Something's Bruin

Is UCLA back? Or was it just spending a season abroad?

1. UCLA’s finally playing with the big boys (in NIL)

There's no sugarcoating it. UCLA wasn't good this season.

The Bruins’ young roster had an injection of overseas talent, but it never really meshed. The 16-17 record was the program’s first losing season since 2015-16 and the first NCAA Tournament miss since Steve Alford’s final season in 2018-19.

Still, coach Mick Cronin turned it into a positive by generating more NIL money for the program. The boosters hated losing. Shocker!

“Our NIL grew exponentially,” Cronin told The LA Times recently. “All you have to do is look at our recruiting class this year versus last year.”

Some wondered if UCLA’s NIL options weren’t as significant as the rest of the Pac-12, let alone once the Bruins move to the Big Ten next season. Not only did this season provide the motivation, it also proved to Cronin that he’d have to adjust his roster approach.

“The days of having a young team and trying to grow that team to where they all get older and get better as they get older, that’s not happening anymore,” Cronin said. “And you can’t compete at a high level with a young team. So it’s exponentially changed in the direction of where you’re bringing in older guys to fill spots.”

The Bruins return a trio of double-digit scorers in sophomore Sebastian Mack and junior Dylan Andrews, plus sharpshooting wing Lazar Stefanovic. Those three will still play essential roles, they just won’t have to do everything. Guard Skyy Clark (13.2 ppg at Louisville) should push for playing time along, while multi-faceted forwards Kobe Johnson (10.9 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 3.2 apg at USC) and Eric Dailey Jr (9.3 ppg, 4.8 rpg at Oklahoma State) will compete for frontcourt starting spots.

That leaves defensive big William Kyle III (13.3 ppg, 6.7 rpg at South Dakota State) and smaller offensive forward Tyler Bilodeau (14.3 ppg at Oregon State), plus LMU sharpshooter Dom Harris (14 ppg, 44% from 3).

Another name to watch? Freshman guard Trent Perry, who de-committed from USC once Andy Enfield left for SMU. Perry, a 6-4 guard from Harvard Westlake HS, earned McDonald’s All-American honors. He’s talented enough that he could start by season’s end.

“The craziness of it for now is, we had a good year in the portal and we were able to compete in free agency,” Cronin said, “but next year, you’ve got to be able to do it again.”

2. How will those mock drafts shake out?

It’s NBA Draft Day! Well, at least the Day 1 of the draft, which starts at 8 pm ET n ABC/ESPN.

Here’s our final mock for the 2024 Draft, which seems to have more unknowns than most drafts in recent memory.

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