He’s a Salpointe Catholic grad!
A top priority for Arizona this offseason was adding a reliable backup point guard. The Wildcats may have found just the player, and he’s already very familiar with Tucson
The UA has signed former Harvard guard Evan Nelson, per 247 Sports’ Matt Zenitz. He has one season of eligibility remaining.
The 6-foot-2 Nelson is a native of Tucson, graduating from Salpointe Catholic High School in 2021. Arizona was his dream school but he signed with Harvard, playing 68 games with 51 starts in four seasons for the Crimson, and last season averaged 9.1 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.4 steals while shooting 40.4 percent from 3.
Nelson missed the 2023-24 season due to injury but the Ivy League doesn’t allow for redshirt years, forcing him to look elsewhere for his final season.
Arizona is in need of a point guard to back up Jaden Bradley, who averaged 34.1 minutes last season and usually only sat because of foul trouble. When on the bench the offense was run by KJ Lewis or, in a pinch, Conrad Martinez, but both players entered the transfer portal.
Nelson is Arizona’s first portal pickup but won’t be the last. Including incoming freshmen, the UA only has 10 scholarship players for 2025-26 and that includes Carter Bryant, who may still declare for the 2025 NBA Draft.