Other articles by Bruce Pascoe:

McClellan's outlook goes from awful to 'awe' full No change in Jennings' UA status Bayless has familiar faces in his corner UA, Jennings expect to wait week for test score76ers offer UA's McClellan summer-league roster spot LOWS AND HIGHS Jennings' status remains unclear; no score yet Arizona Wildcats basketball: Bayless traded to PortlandArizona Wildcats basketball: Jennings score not coming today No couch potato tonight

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The games are over, but the season of uncertainty continues for the Arizona Wildcats. They head into the offseason with more questions than ever surrounding their coaching staff, present players and recruits alike. The dominoes probably will fall once Lute Olson starts making some moves.

Here are 10 top questions:

1. Is Lute Olson really coming back?

UA athletic director Jim Livengood announced on March 10 that Olson would return at the end of the season. But, except for attending some late November practices, Olson has not met with the UA players as a group all season and he has been absent from a news-media conference since Nov. 1, before he announced his temporary-turned-season-long leave of absence. He acknowledged through a March 10 release that he has been dealing with a "medical condition." As of Friday afternoon, Olson was out of town and had not announced any scheduled meetings with players or media. But the UA did call its standard postseason wrapup news conference with O'Neill for this Wednesday.

Olson's Hall of Fame career has been marked by his hands-on, all-out approach. He took only two weeks off after his first wife, Bobbi, died and built a reputation for relentless recruiting into his early 70s. Now he has taken an entire season off because of a medical condition. He has not said exactly what the condition was, how it affected him, nor if it has been taken care of fully. But one thing is clear: Division I coaching is not a 9-to-5 job.

After a year as interim head coach, it's clear through actions and words that O'Neill will probably not be back if Olson is. That means he will likely wait to see what opens on the NBA job market, where the fiery, hard-working 51-year-old O'Neill still has very marketable skills as an assistant coach. Or he could try for another college head coaching job. If he leaves involuntarily, though, there could be a legal battle over his promised successorship to Olson.

O'Neill says surefire top NBA picks should leave, no matter what year they are in. If Jerryd Bayless follows that advice, he's probably gone. The NBA will be rougher, of course, but at least Bayless will no longer be the focal point of every defense. Chase Budinger also may at least test the NBA draft, not hiring an agent in order to retain NCAA eligibility in case he is not a certain first-rounder. Jordan Hill says he won't leave to "just go sit on the bench" in the NBA, so he will likely stay another year.

Nobody improved more under O'Neill than the Wildcats' point guard this season. While Wise came to the UA for the chance to run an up-tempo offense, his confidence plummeted last season as a freshman when Olson rarely played him after New Year's. This season, he became an invaluable component of O'Neill's offensive sets. Meanwhile, he shied away from several potentially uncomfortable late-season media interview sessions. Now, Wise has to go back and re-establish his role in a new system again.

Arizona's four fall signees are contractually bound to play for the UA, unless Olson does not return, in which case they may be able to appeal their way out of their letters-of-intent. The only incoming freshman certain to help the team immediately is dynamic guard Brandon Jennings. In addition, the Wildcats would need to sign a player or two this spring if Bayless and Budinger leave, and the longer the coaching situation remains uncertain, the harder recruiting will be.

Rival recruiters have tried for years to sway high school players away from Arizona because of Olson's age. Now, they can have a field day: Olson will not only be 74 next season but he'll be a 74-year-old who just took a season off because of a "medical condition." And the UA statement said only that Olson is returning to fulfill a contract that extends through 2011. What kind of assurance does that give a 2009 or 2010 high school player?

Livengood announced in December that O'Neill would be head coach when Olson decides to retire. He also said in an interview that the deal was intended specifically to address the possibility that Olson would not return next season. It's unclear whether all bets are off now. Olson has stated that he plans to return, and his philosophy and style are so drastically different from O'Neill's that it's difficult to imagine them on the same staff next season. Olson also has no other available ex-assistants with proven, sustained Division I head coaching success to bring in as his successor.

The one bench player O'Neill could have really used during the Pac-10 season, guard Laval Lucas-Perry, took off for Michigan. Mohamed Tangara has announced he's leaving, probably for a Division II school. Four lightly used returning reserves could be pondering their future with the program, but the coaching situation, again, will likely play a role.

No matter who the coach is, Arizona could have a rough time earning a 25th straight NCAA tournament bid next season if anybody leaves early. Without Bayless and Budinger, the Wildcats would have only Jennings, Wise and Hill to build around, hoping that Jamelle Horne, Zane Johnson, Fendi Onobun and maybe freshman forward Emmanuel Negedu can be relied on. Slender big man Jeff Withey is a significant talent, but he may need some time to become a major factor.