Saying goodbye is never easy, but having something, or in this case, someone to look forward to always helps. Arizona forward Carter Bryant officially announced on Monday that he is declaring for the 2025 NBA Draft, and almost simultaneously, the Wildcats landed a commitment Russian/German wing Ivan Kharchenkov.
The decision from Carter Bryant did not come as a surprise, after he did not withdraw his name from ahead of the May 28 deadline to maintain his college eligibility. Bryant has seen his draft stock rise in recent weeks following his performance at the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago, IL, with some mock drafts naming him as late-lottery pick or mid-first round selection. The announcement from Bryant on social media gives both him and Wildcat Nation a sense of closure and finality on his time in Tucson.
With Bryant officially off to the NBA, Tommy Lloyd and Co. can fully shift gears towards finalizing the 2025-26 roster. The International Whisper once again opted to fish overseas for Bryant’s replacement, landing on Kharchenkov.
Eurohoops was the first to report Karchenkov’s commitment to Arizona. Neither Kharchenkov or the program have confirmed his commitment yet.
The 6-foot-7 Kharchenkov is a wing for FC Bayern Munich, a German team in the country’s top league, Basketball Bundseliga. In 33 games this past season, he averaged 5.7 points, 1.6 rebounds, 1.0 assists, and 0.8 steals in 13.6 minutes per game, while shooting a staggering 63.9 percent from 2-point range.
He is also a member of the German youth national team, competing the last two years as a member of the U18 roster. In four games last summer (2024), Kharchenkov averaged 17.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 3.8 assists, leading Germany to a EuroBasket title.
Jonathan Givony of ESPN and Draft Express described Kharchenkov as one of the “best scorers in his class.” A year prior, Givony also described him as having standout “scoring instincts, confidence and all-around feel for the game.”
Kharchenkov also competed at the Adidas Eurocamp in Treviso, Italy this past week and was one of five players that received the All-Eurocamp award.
With the commitment from Ivan Kharchenkov, Arizona now has seven incoming freshman on the roster, joining five-stars Koa Peat, Brayden Burries, and Dwayne Aristode, three-star Bryce James, and developmental big men Sidi Gueye and Mabil Mawut.