Picture this: Your beloved UCLA Bruins getting demolished right in front of their home crowd at Pauley Pavilion, struggling to grab rebounds and sinking threes. That's the painful reality fans faced last season due to major shortcomings in rebounding and perimeter shooting. But here's where it gets exciting – the team is shaking things up with a fresh roster designed to transform these weaknesses into unstoppable strengths!
Diving into the details, UCLA's toughest losses last year exposed these exact problems. Take their 94-75 defeat to Michigan on January 7th: The Bruins lacked the physical presence needed, getting outmuscled on the boards in a lopsided defensive rebounding battle that saw the Wolverines dominate 30-16. Then, there was the 86-70 setback to Wisconsin on March 14th, kicking off the Big Ten Tournament with a thud. Despite earning a double-bye, UCLA's edge evaporated as the Badgers drained 19 threes compared to the Bruins' meager nine.
Zooming out, these weren't isolated incidents – rebounding and three-point shooting were glaring vulnerabilities all season long. For beginners wondering what that means, defensive rebounding rate measures how well a team grabs missed shots by opponents, while offensive rebounding rate tracks second-chance opportunities from their own misses. UCLA ranked a dismal 135th nationally in defensive rebounding and 73rd in offensive rebounding. On the shooting side, they were 106th in three-point percentage at just 35.2%, and a whopping 222nd in the volume of threes attempted – meaning they didn't even try enough to make up for their accuracy woes.
Head coach Mick Cronin tried to mask these flaws with an ultra-aggressive defense aimed at forcing turnovers and sparking fast breaks. But here's the part most people miss: That high-risk strategy was like a magician's trick, and it won't be needed this year. Instead, the Bruins have strategically recruited transfers to directly address and flip these issues.
They've swapped out creative big men for more physical enforcers, poured resources into sharpshooters, and brought in a point guard who can deliver the ball to them seamlessly. Last season, Tyler Bilodeau, at 6-foot-9, anchored the center spot in 32 of 33 games, but he was often outmatched by taller foes. He also handled most of the team's shot creation, juggling scoring, rim protection, and rebounding duties. Aday Mara and William Kyle provided backup, but injuries and uneven play limited their impact – Mara, despite his impressive 7-foot-3 height, leaned more toward playmaking than brute force.
This year, the script has flipped. Bilodeau is moving to power forward, his true position, freeing him from primary rebounding and rim-protection responsibilities. The Bruins have added three transfers – Xavier Booker Jr., Steven Jamerson, and Anthony Peoples Jr. – who are built for physicality. Their roles are straightforward: Set screens, crash the boards, and let others handle the scoring. As Booker put it on Friday, 'I feel like we’re all going to get pretty good minutes.' Booker himself is transitioning from a stretch four at Michigan State to a paint-focused five, with assistant coach Darren Savino emphasizing 'setting good screens, being physical and rebounding.' This simplified approach for the trio of centers could be a game-changer, but is it too simplistic? Some might argue it limits their offensive versatility – what do you think?
Adding to the rebounding boost is Jamar Brown, a 6-foot-5 transfer from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Cronin calls him one of the best rebounding guards he's ever coached, highlighting how modern players are trained to dive for offensive rebounds even from the perimeter corners. 'His mindset is to get every offensive rebound,' Cronin noted. 'It gives you that third body on the glass coming in from the perimeter, which makes a huge difference.' Brown embodies UCLA's dual focus on rebounding and shooting: He averaged 7.4 rebounds per game at UMKC while hitting 40.2% from three.
On the shooting front, Skyy Clark and Trent Perry are poised for upgrades. Clark shot 43.8% from deep in his final 16 games last season, and Perry attributes his struggles to a confidence dip. Both expressed optimism on Friday about finding consistency this year, partly thanks to more off-ball opportunities with Donovan Dent directing the point guard duties. Cronin explained the strategy: 'If they have to guard all three lanes of the floor because you have shooters, and you can pass and find the shooters, it’s really hard on any defense. Our three-point shooting is a strength of our team.' But here's where it gets controversial – Cronin has made similar claims about shooting being a team strength in the past three years. Is this just coach-speak, or will it finally pay off? Skeptics might point to UCLA's historical struggles as evidence that talk is cheap without execution.
Cronin firmly believes that 'the toughest thing to coach is getting the ball in the basket.' When that's not an issue, he says, coaching becomes a breeze. So, envisioning the potential of a team that excels at shooting and dominating the boards, we're talking about one that avoids humiliating home losses and doesn't fizzle out early in tournaments. For context, think of how teams like Duke or Kentucky have built dynasties by controlling rebounds and stretching defenses with threes – UCLA could be on that path.
Yet, this overhaul raises questions: Will relying on physical big men stifle creativity, or is it the smart play for a team that needs fundamentals first? And with Cronin's past optimism about shooting, are fans justified in being cautiously excited? Do you believe this roster shake-up will propel UCLA to new heights, or is there a missing piece like better depth or coaching tweaks? Share your opinions in the comments – let's debate!
