Lute Olson’s quest to land a big man for the class of 2008 started with seven-footer Jeff Withey when the UA started recruiting the San Diego native as a high school freshman.

Eventually Withey committed to Louisville, and names like Babbitt, Gordon, Simpkins and Jennings were discussed as potential Wildcats.

But after those four faded for a variety of reasons, Withey decommitted from Louisville and reemerged as Arizona’s best bet for a big-time big man.

Bruce Pascoe wrote that Arizona was able to climb back into the Withey sweepstakes due to family issues popping up, which made the distance between Louisville and San Diego too much to bear.

Withey said he also chose the Wildcats because he wanted to play closer to home, especially after his grandmother was forced to move in with his family because of an illness, and because they were the first team to seriously recruit him. The UA began recruiting Withey as a freshman and was the first to call him directly when NCAA rules allowed last summer.

Not only was there a familiarity with the coaching staff, but according to the San Diego Union-Tribune, Withey also knew a pair of current Wildcats from his San Diego upbringing.

“I’ve played with Jamelle [Horne], I’ve played with Chase [Budinger],” said Withey, who averaged 14.9 points as a junior. “It makes it easier because I’m friends with them, and I know how they play.”

That’s all well and good, but according to CSTV, it was the addition of a certain assistant with NBA head coaching experience that pushed the UA over the top.

“I’ve known the coaches at Arizona since my freshman year,” Jeff Withey told CSTV. “But, when they added Coach (Kevin) O’Neill recently, it really gave me that comfort level that I could accomplish my goals of playing in the NBA as a Wildcat. He’s been involved in the development of a number of NBA big men.”

Withey’s trainer/mentor, Trent Suzuki, echoed his pupil’s thoughts to CSTV, noting just how big of an addition O’Neill was to the UA staff.

“Coaching is really important to Jeff, he really wanted to make sure he had a special relationship with the staff he decided to play for,” Suzuki told CSTV. “He had that with Coach (Josh) Pastner and Coach (Lute) Olson, but the big change, the one that put the Wildcats over the top, was the addition of Coach O’Neill. He has been a great teacher of big men like Chris Bosh and Jermaine O’Neal. That really was a major advantage for Arizona.”

Doesn’t the uproar of the UA staff reshuffling seem like a long time ago? There were a lot of Arizona fans unhappy that Jim Rosborough was bumped for Kevin O’Neill—understandably so considering how loyal Roz has been to the Wildcat program.

Olson had an unenviable decision to make, but he made it. Now it appears that decision is paying dividends on the recruiting trail. In just a few short months, we’ll see if works as well on the court.