Arizona will be down one freshman to start the season as the program announced Thursday that forward Daniel Batcho will be out indefinitely after having recent knee surgery. He will be reevaluated in January to determine a timeline for when he can return to the floor.
The French big man is one of several international newcomers for the Wildcats this season and was one of the notable additions for the team in the spring. The 6-foot-11 freshman has already missed time earlier in his career with knee issues though UA head coach Sean Miller corrected erroneous reports in the spring that Batcho previously had surgery to repair a torn ACL.
"He had a fractured kneecap, which is a much, I don’t want to say better injury, but structurally it’s certainly a different ballgame," Miller said in May. "So he’s not recovering from a torn ACL or MCL. What he did is sustained that kneecap injury, but he’s fully recovered and we’re anxious and excited to eventually get him here on campus."
The program did not specify if this latest injury is related to his previous one in any way. The fractured kneecap kept Batcho away from the floor for the entire 2018-19 season in France.
Landing Batcho was important for the Wildcats as the big man is considered to be one of the top international newcomers to the college game this year. He was in line to help the Wildcats in the front court where he has the versatility to play either position.
"Daniel is a physical 6-foot-10 forward slash center," Miller said. "I think he could play both positions for us. He’s aggressive. I think he’s a very good defensive rebounder. Again, adept at FIBA basketball ball where pick-and-roll and playing up and down, being able to defend pick-and-rolls, those are things that he’s been doing for a number of years. A hungry guy, a guy that loves the game and really excited to have him."
Until it can be determined when Batcho will be on the floor again the Wildcats will have to rely on their other pieces up front. The team returns senior power forward Ira Lee as well as sophomore center Christian Koloko and will also add former five-star recruit Jordan Brown into the mix after he sat out last year upon transferring to UA from Nevada. Arizona also signed four-star Lithuanian power forward Azuolas Tubelis who is expected to be a key part of the rotation in the front court.
The Wildcats are set to open the season Nov. 25.
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