TUCSON, Ariz. – It's been a terrific couple of days in the sweltering heat in the desert. I've gone down the lazy river and the waterslide at the hotel more than a few times, spent a couple hours horseback riding with my wife and daughter and caught a skill workout that included Arizona freshman Kyryl Natyazhko.

It was an interesting sight and one that almost signified a change in watching the skilled big man from the Ukraine and also holdover Alex Jacobson (he was brought in by former coach Lute Olson).

Natyazhko, which is a nightmare name for any writer, was far more impressive than Jacobson, who really should have gone to play in the WAC, West Coast Conference or the Big West.

Kyryl (far easier to spell) is a legitimate 6-foot-10, can step out and make shots from beyond the 3-point line, is explosive around the basket and will make a huge impact in his tenure in Tucson.

He ate just about everything his mother put in front of him in his trip back home to Ukraine earlier in the summer and returned to Tucson at a hefty 272 pounds.

However, after a month with strength and conditioning coach Chris Rounds, he has lost 20 pounds and has trimmed his body fat from 20 percent to 13 percent.

Fellow freshman Derrick Williams wasn't able to work out on Thursday because he stepped on a nail, but Williams has been compared to Derrick Brown, one of Sean Miller's former players at Xavier.

But the big difference is that Brown entered college at around 190 pounds and graduated at 230. Williams, meanwhile, said he's 6-foot-8 and already is at 230.

"I'm a three and a four," Williams said. "But this year I'll probably have to play the four because we don't have a lot of size. People compare me to Sam Young a little bit."

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