Arizona Basketball: Shareef O’Neal commits to play for the Wildcats in 2018

Shareef O’Neal, the son of Shaq, will suit up for the Arizona Wildcats in 2018.

Rising junior Shareef O’Neal verbally committed to Sean Miller and the Arizona Wildcats early Wednesday morning. The five-star recruit is the second player from the class of 2018 to agree to play for the Wildcats.

O’Neal is a five-star prospect who is ranked among the top 65 players in his class by all of the top scouting services. The 6’9, 205-pound power forward has all the tools to be a fantastic collegiate basketball player as long as he continues to work on his overall game.

O’Neal’s game his totally different from his father’s. The younger O’Neal is athletic, runs the floor well, and can shoot the ball with range. What he does best, however, is getting to the basket off the dribble or in transition.

Here is ESPN Insider’s scouting report on O’Neal:

"“O’Neal has a terrific looking frame with long arms and he’s probably going to add a few more inches. He is a good athlete (runs well) who can explode to the rim in transition and his lift and length allows to finish over the top of the defense. His ball skills are on the come, but his jump shot looks smooth. He an spot up from 20-feet and convert jump shots, especially off the catch.”“O’Neal has a terrific looking frame with long arms and he’s probably going to add a few more inches. He is a good athlete (runs well) who can explode to the rim in transition and his lift and length allows to finish over the top of the defense. His ball skills are on the come, but his jump shot looks smooth. He an spot up from 20-feet and convert jump shots, especially off the catch.”"

O’Neal chose Arizona over USC, UCLA, Kentucky, and LSU.

O’Neal is another recruiting coup for Sean Miller and the Wildcats. Miller is a fantastic recruiter as well as an excellent technician. His last seven recruiting classes have finished in the top-seven of ESPN’s rankings. They could once again have a top ranked class in 2018 with two five-star commitments already.

Emmanuel Akot, from Winnipeg, Manitoba, is the other 2018 recruit that has committed to Wildcats. Akot is an athletic 6-6 small forward who likes to get to the rim either in transition or in the half-court.

Arizona finished 32-5 this past season but its future prospects took a little hit with the loss of a couple of early NBA draft entrants. The good news is that sophomore guard Alonzo Trier will return, though a pair of freshmen, Lauri Markkanen and Kobi Simmons, have decided to forgo their remaining college eligibility. Freshman Rawle Alkins has also declared for the draft, though, unlike the other two, he will not hire an agent.  Kadeem Allen is the lone Wildcat player who graduates.

On the positive side, forward Talbott Denny is expected to be granted a sixth year of eligibility due to a medical hardship.

So, as it stands the Wildcats will be pretty young and talented in 2017-18. Dusan Ristic, Parker Jackson-Cartwright, Keanu Pinder, and Denny will be the seniors on the roster. 6’5 Sophomore transfer Dylan Smith will have three years of eligibility, starting this upcoming season. Smith, who sat out this past season, averaged 13.5 points at UNC-Asheville as a freshman. Arizona currently has a four-member 2017 recruiting class, led by 7’0 center DeAndre Ayton.

Next: Arizona Basketball: Allonzo Trier returns for Junior season

If no one leaves early for the NBA draft or transfers, Trier and Chance Comanche will have the opportunity to lead a team to another long NCAA tourney run in 2019 as well.