While it’s been a successful offseason for Tommy Lloyd and Co., who have put together their best recruiting class since arriving in Tucson four years ago, sometimes it’s the players already in the building that are the biggest gets. That successful offseason got a little better on Monday when guards Jaden Bradley and Anthony Dell’Orso announced they are returning to Arizona for the 2025-26 season.
The 6-foot-3, 200-pound Bradley will be back for his third season in a Wildcat uniform. Arizona’s floor general started all 37 games last season, averaging 12.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 1.8 steals in 34.1 minutes per game. He also shot the ball at an efficient clip, connecting on 46.7 percent from the field last season. While Bradley is known more for his ability to drive downhill and score at the rim, he shot 32.1 percent from beyond the arc last season, including 8-15, or 53.3 percent, in Big 12 and NCAA Tournament play.
Bradley also scored in double figures in nine of the last 10 games of the season, averaging 14.0 points per game during that span. If he can sustain his scoring and shooting from 3-point range from down the stretch last season, Arizona’s backcourt, which includes five-star freshman Brayden Burries, could be deadly.
6-foot-6 Australian guard Anthony Dell’Orso will be back for his second season in Tucson. Following Arizona’s 4-5 start to non-conference play, Dell’Orso worked his way into the starting lineup, starting the final 28 games of the season. He averaged 7.2 points, 1.4 rebounds, and 1.4 assists in 18.2 minutes per game. The sharpshooter also shot 45.0 percent from the field, including 41.3 percent from the perimeter.
His best games came against Davidson in the Bahamas and Colorado in late January, where he scored 21 points on 5-7 3-point field goals, and 20 points on 6-9 from deep, respectively.
Given Arizona’s 2025 recruiting class, which includes Burries and fellow five-stars Koa Peat and Dwayne Aristode, as well as the possibility of Carter Bryant returning for his sophomore season, Dell’Orso will likely come off the bench next season for the Wildcats. Tommy Lloyd expressed throughout the season that Dell’Orso’s ability to catch and shoot off the dribble is one of the most effective parts of his game, and he figures to be an steady scoring option off the bench for Arizona.
With Jaden Bradley and Anthony Dell’Orso returning to Arizona for the 2025-26 season, the Wildcats now have eight total players currently returning from last season. Forward Tobe Awaka, the team’s leading-rebounder from last season, announced his decision to return last week.