Henri Veesaar, a 7-foot Honorable Mention All-Big 12 performer this past season is transferring from Arizona to North Carolina.
A native of Tanninn, Estonia, Veesaar burst onto the scene for the Wildcats this season averaging 9.4 points and 5.0 rebounds per game while playing 20.8 minutes per contest. Veesaar shot 59.2% from the field, including 32.7% (16-for-49) from 3-point range. He was 72-for-105 (68.6%) from the free throw line.
In addition, Veesaar handed out 48 assists against 42 turnovers, registered 25 steals and 42 blocked shots.
He spent three years at Arizona but redshirted one season, so he has two seasons of eligibility remaining.
"I, more than anybody, and you can ask my staff this, have believed in Henri from day one," Arizona Coach Tommy Loyd said during the season. "Even when it didn't look good, I never wavered. A lot of times these European kids don't get an off-season. Their offseason is with their national team. We don't get them much and so they don't get that pivotal four, five, six months.
"When you're 18-21 years old, the testosterone starts kicking in, your body is changing, you can really get better. They don't get that. He had two off-seasons stacked up back to back.”
Loyd continued speaking about Veesaar, who also has significant international experience.
"Henri is what college basketball is all about,” Loyd said. “Everyone wants things to happen so fast and here's a kid in his third year. In the first year, I thought he was going to be a part of the rotation. He was a high level recruit and he struggled. We got to the point where we didn't play him much because it just wasn't right for that team.
"Last year he had made progress and he has an unfortunate injury in the preseason. He continues to work and changes his body and matures. Now, an injury happens on our team, so gets a little bit more of an opportunity. That's what building a program and developing players is all about."
The word on Veesaar from someone who covered him at Arizona was that he wasn’t always physical and that’s a part of his game that needs work. But he’s very sound offensively and the Wildcats were better when he was on the floor.
From his Arizona bio:
*Played for Real Madrid youth program for three seasons before joining the Wildcats
During the 2021-22 season, he averaged 10.2 points while playing 23.3 minutes per game
*Shot 67.3% from the floor and 35.2% from the 3-point line (19-54) and grabbed 4.8 rebounds per contest
*In the 2020-21 season, at the age of 17, he played in FIBA's U18 European Challengers event and averaged 16.2 points, 11.6 rebounds, 3.8 blocks and 2.6 assists
*Participated with the Estonian senior national team in 2021, making him the youngest Estonian player to ever see action in a FIBA qualifier
*Veesaar hails from Tallinn, Estonia, which is approximately 120 miles north of Wildcat teammate Kerr Kriisa's hometown of Tartu, Estonia
