There was a moment this offseason when sophomore guard Devonaire Doutrive did not have Arizona as part of the plans for his future. He decided to leave the program with an influx of new talent coming in and minutes likely more difficult to come by once again after he had to battle to find the floor as a freshman.

Sometimes things change, however. For Doutrive that change was for the better as things opened up in Tucson after fellow guard Alex Barcello opted to transfer giving Doutrive a chance to get his spot on the roster back and move ahead with his career at UA.

Minutes still looked like they would be hard to come by as the Wildcats added transfers, but where there are unfortunate circumstances comes opportunity. Arizona was dealt an impactful blow when it was finally decided this summer that standout guard Brandon Williams would be missing his sophomore season after having knee surgery.

By that time the roster had already been set and there was no clear cut option to take over his role as a secondary ball handler.

That is where the work began for Doutrive this offseason as he has turned into the leading candidate to be Arizona's most improved player heading into the upcoming season and he showed why in the team's Red-Blue Game last week.

Doutrive was able to spread his wings a bit more in the team's annual preseason scrimmage as he handled the ball more than he did at any point as a freshman. He also was able to showcase his ability to score from all over the floor. His improvement from where he was last season was clear last Friday night.

"You saw that tonight," Arizona head coach Sean Miller said after the Red-Blue Game. "I don't know if you can remember what he would have looked like as a freshman in this game a year ago, but he was almost just like a young boy finding his way from high school to college and figuring it out. He's grown up a lot.

"He's more mature. He's bigger, stronger. ... What I like about him is he can contribute in a lot of different ways for our team. We could play him at the small forward, he's a very good offensive rebounder. We're playing him at the backup point guard, you saw him do that, and it's too early to tell but he could actually be the backup point guard and have that role kind of like Brandon Williams at times a year ago when Justin Coleman would be out."

The job isn't his yet and Arizona still has about a month to go until it hits the floor at McKale Center once again, but it is clear it will be an important time for Doutrive to solidify a bigger role for himself and become the type of X-factor that it looked like he could be at one point coming out of high school.

"I think the next month will be interesting to watch Devonaire," Miller said.

Doutrive will always be remembered by Arizona fans as a player who stood up and said he wanted to play for the Wildcats when others were shying away from doing the same during a turbulent year, but just because he made that choice doesn't guarantee he will get to see the floor.

While he was ranked as one of the 85-best players in his recruiting class coming to a place like Arizona means there will be competition. It didn't take long for Doutrive to understand that if he wanted to see the floor he would have to step his game up.

"Year after year there's gonna be five-star recruits and four stars," he said. "You gotta show up and play against them and just try to get us players better."

If Doutrive is able to settle in as Arizona's backup point guard to freshman Nico Mannion it will put him in position to do many of the things he did as a high school standout in California. Running the point guard spot is not foreign to the sophomore and the more he is able to get comfortable with that part of his game at the college the better it will be for Doutrive and the team around him.

"I do think it's nice to have Devonaire in that role," Miller said. "It also helps his development. There's nothing like having that ball in your hands and a lot of times it makes you a better overall player."

Doutrive finished the Red-Blue Game with a game-high 15 points, five rebounds and four assists. It was the type of performance that showed his growth and if that continues he will have solidified his spot in a rotation that should prove to be plenty competitive this year.