Other articles by Bruce Pascoe:

Wise has plenty on plate for trip to Hawaii Rice proves sticky for UA Arizona scouting report Former Cal coach tries to get Rice cooking Cats have a big plan in store for Rice game Surprise starter plans to work to keep spotNew era, with a few errors Bad news already: Injury boots Parrom Arizona scouting report Familiar foe is opponent for debut of Miller show

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Sure, there's an active NCAA investigation still hanging over Arizona's basketball program, stemming from allegations concerning an on-campus recruiting event held in the Lute Olson era.

And maybe there's a little concern over whether new coach Sean Miller can hang on to the Wildcats' 25-year NCAA tournament streak while he rebuilds a program torn apart by two years of coaching instability.

But overall, there is a calm in McKale Center these days that hasn't been seen in recent basketball off-seasons.

It's nothing like it might have been if UA athletic director Jim Livengood had hired former USC coach Tim Floyd, Kentucky coach John Calipari or even Louisville coach Rick Pitino — all of whom have since become embroiled in off-court controversy.

Not that Livengood was speculating about it, though. He declined to comment about the what-ifs.

"The big thing is we've got the right guy," he said of Miller. "He's doing a great job right now."

Livengood has acknowledged only approaching Floyd about the job before hiring Miller. But reports said Calipari told Memphis fans at a doughnut shop that he was offered a "blank check" to come to Tucson, and Pitino did not deny interest in the UA when asked directly about it before his Cardinals beat the Wildcats in the NCAA Sweet 16 this season.

All three were in comfy situations at the time: Floyd had a potential Top 10 team returning to USC, Calipari left Memphis to take on one of the game's most storied programs, and Pitino is among the college game's highest-paid coaches at $2.3 million.

Here's what has changed since then:

Who he is: Kentucky coach

What he faces: The NCAA has been looking into allegations that a former player cheated on his SAT and that $2,600 of free travel was provided for an associate of a player while Calipari was the head coach at Memphis.

However, Calipari has not been directly implicated while Memphis has stated it found no proof of cheating on the SAT and therefore believes it should not be penalized.

If the NCAA does find wrongdoing, it will be in a tricky spot since Calipari is already off to Kentucky and the accused player, Derrick Rose, is in the NBA.

What he says: Kentucky issued a statement saying Calipari was "forthcoming" in discussing issues under investigation at Memphis during the hiring process. It also quoted Calipari saying, "Even though I'm not at risk, I will fully cooperate with the NCAA hearing. Beyond that, I concur with the statement from the University of Kentucky and will have no further comment."

The UA connection: Though none of the allegations happened when former UA assistant coach Josh Pastner was with the Memphis program, which he joined as an assistant in 2008 before being named head coach this spring, Pastner has to explain it all to recruits and convince them the program won't be kept out of the postseason or off TV.

"After talking with legal counsel and talking to our athletic director, we feel nothing is going to affect the current team," Pastner said last week. Recent NCAA precedent has been to not penalize players or coaches left behind after violations are committed.

Who he is: Former USC coach.

What he faces: Floyd stepped down as the Trojans' head coach in the wake of an NCAA investigation that stems from an allegation that Floyd gave former standout O.J. Mayo $1,000 through an intermediary.

Before he resigned, Floyd had lost starters Taj Gibson, Daniel Hackett and DeMar DeRozan to the NBA draft, while Floyd said that even backup swingman Marcus Johnson left for the pros.

Floyd also lost recruit Noel Johnson, who asked out of his letter-of-intent before his resignation, while star big-man recruit Renardo Sidney opted for Mississippi State when it appeared USC no longer wanted to add his potential NCAA baggage to a luggage cart already bogged down by Mayo and the Reggie Bush football allegations.

If the NCAA finds wrongdoing, Mayo could be retroactively declared ineligible for the 2007-08 season and the Trojans would have to vacate their NCAA tournament appearance and refund their revenue from it. There could also be scholarship losses or other limitations.

What he says: Floyd has declined to comment on the allegations, although USC administrators released statements last week saying they are working with NCAA officials and are "committed to getting to the truth." In his letter of resignation, obtained by the Jackson (Miss.) Clarion-Ledger newspaper, Floyd said only that he could no longer provide the needed level of enthusiasm for the job.

"I always promised myself and my family that if I ever felt I could no longer give my full enthusiasm to a job, that I should leave it to others who could," Floyd wrote. "I intend to contact my coaching staff and my players in coming days and weeks to tell them how much each of them means to me. I wish the best to USC and to my successor."

The UA connection: The Los Angeles Times reported two other USC signees, guard Lamont "MoMo" Jones and forward Derrick Williams, have been granted releases from their letters-of-intent, although USC has not confirmed it. If so, Jones would likely become a UA target again, since he chose USC over Arizona and Florida in April.

Who he is: Louisville coach

What he faces: Pitino contacted the FBI complaining that the estranged wife of a Louisville equipment manager tried to extort up to $10 million from him, leading to a federal trial.

A criminal complaint said Karen Cunagin Sypher demanded that Pitino provide college tuition for her children, pay off her mortgage and give her $3,000 per month, and later escalated the demands to $10 million.

Pitino also abruptly lost his son, Richard, from the Louisville staff in April when he opted to join Billy Donovan in Florida. Richard Pitino had recruiting ties in Indianapolis, and after he left, Indianapolis high school standout Justin Martin decommitted from the Cardinals.

What he says: Pitino has been largely quiet during the off-season, issuing only occasional statements through the school. In one, after initially going public with his complaint, Pitino said, "I recently learned that the individual behind this extortion attempt has already gone to the media with false, defamatory and outrageous allegations in an attempt to pressure me to cave in to this scheme," Pitino said.

The UA connection: None, unless you believe in karmic payback after the Cardinals destroyed the Wildcats in the Sweet 16, including throwing an alley-oop pass with two minutes left and letting their 13th player dunk with three seconds to go after the Wildcats stopped playing defense.