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The most famous player on the Arizona Wildcats' No. 1 seed basketball team hasn't played a minute all season.
His name is Bryce James, and he's the younger son of all-time great hooper LeBron James. Bryce is a freshman for Arizona, but he doesn't get on the floor.
He'll be there all the way through what the Wildcats are hoping is a special NCAA Tournament run. But when you spot Bryce on your television, it will only be on the sideline.
There's a reason for that, and it makes sense, but it leaves his future in at least a little bit of doubt.
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Why isn't Bryce James playing in March Madness?
Bryce James is on the sideline because he is redshirting his freshman season.
To redshirt in college basketball, a player cannot play a single second the whole year. If that is accomplished successfully, the season doesn't count against his eligibility.
This had been assumed to be the plan for most of the season, and it finally became publicly acknowledged earlier in February.
Bryce wasn't ready to contribute to a team this good this early in his college basketball career. The hope is that a year of watching and learning does him good.
"The redshirting decision was just a long play, to give Bryce the most options in his career as his career unfolds," Tommy Lloyd told the Big 12 Network on Feb. 3. "I have real strong belief that Bryce will be a contributor at Arizona in the near future. He's really shown a lot of progress, not only learning our system but just physically maturing."
That quote from Lloyd is certainly a positive one. It makes it seem like he has Bryce in his future plans.
But could Bryce choose to transfer instead? Of course. That's the modern world of college hoops.
And if he wasn't ready to play at Arizona this year, is it a given he will be next year? The Wildcats' staff surely knows better than any of us do. Bryce's name will be one to watch whenever the season concludes.
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