Arizona basketball is currently the best team in the country. They are undefeated at 22-0 and have March Madness right in their grasp.
But 6-foot-5 freshman Bryce James, the youngest son of LeBron James, hasn't played a minute. On Wednesday, Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd made it official that he was redshirting James, per ESPN/Associated Press.
Overall, Lloyd said he thought this would be the best option at this time for James as he continues to grow.
“The redshirting decision was just a long play, to give Bryce the most options in his career as his career unfolds,” Lloyd told the Big 12 Network. “I have real strong belief that Bryce will be a contributor at Arizona in the near future. He's really shown a lot of progress, not only learning our system but just physically maturing.”
James is part of a now-illustrious first-year class that has helped Arizona get off to its best start in history. The Wildcats' last national championship was in 1997 when Lute Olson was the head coach and featured players such as Miles Simon.
Last January, James officially committed to Arizona out of Sierra Canyon School in Chatsworth, California. His older brother, Bronny, is currently playing with the Los Angeles Lakers alongside their father.
On Saturday, the Wildcats will face off against Oklahoma State. After that, they will play No.11 Kansas next Monday. On Feb 14, Arizona will play against No. 13 Texas Tech at home.
The following Wednesday, they will square off against No. 14 BYU, then on the 21st against No. 8 Houston. The Wildcats will close out February against Baylor on the 24th and Kansas on the 28th.
On March 2, Arizona will play No. 11 Iowa State, and on March 7, against Colorado.
