans forget about James Harden. Keala King, who averages 15 points and nine rebounds for Mater Dei, is one of 24 candidates to be selected to the McDonald’s All-American game.

Three players who have officially visited the Arizona campus but have yet to commit anywhere are also McDonald’s possibilities: Detroit Country Day School guard Ray McCallum Jr., Baltimore Lake Clifton guard Josh Selby and Mouth of Wilson (Va.) Oak Hill Academy guard Doron Lamb.

Also on the list is Portland (Ore.) Jefferson prospect Terrence Jones, who at one time was recruited by UA coach Sean Miller and his brother/assistant coach Archie Miller. Although Jones is 6-9, he is not a prototypical power forward. He likes to handle the ball and shoot from the perimeter. He is not a post up player down low and he does not have the quickness in the open court to be a point guard at the collegiate level.

If Arizona must sign a 6-9 player, it needs a talent who can be a factor on the boards and score from his positioning inside.

Jones, however, is a talent any program should seriously consider no matter the circumstance. To boot: Los Angeles Westchester guard Jordin Mayes grew up in Portland close to Jones. Damon and Salim Stoudamire are friends with the Mayes family, but they are family with Jones. They are Jones’ distant cousins.

“Terrence and Jordin know each other well,” Mayes’ father Darryel Mayes told me. “They’re from that close circle of family and friends in Portland.”

Too bad that it seems they will not be collegiate teammates.

Potential UA recruits to represent U.S. A few potential Arizona recruits from the Class of 2011 and 2012 were selected members of the 2009-10 USA Basketball Developmental National Team this. San Diego Herbert Hoover forward Angelo Chol (Class of 2011) is one of the standouts on the team. Perry Ellis, a Class of 2012 forward from Wichita Heights (Kansas), is another.

Chol, another power forward prospect at 6-9, has blocked a San Diego Section-record 759 shots during his career at Hoover. The national record of 1,187 blocks held by Emeryville (Calif.) star Darnell Robinson is well within Chol’s range.

Speaking of records, Micah Behrens, a 6-foot Phoenix Moon Valley sophomore, scored a school-record 47 points as his team rolled past Prescott, 85-55, recently. The record of 46 was held by NBA standout and former UA player Richard Jefferson.

For more information regarding Arizona athletics, please visit WILDABOUTAZCATS.com

Potential UA recruit Kadeem Jack will visit the UA Wednesday through Friday. Arizona is his only scheduled visit as of now although he is being recruited by Arkansas, Florida, Seton Hall, St. John’s, Miami, Florida International, Providence, West Virginia and UConn. (Kadeem Jack photo)

Before his official trip to Tucson this week, including an opportunity to watch Arizona play Stanford, New York City prospect Kadeem Jack has already offered the Wildcats and his other suitors some good news:

“I would say I don’t want to completely give up the prep school thing. If the right college comes along, then I’ll take it. I don’t want to just go somewhere that the coach is stuffing my head. It’s more 90/10 that I’ll go to college (next year).”

That’s what Jack told Dave Telep of Scout.com today. Just a couple of weeks ago Jack, a Class of 2010 6-8 power forward from Rice High School in Manhattan, indicated to me that he was leaning more toward prep school to better prepare himself athletically and academically for Division I basketball.

After his recent 24-point, 20-rebound performance against Jayvaughn Pinkston of Bishop Loughlin, Jack had a revelation of his rapid development on the court. He did not start playing basketball until he was in the ninth grade.

“I just realized that I took my game to a whole different level,” Jack told Telep. “I think I’m more aggressive and have more confidence. Everything feels second nature. I’m just happy to develop my game this much.”

‘Melo and Selby good friends. Another player high on Arizona’s list — Baltimore Lake Clifton point guard Josh Selby — told NBEBasketball.com that he has regular contact with former Syracuse star Carmelo Anthony. Selby told the Web site that he has Syracuse on his list along with Arizona, Kansas, Kentucky, Indiana and Connecticut.

Zagsblog.com is reporting that Kansas and Arizona are his two finalists, according to “multiple sources”.

“I communicate with ‘Melo a lot with us being from Baltimore,” Selby told NBEBasketball.com, “and he tells me to focus on my high school season, take it day by day and then worry about college.”

Ellis in Wonderland. Potential Class of 2012 recruit Perry Ellis of Wichita Heights led his team to a Tournament of Champions title Saturday in Dodge City, Kansas. Ellis achieved his averages of 27 points and 12 rebounds in Heights’ 75-60 victory over Gardner-Edgerton.

Heights coach Joe Auer, who reportedly shares a friendship with Wichita native Jamall Walker, UA’s director of basketball operations, told the Dodge City Daily Globe that Ellis is “probably better than any time in his career.” Ellis, a 6-8 sophomore power forward is already being recruited by top-flight schools, including Kansas, Kentucky, Memphis and Arizona.

“(Perry) ran the floor and he was a track athlete in the middle of that floor,” Auer said. “We encouraged him to do that.”

Perry is rated the No. 1 prospect in his class by Rivals.com. Most of the talk concerning schools involved with Perry is with Kentucky and Kansas. Perry, however, told Scout.com recently that he is keeping his options open.

“I really liked what I saw then and I am sure I will look hard at Kentucky. It’s a great school with a great coach,” Ellis said. “Kansas obviously recruits me hard. I like how they play and what they do, too. I am not in any hurry to narrow down my list. I will wait and see all the options out there and not say no to anybody right now.”