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UNC transfer Derek Dixon | Arizona Athletics
One doesn’t simply replace the Big 12 Player of the Year and an NBA lottery pick. Arizona isn’t expecting any of its newcomers in the backcourt to be the next Jaden Bradley, or Brayden Burries, but collectively they have the potential to match or even exceed what that duo did a year ago.
The Wildcats added four guards this offseason, transfers Derek Dixon and JJ Mandaquit and freshmen Cameron Holmes and Caleb Holt. At least two will end up starting alongside returners Ivan Kharchenkov and Motiejus Krivas and, most likely, late pickup RJ Godfrey.
The first chance to see that group compete comes next week when the UA faces a trio of international teams in Lithuania.
“This is my first time, a lot of ours’ first time being out of the country,” Holmes said Tuesday. “I know it’s going to be a great trip, though. Great bonding time, we’ll create chemistry within the team.”
The 6-foot-6 Holmes, a 4-star prospect from Goodyear, was the first of the guards to come on board. The younger brother of 2024 NBA 1st round pick DaRon Holmes signed in November, when the 2025-26 Wildcats were only a few games into their magical run to the Final Four.
Right before the Big 12 Tournament started in March the UA landed the 6-foot-5 Holmes, whom 247Sports ranked as the No. 2 player in the 2026 class. Then once the NCAA transfer portal opened in April the Wildcats picked up Mandaquit from Washington and Dixon from North Carolina, both coming off freshman seasons where they showed flashes of their potential.
The 6-foot-5 Dixon averaged 6.5 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 22.3 minutes per game for UNC, shooting 39.7 percent from 3. The 6-foot-1 Mandaquit appeared in 22 games for Washington, starting six, and averaged 5.2 points and 3.2 assists.
Dixon continues the UA/UNC transfer connection that started with Caleb Love. Last season he played for the Tar Heels alongisde former UA big man Henri Veesaar, who gave his former program a glowing recommendation when Dixon was considering his transfer options.
“I had a lot of conversations with Henri,” Dixon said. “He spent a lot of time here, he’d been through the ups and downs of it. Redshirted, been injured, been not playing much, and he’s seen both sides of it, so he was very honest with me about the program. But he thought it was going to be a great fit for me. He was excited when I was coming here.”
Dixon paid that forward when he learned Godfrey, against whom he played twice last season with Clemson, was being targeted by the Wildcats for its final roster spot.
“He was really good when he played against us, and when (Arizona) told me he was thinking about coming here, I reached out to him and said I think this would be a great fit for you,” Dixon said. “He’s a really good player, and I’m excited to be playing with him, not against him this year.”
Bringing in Godfrey likely changed the development plan for Holmes, who said he began working out at the 3 but has seen time at various positions in summer practices.
“RJ is going to come in and just be a great piece for us,” Holmes said. “He’s a great guy on and off the court, just seeing how seriously he takes the game, I can learn from it. Whether that’s starting, whether that’s coming off the bench, just my main focus is just to come and impact the game as much as possible.”
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