Story by Daniel Berk
Assistant Director of Communication Services

The son of a single mom who doubled as a police sheriff, Ryan Anderson learned at a very young age what it meant to be a leader.

“As most of us do, we learn from our parents,” Anderson said. “My mom is high energy. She wants things to be done the right way all the time. No cutting corners.

“She's who made me who I am today.”

Who Anderson is today is a 6-foot-9-inch, 235-pound forward who will bring leadership and skill to Arizona's 2015-2016 roster. A transfer from Boston College, Anderson sat out last season in accordance with NCAA transfer rules. But this season, he's ready to do damage for the Wildcats.

One of six newcomers on the roster, Coach Sean Miller will gladly welcome the ability Anderson brings. He averaged 14.3 points and 7.2 rebounds per game as a junior at Boston College and was the only player on his team to start all 32 games.

He scored in double figures 26 times and posted five double-doubles.

“He really worked hard in his year off,” Miller said. “He's older, he's smart. He's a very clever passer. He does the dirty work. He does the hustle plays very well. But I think it's his mobility that's striking. I think he's going to have a tremendous senior year.”

But Anderson's greatest impact this season may have nothing do with the numbers that fill a box score. Miller is counting on Anderson to serve as one of three primary leaders of the team with fellow seniors Kaleb Tarczewski and Gabe York. Even though he's yet to play a game at Arizona, Miller has no problem putting that responsibility on Anderson.

“He might be our most natural leader,” Miller said of Anderson. “He's a great teammate. He loves to do things for his teammates.”

Added senior Mark Tollefsen, who also transferred to Arizona for his final season: “Ryan is a heck of a leader. He talks to everybody, he's good to everybody. He's everyone's pal. He's always in everyone's grill, but in a good way. He gets guys playing well, gets them motivated.”

Anderson's leadership quality can be traced back to mom.

Brenda Frazer raised her son in Long Beach, California and demanded respect and effort from Anderson at all times. An only child, Anderson did whatever his mom told him to do and followed her lead.

“I'm just happy to have her,” Anderson said. “It's just the two of us. It was a quiet household sometimes when she was off working double shifts. But she has always been the rock in my life.”

She's also one of the reasons Anderson decided to play his final season of college basketball in Tucson. He expects Brenda to be at nearly every home game this season and all but three road games. When he was at Boston College, she would usually travel east for one or two games a season and had to follow the rest from California.

This year, she will be a staple at McKale Center.

“If you don't hear her, then there's a problem,” Anderson said with a smile.

In her son, she'll be watching a player who figures to serve multiple roles for the Wildcats this season. Anderson, who will see a significant amount of time in the post, will be a key rebounder for the Wildcats and should also provide a spark on defense, while being able to score some buckets, too.

With his year off last year, Anderson added strength and earlier this week, bench pressed 185 pounds 21 times, which tied a program record. He added the strength, despite spending the first half of last season recovering from shoulder surgery.

Once he was cleared, he hit the court and weight room with no restrictions.

“When I was cleared to play, it took on a whole different beast,” Anderson said. “Every day in practice, I'd practice like a game, but then the game would come and I couldn't play. It messed with my mind a little bit. But once I looked at it from a different perspective and said 'what I can learn from this?' I think I soaked up a lot from January to March. I just learned so much about how to win. This team is a powerhouse team.”

Anderson's goal now is to try to lead this year's squad into being another powerhouse.

“It's already been great all summer and all fall,” Anderson said. “That's one thing I really like about this team. We have great depth from one to 15. We have a lot of different guys who can do a lot of different things. I know it's been super, super competitive. I'm a competitive person like crazy. Anytime you get a chance to be around guys that want the same things, it just brings out the best in you. It's been great.”