ARIZONA WILDCATS BASKETBALL

Arizona’s Motiejus Krivas named sleeper 2025 NBA Draft prospect by ESPN

Jun 2, 2024, 10:45 AM

...

Arizona center Motiejus Krivas appeared in all 36 games off the bench last season. But with starting center Oumar Ballo’s transfer portal departure, Krivas will have an opportunity to be the man in the middle for the Wildcats this upcoming season.

ESPN’s Jonathan Givony named Krivas as an under-the-radar prospect for the 2025 NBA Draft.

Krivas was still growing even after enrolling at the Tucson school; now pushing 7-foot-3, he had some outstanding moments suggesting he could develop into one of the best big men in college basketball with a Donovan Clingan-type rise as a sophomore. He has outstanding hands, long arms, a high skill level and impressive instincts on both ends of the floor. He’s all but guaranteed to be productive as a rebounder and interior scorer at Arizona next season, but we’ll see what type of strides he is able to make defensively and with his overall athleticism to get a better feel for where he fits into the draft equation in 2025.

Krivas finished his freshman season with the Wildcats averaging 12.1 minutes per game, 5.4 points and 4.2 rebounds. He also shot 55.4% from the field. He did not declare for the 2024 NBA Draft and chose to come back to Arizona for another season.

Ballo, who transferred to Indiana, started all 36 games played, averaging 25.9 minutes to go with 12.9 points and 10.1 rebounds per game.

Originally from Siauliai, Lithuania, Krivas played for Lithuania at the FIBA U20 European Championships that took place in Crete last summer, averaging 12.9 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2.4 blocks and 2.0 assists over seven games. He also shot 54% from the floor in the tournament.

Krivas was a part of the EuroLeague’s Zalgiris II pro team’s NKL championship in 2023. During the season, he averaged 13.7 points, 9.8 rebounds, 1.6 blocks and 1.5 assists and was named the league’s best defender. He also led the league in rebounding and blocks.

Arizona Wildcats basketball

Arizona jumped up seven spots in Monday's AP poll...

Associated Press

College basketball rankings: Arizona jumps up 7 spots in AP poll

The Arizona Wildcats again saw positive movement up The Associated Press' top 25 men's basketball rankings on Monday.

17 hours ago

Arizona...

Damon Allred

No. 20 Arizona dominant inside, gets revenge against No. 13 Texas Tech for lone conference loss

No. 20 Arizona men's basketball hit the paint hard in a show of physicality to beat No. 13 Texas Tech, avenging its lone loss in Big 12 play.

2 days ago

BYU guard Egor Demin (3) drives between Arizona guard KJ Lewis (5) and forward Trey Townsend during...

Lance Hartzler

No. 20 Arizona clamps down late to seal win over BYU

The No. 20 Arizona and BYU men's basketball teams were in a fun one in Provo, Utah, Tuesday night.

6 days ago

The Arizona Wildcats and UConn Huskies are finalizing a home-and-home series...

Tyler Drake

Arizona and UConn finalizing home-and-home men’s basketball series

The Arizona Wildcats are reportedly finalizing an agreement with the UConn Huskies for a home-and-home series beginning in the 2025-26 season.

8 days ago

Arizona's Caleb Love after headbutt...

Lance Hartzler

Arizona’s Caleb Love named Big 12 Player of the Week

No. 12 Arizona Wildcats guard Caleb Love was named the Big 12 player of the week following his performances in wins over Iowa State and ASU.

8 days ago

Arizona still on outside of AP Top 25...

Associated Press

College basketball rankings: Arizona returns to AP top 25 after beating ASU

The Arizona Wildcats (15-6) on Monday returned to The Associated Press' top 25 men's basketball rankings for the first time since November.

8 days ago

Arizona’s Motiejus Krivas named sleeper 2025 NBA Draft prospect by ESPN