Pac-10 preseason men's basketball progress report, Part I

Arizona coach Sean Miller/Photo Stephen Dunn/Getty Images

Arizona, Arizona State and USC are first up in our three brief preseason status reports of the men’s Pac-10 basketball teams

Guard Ty Abbott, one of three returning starters, tore meniscus in his knee in the first week of preseason practice and had arthroscopic knee surgery.  He will be out for the rest of preseason camp and the first four games of the regular season.

It adds a challenge for coach Herb Sendek, who lost the Pac-10 player of the year, James Harden, who was a first-round draft choice, and underrated big man, Jeff Pendergraph, who was second-round pick.

The freshman who has shown the most in preseason is Trent Lockett, a 6-4 guard who may benefit from Abbott’s absence.  He could be a starter before the season’s over.

Point guard Derek Glasser and Rihards Kuksiks, an outstanding 3-point shooter, are the other returning starters, and it appears 6-10 Eric Boateng will get the first crack and being the man in the middle.

The Sun Devils are picked to finish near the bottom.

Sean Miller brought in five talented freshmen late in the recruiting period, and they will get a chance to contribute immediately, because the Wildcats lost a lot.

Kyryl  Natyazhko, a 6-10 Ukrainian, may be the most talented of the freshmen, and wing Solomon Hill is the other highly touted newcomer.  But the most impressive freshman in practice has been Kevin Parrom, a versatile 6-5 forward who figures to get a lot of playing time immediately.

Sophomore Brendon Lavender barely played at all last season, but his outside scoring ability may get him some playing time under Miller.

Point guard Nic Wise is the one sure thing for Arizona, which will be playing for its fourth coach in four years and lost two players to the NBA – Jordan Hill and Chase Budinger.

The Wildcats are expected to be a middle-of-the-pack team.

Power Forward Alex Stepheson, who sat out last season after transferring from North Carolina, has been the most impressive player so far in preseason.   He is one of two transfers who may start for USC, which lost three starters -- Taj Gibson, DeMar DeRozan and Daniel Hackett.

Donte Smith, a redshirt junior, is likely to be the starting point guard when the season begins, but he sat out Sunday’s intrasquad scrimmage with a sprained ankle.

Michael Gerrity, who transferred from Charlotte after transferring from Pepperdine, and Leonard Washington, who is academically ineligible in the fall term, will be eligible at the start of the second term.  Gerrity probably will become the starting point guard when he returns.

Until those two become eligible, new coach Kevin O’Neill is working with eight scholarship players.

But O'Neill has been picking up commitments by the bushel lately.  This week he got a verbal commitment from a 7-foot junior college player DeWayne Dedmon, according to scout.com.   He only started playing basketball a year ago, greyshirted his first year at Antelope Valley Junior College and has worked himself into being a prospect

USC may struggle to make it into the top half of the standings.

For more Bay Area college sports, see jakestakeonsports.com.

See also:

PAC-10 MEN'S, WOMEN'S RECRUITING UPDATE

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NEW COMPETITION FOR STANFORD FOR RECRUIT

DAWKINS BATTLING AMAKER AGAIN FOR RECRUIT

STANFORD RECRUITING CLASS RANKED IN TOP 10

STANFORD CLASS RANKED IN TOP 15

STANFORD WOMEN PICKED TO WIN PAC-10

NATION'S NO. 1 PROSPECT TO VISIT STANFORD

GEORGIA PLAYER TRYING TO SCHEDULE TRP

TWO OFFSEASON ADVANTAGES FOR CARDINAL WOMEN