SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Arizona freshman Allonzo Trier has been named to the 2016 Jerry West Award watch list. The award is given to the top shooting guard in the nation, and Trier is one of just 20 players in the country to be selected to the preseason watch list.
The honor, awarded by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, was founded last season. Ohio State's D'Angelo Russell won the first-ever edition of the Jerry West Award last season before becoming the second overall pick of the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2015 NBA Draft.
Trier teamed up with UA head coach Sean Miller to help guide Team USA to the gold medal in the 2015 FIBA U-19 World Championships, defeating Croatia in the championship game this summer. Prior to his gold medal play, the freshman became the 21st McDonald's All-American to join the Arizona Basketball program.
The rest of the watch list includes Anthony Drmic (Boise State), Kellen Dunham (Butler), Jordan Matthews (California), Grayson Allen (Duke), Dwayne Bacon (Florida State), Marvelle Harris (Fresno State), James Blackmon (Indiana), A.J. English (Iona), Antonio Blakeney (LSU), Rasheed Sulaimon (Maryland), Sheldon McClellan (Miami), Caris LeVert (Michigan), Malik Newman (Mississippi State), Buddy Hield (Oklahoma), E.C. Matthews (Rhode Island), Danuel House (Texas A&M), Melvin Johnson (VCU), Malcolm Brogdon (Virginia) and Ron Baker (Wichita State).
Trier and the rest of the Wildcats will unofficially open the 2015-16 season with the annual McDonald's Red-Blue Game on Saturday, Oct. 17 at 1 p.m. local time at the McKale Center. The midnight madness event is sold out.
For the latest updates on Arizona men's basketball and an inside look at the program, follow @APlayersProgram on Twitter and @uaplayersprogram on Instagram.
