Injuries, eligibility issues cast a pall over Arizona's exhibition win

At one point last spring, Sean Miller’s biggest headache appeared to be trying to find playing time for the glut of talented wings on his 2016-17 roster.

Now the Arizona coach must wonder if he’ll have enough scholarship players to field a team by the time the Wildcats open the season in Honolulu on Nov. 11 against Michigan State.

The roster attrition started in June when heralded incoming freshman Terrance Ferguson opted to pursue professional opportunities amid concerns over whether he would have been eligible to play for the Wildcats. Then on Tuesday night, four other players didn’t suit up for Arizona’s exhibition victory over College of Idaho and heralded redshirt freshman Ray Smith suffered a potentially serious injury.

Smith, who has already suffered ACL tears in both knees, went up awkwardly for a second-half layup, crumpled to the floor next to the basket and had to be helped off the court. The extent of his injury won’t be known until he undergoes an MRI exam later this week, but Miller acknowledged to reporters after the game that “certainly it didn’t look good.”

If it’s another ACL tear, it would be Smith’s third in 27 months. He hasn’t played in a competitive game since the summer before his senior year of high school, yet the 6-foot-8 Las Vegas native remains optimistic and upbeat.

Arizona fans may need to borrow some of Smith’s positivity because the news on leading returning scorer Allonzo Trier and backup center Chance Comanche was nearly as dire.

Trier sat on the bench in street clothes as Arizona continues to work through unspecified concerns related to his eligibility to play this season. For three weeks, neither Miller nor anyone else at Arizona has commented on Trier’s status or a timetable for his return.

Arizona released a statement shortly before Tuesday’s game saying Comanche would not play “due to his own lack of academic responsibility.” Comanche is indefinitely suspended, depriving Arizona of a promising sophomore big men who would have been part of the rotation behind starter Dusan Ristic.

Where that leaves Arizona for the moment is with seven available scholarship players. A starting five of Parker Jackson-Cartwright, Rawle Atkins, Kadeem Allen, Lauri Markkanen and Ristic is certainly serviceable, but that leaves only talented combo guard Kobi Simmons and junior college transfer Keanu Pinder off the bench.

Arizona can only hope that it gets better-than-expected news on Smith and that Trier or Comanche are able to play sooner than later.

With those three available, Arizona is a Pac-12 title contender and a potential threat to reach Miller’s first Final Four. Without all three, the Wildcats could have a hard time surpassing last year’s 25-win season that ended in the opening round of the NCAA tournament.

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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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