TUCSON, Ariz. -- Tucked into the Catalina Mountains, a local resort serves as the hub for Arizona basketball's top recruits.
In early August, Book Richardson joined the other Arizona coaches for breakfast at a long table that included a prospect and his family. They all munched on eggs, waffles and pancakes while relaxing near the sun-kissed peaks that surround the complex.
A month before a bribery and corruption scandal rocked Arizona basketball and other programs around the country, Richardson and his colleagues enjoyed rosy times. And all signs pointed to a promising season, one that might end with coach Sean Miller's first trip to the Final Four, the lingering hole on his résumé.
"If you'd asked me how often I think about [the Final Four] ... every 15 minutes," Miller said then. "And I'm not gonna run from that. That's why I left Xavier nine years ago. That's why you come to a place like Arizona."
Earlier this month, however, Miller walked across the court at the McKale Center and greeted a reporter who'd also traveled to Tucson months prior to the turbulence.
"Things were a lot different the last time you were here," he said.
In September, the FBI arrested Richardson and charged him with accepting a bribe to steer players toward agents and financial advisers. Richardson, one of four Division I assistants indicted in the scandal, has pled not guilty in federal court.
Arizona dismissed him less than a week after the FBI announced the charges against him.
Although athletic director Dave Heeke released a statement in support of Miller, the Arizona program faced scrutiny and accusations. Some speculated that the NCAA and the FBI could ruin Arizona basketball. Others wondered what Miller knew about Richardson, whom he hired as an assistant when he led Xavier's program, and his alleged ties to the game's underworld.
A local newspaper insisted Arizona self-impose a postseason ban this season.
Jahvon Quinerly, a five-star point guard, decommitted from Arizona in October. FBI documents allege a $15,000 bribe from Richardson to Player-5, who "verbally committed to attending" Arizona "on or about August 9, 2017." Quinerly originally committed to Arizona on Aug. 8. Quinerly and his family have hired a lawyer.
Shareef O'Neal and Brandon Williams, elite commits in the 2018 class, signed nonbinding financial aid papers. Unlike letters of intent, both O'Neal and Williams can still change their minds and opt to play elsewhere without penalty.
The storied Arizona program stationed on a sunny campus worthy of a postcard had been buried by an avalanche, and the optimistic projections surrounding the talented squad had evaporated into whispers about a doomed season that had not even started.
Then, the Wildcats lost three consecutive games to NC State, SMU and Purdue in the Battle 4 Atlantis, the team's first nationally televised showcase this season. The next week, Arizona lost its No. 2 ranking and exited the AP poll.
"It's a great challenge, it really is," Miller said of his program's recent drama. "I think all of us try to control the things that we can. That sounds good. It's a fight sometimes to really stay focused on that."
Allonzo Trier (15 assists and 19 turnovers in his first six games) and Deandre Ayton failed to display any synergy early in the season. Plus, Rawle Alkins, an NBA prospect, missed the first nine games because of a foot injury. That combined with the youth on the roster would have complicated the growth of any team.
But it only encouraged the doubters.
Today, however, Arizona represents the next chapter of the FBI probe: one of many programs wondering if and when the next shoe will drop but investing its energy into what's happening on the court.
The Wildcats have regained a slot in the AP poll -- they are 18th in both the AP poll and the most recent ESPN.com Power Rankings -- and Ayton has emerged as one of the top players in the country, perhaps the No. 1 pick in next summer's NBA draft. Per Miller, the team's on- and off-court problems encouraged the us-against-the-world attitude the program now embraces.
"We hear the criticism," Trier said after his team's win over Alabama earlier this month. "But we can choose to ignore it."
Miller called the Bahamas trip a "wake-up call." The team's six-game winning streak since the Battle 4 Atlantis, a stretch that includes wins over Alabama and Texas A&M, backs that theory. Arizona is clearly a Pac-12 title contender with rival Arizona State positioned as its most imposing threat at this point.
Life has moved on in Tucson. For now.
In his office, an hour before tipoff of a recent game, Heeke touted his support for Miller throughout the drama of recent months.
Arizona hired Heeke from Central Michigan in February. Seven months later, he had to investigate his program's role in a scandal uncovered by the FBI.
He said the school's investigation, an investigation that preceded his letter of support, did not identify concerns about Miller.
Heeke admits "uncertain times" have affected the men's basketball program, but he remains faithful in Miller's ability to navigate his team through the challenges.
"This has been a day-by-day situation," Heeke said. "Our tendency is usually to try to jump in, get as much information, address it, make the changes and move on. The difference in this is there are a lot of unknowns. I've just tried to be there and be supportive for Sean. How can we help? What can I do? Know that I have the ultimate confidence in him and his leadership, the way he runs his program, and that doesn't change at all."
Heeke said he has not received negative feedback from most fans in recent months. The McKale Center is still full every night.
From afar, Arizona had appeared to be locked into a horrible chapter that would change its season and future. Inside the storm, however, the Wildcats have bonded.
And their determination has not changed.
In a feisty practice before the Alabama game on Dec. 10, Alkins -- back in action after missing 10 weeks because of his injured foot -- complained about fouls as he mimicked Crimson Tide star Collin Sexton and weaved through his teammates.
Miller screamed a few times, not abnormal, but the entire squad seemed dialed in, and, maybe, annoyed. After a teammate bumped his nose in a fight for a loose ball, Ayton slammed his hand near a Gatorade bucket. Then, he refused to hand the gold jersey -- granted to the session's most resilient player -- to Alkins, who'd excelled that day. "Nope," said Ayton, as he shook his head. His teammates laughed. Ayton, who had not surrendered the gold jersey all season, seemed serious.
Parker Jackson-Cartwright lobs a ball off an inbounds pass to Deandre Ayton, who rocks the rim for the Wildcats.
After practice, the players all jumped into a van and ventured to that resort in the Catalinas, their headquarters before home games. And then the next day, after breakfast, they all loaded up and prepped for the Alabama game.
Miller waved from his SUV as he drove toward campus that morning.
Three months after Richardson's arrest, all seemed normal for the Wildcats. They had not abandoned their routine.
"The court is like therapy. And for our players, those guys, they're going to school, they're living in the same place, they have the same goals and dreams," Miller said. "For those guys, they're kind of in their own bubble, their own world."
That evening, Ayton hit big shots in the second half in front of 30-plus NBA scouts and led Arizona to an 88-82 victory, despite Sexton's 30-point effort. After the game, Miller called Ayton the best player in America and knocked the pro analysts who'd questioned his consistency.
"I just have a hard time believing there is anybody better than [Ayton]," Miller said then. "I just do. I don't want to hear anything about his motor. They're almost fabricating or inventing things that aren't true."
The FBI has not concluded its investigation. Richardson has not gone to trial. And we still have three full months left in the season.
But Arizona, amid a series of unknowns, has matured.
And that's Miller's focus within the most significant hurdle of his career.
"I do think this team can grow closer together," he said. "We're all pointing toward a very optimistic future where we might hit our stride at a time when it makes perfect sense."
For three months in Tucson, not much has.