In what would be an extra gut punch to the Utah Utes men’s basketball program, ESPN’s Jonathan Givony reported Sunday morning that not only will guard Pelle Larsson in fact transfer (Larsson entered the transfer portal in late April but was reportedly mulling his options), but he’ll be going to Pac-12 perennial power Arizona.
Givony reported the news via Twitter.
Larsson's commitment is significant for head coach Tommy Lloyd's first season at Arizona. The Wildcats could sport an all-international starting lineup composed of Kerr Kriisa (Estonia), Larsson (Sweden), Ben Mathurin (Canada), Azuolas Tubelis (Lithuania) and Oumar Ballo (Mali). https://t.co/gQoFNEUwcC
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) May 9, 2021
Larsson’s pending departure is significant for a Utah program that has seen the majority of last season’s production depart during the head coaching transition from Larry Krystkowiak to Craig Smith. As a freshman last season, the 6-foot-5, 215-pound Larsson started 18 of 25 games and averaged 8.2 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.8 assists per contest.
Larsson would become the fourth Ute from last season to transfer to another Power Five program. Timmy Allen is going to Texas, Alfonso Plummer is headed to Illinois and Ian Martinez has signed with Maryland.