Anonymous Coaches Speak on Top Pac-12 Teams

The Athletic's Seth Davis was able to ask anonymous coaches their opinions on top Pac-12 teams.

Conference tournament time is rapidly approaching, and the Pac-12 figures to be one of the top brackets to watch prior to the NCAA tournament. 

Heavyweights such as No. 3 Arizona, No. 13 UCLA and No. 17 USC are some of the top teams headlining the Pac-12, which figures to again produce strong contenders deep into March. 

The trio of Pac-12 giants have flashed the ability to beat anybody in the country, while also displaying points of weakness throughout the season. 

The Athletic's Seth Davis continued a fantastic series in which he speaks with coaches (on anonymity) and gains valuable insight on top teams throughout each conference. 

On Monday, Davis published his Pac-12 findings, with some interesting tidbits on the Wildcats, Bruins and Trojans. 

Anonymous Coaches Speak on Top Pac-12 Teams

No. 3 Arizona Wildcats

“One of the most talented teams I’ve seen in this league in the last decade. No one on their team has actually won a tournament game except Oumar Ballo, and he didn’t play much at Gonzaga. You better find Bennedict Mathurin in transition. He’s like Jerry Rice. He seems to be a little bit temperamental. He can pout when things aren’t going his way. When he’s engaged, he’s a monster.

"You have to do whatever it takes to slow down their fast break and make them play in the halfcourt. They’ll go as far as Kerr Kriisa takes them. He’s way too emotional for a point guard. When things are going well they feed off his energy, but down the stretch he needs to show his maturity. I’m not sure he can guard an athletic point guard. UCLA just swung the ball until he was guarding someone one-on-one, and they went at him.

"They have so much rim protection, but if you can spread ’em out and drive ’em, you can get things moving. If you take shitty shots, they’ll pin back their ears. Tommy inherited a talented roster, but he’s done a great job getting everyone to buy in.”

No. 13 UCLA Bruins

“They’re physically tougher than the other teams in the league, which isn’t saying a lot this year. Johnny Juzang is a bucket, but they can become too dependent on him. That’s what happened when they lost to Arizona and Arizona State. 

"They don’t have a lot of depth. They’re a sprained ankle away from not being good enough. They don’t have a backup point guard, so if Tyger Campbell goes down, where do they go? Their defense is good because they can switch, and they’re smart. You want to put Cody Riley in the screen-and-roll. He’s not the most agile athlete. He’s a low-post guy but he’s shooting it better from 15 and 17 feet this year. 

"A team with legitimate athleticism and size could hurt them. UCLA likes to be the bully, but against bigger teams they can have some challenges. Campbell is more comfortable going left even though he’s a righty. He’s really good at getting you off your feet with pump fakes. You want to get him involved in a lot of screens where you’re banging on him and making him fight. I worry about their depth in the post. Myles Johnson isn’t the answer in there. Juzang is a great scorer. but he has no interest in defending. 

"You have to get inside their defense, because that puts them in foul trouble and they don’t have shot blockers. Jaime Jaquez is the X factor. He’s got that toughness.”

No. 17 USC Trojans

"They’re a streaky shooting team, and they don’t have a ton of depth. Isaiah Mobley is really skilled, but he wants to play away from the basket. If you take away his 3, I don’t think he’s as efficient. Boogie Ellis has legit size at his position. He’s a momentum scorer. You have to keep him out of the lane, but he can get it rolling. Drew Peterson is a big small forward. 

"They’re the third biggest team in the country, so if you can neutralize that, it becomes a problem for them. That’s why Stanford beat ’em twice — they’re really big, too. A team that shoots 3s would give them problems because then they don’t have to score at the rim. Peterson has struggled with his shot at times. Chevez Goodwin can kill you, but he’s not consistent enough. They don’t have much depth inside. 

"What’s interesting is Ethan Anderson was a good spark plug for them last year, but his role has changed and he’s not playing as much.”

Time will tell if any of the opinions shared come to fruition, yet the insight shared from the anonymous coaches are likely popular throughout the rest of the Pac-12. 

We'll see who's right and wrong here in a few weeks.