I can hear the Lute Olson die-hards now after reading that headline.

“What do you mean unparalleled?” they will say. “Ever heard of Sean Elliott? Mike Bibby? Brandon Jennings (even though he never attended Arizona)?”

“What about that class that had Richard Jefferson, Luke Walton and Michael Wright in 1998?” they’ll argue.

Olson’s best two-year recruiting run arguably was in 1998 and 1999, on the heels of his first NCAA title with the Wildcats in 1997.

In 1998, Olson signed Jefferson, Wright and Walton (key components to the 2001 Final Four team) along with Ricky Anderson, Ruben Douglas and Traves Wilson. Anderson became a senior leader in 2001-02. Douglas and Wilson transferred after their freshman season. Douglas became the NCAA’s leading scorer as a senior at New Mexico.

In 1999, Olson inked Gilbert Arenas and Jason Gardner, one of the best backcourt combinations in the program’s history. Little-used Robertas Javtokas and Lamont Frazier were also part of the class and they did not last.

Compare those two classes with the assortment of talent Sean Miller has attracted to Tucson the last two years.

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Former UA guard Mustafa Shakur played in his first NBA game on Jan. 22 this year, nearly four years after completing his Wildcat career (US Presswire photo/Rafael Suanes)

So Josiah Turner and Nick Johnson are Five-Star recruits as rated by Rivals.com in its most recent rankings released Wednesday. Is that good news or bad for UA coach Sean Miller?

Turner, a point guard from Sacramento who finished his season at Winston-Salem (N.C.) Quality Education Academy, and Johnson, a guard-wing from Henderson (Nev.) Findlay Prep, become the third Wildcat duo to be listed as Five-Star prospects in the same year.

In 2003, forward Ndudi Ebi of Houston was rated the No. 4 prospect overall and guard Mustafa Shakur was rated No. 12. In 2007, guard Jerryd Bayless of Phoenix was the No. 13 prospect and forward Jamelle Horne was rated No. 21.

Turner is rated No. 11 by Rivals.com in the Class of 2011 and Johnson is at No. 18. Generally, the top 25 or 26 recruits garner Five-Star status.

Bayless, who only played one season at Arizona, has enjoyed the most success in his career, compared to Ebi, Shakur and Horne.

Of course, these rankings are always suspect. Keep in mind that former UA forward Derrick Williams, a potential No. 1 NBA draft pick, was not among the Rivals.com Top 150 prospects in 2009.

Ebi never played for Arizona, opting for the NBA draft instead. He was the 26th overall pick in the 2003 draft but his career never flourished at Minnesota, which waived him after two seasons. He was subsequently waived by Dallas in the next preseason camp and has only played in Europe since.

Shakur started all but two of his games at Arizona during his four-year career, but he was not drafted by NBA clubs in 2007. A point guard with decent height at 6-4, Shakur was co-MVP of the 2003 EA Sports Roundball High School Classic. The other MVP? LeBron James.

Shakur toiled in Europe for a couple of years and played in the NBA Developmental League before signing a 10-day contract with Oklahoma City at the end of last season. He returned to the D-League this season, playing for Tulsa and Rio Grande, before Washington signed him to a 10-day contract on Jan. 22. He played in his first NBA game that day, almost four years after leaving Arizona.

He finished the season with the Wizards, averaging 7.2 minutes a game in 22 games.

Bayless’ only season at Arizona in 2007-08 was tumultuous personally as he felt let down when Lute Olson took a leave of absence and was replaced by interim coach Kevin O’Neill. The 2007 McDonald’s All-American still averaged 19.7 points and four assists per game in the Wildcats’ 18-13 season. He was the 11th pick overall in the 2008 NBA draft, taken by Indiana, which traded his rights to Portland.

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RELATED LINK: Even if Derrick Williams leaves early, history shows the Wildcats can carry on

So what will happen if Derrick Williams leaves Arizona before his junior season and is chosen among the first five picks of the NBA draft in June? What will life be like at McKale Center in Year One of the post-Williams era? Is this the end of the world as we know it?

Will Arizona be Arizona without Derrick Williams next season if he goes to the NBA? (US Presswire photo/Gary A. Vasquez)

History tells us that Arizona will continue to have a heartbeat without Williams. In fact, the old ticker will continue to beat at a good rate.

This is how the Wildcats have fared after one of their stars was chosen among the first 10 picks of the NBA draft:

• 1979: Larry Demic, Sr. (9th pick). UA year later in 1979-80: 12-15
• 1989: Sean Elliott, Sr. (3rd pick). UA year later in 1989-90: 25-7
• 1991: Brian Williams, Jr. (10th pick). UA year later in 1991-92: 24-7
• 1995: Damon Stoudamire, Sr. (7th pick). UA year later in 1995-96: 27-6 (Sweet 16)
• 1998: Mike Bibby, Soph. (2nd pick). UA year later in 1998-99: 22-6
• 1999: Jason Terry, Sr. (10th pick). UA year later in 1999-2000: 27-7
• 2004: Andre Iguodala, Soph. (9th pick). UA year later in 2004-05: 30-7 (Elite Eight)
• 2005: Channing Frye, Sr. (8th pick). UA year later in 2005-06: 20-13
• 2009: Jordan Hill, Jr. (8th pick). UA year later in 2009-10: 16-15

That’s only one losing season after Demic’s departure when Fred Snowden was in the last stages of his coaching career. The other unimpressive mark is the 16-15 record after Hill left to the NBA after his junior season. That was Sean Miller‘s first season at Arizona. The transition after two interim coaches following Lute Olson‘s retirement was not easy.

Overall, in the season after these nine players departed (four of them prematurely), the UA posted a record of 213-83. That’s a winning percentage of 71.9. That’s also an average of 23.6 wins the season after the Wildcats were required to fill a significant void.

The combined 213-83 mark is only 14 games worse than the the record — 227-69 — of the season in which these nine players completed their Wildcat careers. That averages to only about 1.6 more losses in the season after a top 10 NBA draft pick departs Arizona.

The most significant dropoff is the amount of Sweet 16 and Elite Eight appearances. The Wildcats achieved a Sweet 16 (1995-96) and Elite Eight (2004-05) appearance in seasons after a high draft choice was taken. They achieved two Sweet 16s and two Elite Eights in the year these standouts completed their career.

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