Fifth-year Arizona basketball head coach Tommy Lloyd lost some key pieces of his roster in the backcourt and forward units early this offseason due to NBA Draft departures and the spring transfer portal window a couple of months ago.
Not only did Lloyd and the Wildcats lose their leading scorer from this past season in the 2024-25 campaign, junior guard Caleb Love, but their first portal departure was also a team's key contributor in forward KJ Lewis.
That said, Arizona did get good news earlier this past week when junior guard and the team's second leading scorer from this past season in the Big 12, Jaden Bradley, announced his return to school for another campaign going into 2025-26.
KJ Lewis, F
The first Arizona player with starts under their belt to enter the spring transfer portal window early this offseason in college hoops was sophomore small forward/wing Lewis. The ex-blue chip recruit from El Paso, TX, started this past season for the Wildcats as a starting forward in the starting lineup in non-conference play.
Lewis filled the sixth man role for the Wildcats in Big 12 conference play. He averaged a career-high 10.8 points per game, 4.2 rebounds, and 3.3 assists in Big 12 play, including over 20 points in wins over West Virginia and Arizona State.
Committed to Georgetown
Henri Veesaar, C
Former high-four-star recruit from Estonia, junior center Henri Veesaar, was one of the more surprising spring transfer portal departures for Lloyd and the Wildcats early this offseason. Veesaar played a career-high 20 games in Big 12 conference play this past season for the Wildcats, including a career-high five starts in the regular season's final six games.
He scored a season-high 22 points in a big 113-100 win over in-state rival Arizona State down the stretch this past season in conference play at home in Tucson.
Committed to North Carolina
Emmanuel Stephen, C
Lagos, Nigeria, native and former four-star recruit from Dream City Christian High School in Glendale, AZ, big man Emmanuel Stephen was Arizona's second frontcourt player who entered the spring transfer portal early this offseason. Stephen saw limited time on the court this past season in the Big 12, playing two dozen minutes off the bench in eight games for the Wildcats and Lloyd.
Stephen played a season-high nine minutes, scoring six points, six rebounds, one assist, and one block in Arizona's blowout win in non-conference play this past December against Central Michigan.
Committed to UNLV
Conrad Martinez, G
The fourth and most recent Arizona player who entered the portal in the spring transfer window, who has found another home with a D1 school in college hoops, is sophomore guard Conrad Martinez. Lloyd and the Wildcats have lost multiple guards to the transfer portal and the NBA Draft this spring who played in double-digit games in the Big 12 this past season in conference play.
Coming from overseas in Europe in Spain, Martinez started to earn more playing time in conference play down the stretch this past season in the Big 12. He played double-digit games in conference play in each of the past two seasons for the Wildcats, averaging 1.3 points per game, 0.8 assists, and 0.3 rebounds in his collegiate career in the last couple of years.
Committed to High Point