SB Nation User Blog: Point Guard 08

Students: C’MON! Alumni: C’MON!

Point Guard 08 — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 06:46:57 -0000

Bumped. GO BRUINS. -N

Photo Credit: maveric2003 (flickr)

NOTE: This was written by muybienbien, a longtime reader and diehard UCLA fan (as you'll notice from this post). Because he's never posted on BN before and just joined, he has to sit out a day before he can post a fanpost. While these thoughts are all his own, I completely agree with every point he makes.

This is my first and could quite possibly be my last fanpost on this site. While everything I say here goes for football too, let’s restrict the focus of this post to men’s basketball. This is also incredibly long, so my apologies in advance. I also know that there are a lot of really great, passionate Bruins on this site, and to you, this post will quite literally be preaching to the choir. These "call-outs" are not directed at you, you are all amazing fans who do all you can.

I’ve been reading BruinsNation for the past three years. There have been some viewpoints that I’ve vehemently disagreed with, and some topics that I’ve fully supported. I certainly have had issues with some perspectives of those on this site, but that is to be expected when such passionate supporters discuss the teams that they cherish so dearly.

But the one aspect that I have ALWAYS respected about this site is the true, utter passion for Bruin athletics that each member of this community carries. People may disagree on the direction of a head coaching search, or which point guard should be playing, but when the whistle blows, everyone is pulling for the Bruins to win (if you’re not, well, then we got problems). This, quite sadly, is the one of the only places where I’ve found a group of Bruins who legitimately cares about their squads.

This is my sixth and final year of attending UCLA. Through my four years as an undergraduate (2004-2008), I have probably attended 90 UCLA basketball games – home, away, neutral, wherever. To say that my friends and I have been passionate Bruin supporters is a bit of an understatement. We camped out for almost every single game (be it USC or Coppin State) from 2005-2008, with Excel spreadsheets planning our hourly shifts. We drove 2,400 miles to Indianapolis for the Final Four. We flew to Tennessee and drove to Atlanta for another Final Four. And we drove another 1,700 miles to San Antonio for yes, a THIRD Final Four. So yeah, we were definitely lucky to have the opportunity to go to three Final Fours. I fully understand that. But we were also dedicated enough to be camping out for a Coppin State game 3 hours after upsetting USC in the glorious 13-9. And that is the part that I want to focus on.

Unfortunately, sadly, I graduated from college. I am fortunate enough to be able to continue to attend UCLA for graduate school (MS in electrical engineering) while I work in Redondo Beach. While I’ve still been able to attend most games, it’s safe to say that my campout days are officially over. I don’t think it flies to show up to work with sweats, a hoodie, and gloves from sleeping in a tent for 6 hours. Time to let the undergraduates have their fun, has been my mentality.

Today, I went to the Kansas game. We showed up 45 minutes before game time, expecting to be in the upper section. Nope, you, lucky sirs, get to sit down into the lower section. Really? We have the number one team and I don’t need to camp out or wake up at 6:00 AM for a priority pass. That’s kind of weak.

But I’ll trade quantity for quality anytime. And while the energy certainly was there at times (or maybe it was the loud, proud, and boisterous KU section, of which I’m admittedly envious), and I heard Pauley louder than it had been in a long time, it wasn’t there all the time. The energy needs to be there in the student section. I’m sure there was energy in the middle of the student section, where the people have camped out the longest. But the ends of the sections were pretty subdued. As in, some yelling and minimal jumping. And when we got down? It was pretty damn quiet. These are the times that matter most! The squad needs a lift, some energy to get them back on track, and everyone is quiet. When my buddy yells at the students to get up and make some noise, we shouldn’t see twelve sets of eyes turn around and look at us like we have leprosy.

You see, over my six years in LA, I’ve come to realize a lot about UCLA fans and the apathetic sports fandom of LA in general. When the teams are playing well, fans are happy, they show up, and everyone is suddenly a huge supporter. But here’s the rub: you’re a Bruin during bad times too. We’re so lucky that these times are few and far between, but they still happen. These are the times that make the special victorious moments so much more rewarding. I hail from the Bay Area, where every team (save the Sharks) is terrible at the moment. But we all still love our teams. Unfailingly. We can look back and say "Wow, I endured 13 years of diehard support to watch the Golden State Warriors make the playoffs ONCE." How else do you explain the fact that one of the most poorly run organizations in all of sports, who has made one playoff appearance since I was in 2nd grade (16 years ago), still routinely sells out games.

Bottom line: if you stick with the team, they will eventually make you happy.

Students, I understand that it’s finals week. Personally, I went to the UCLA Sweet 16 game against Pittsburgh in 2007 in San Jose, then drove down five hours AFTER the game (ended at 10 PM) to take a final at 8 AM the next morning. I caught a solid four hours of sleep that night for an analog circuits final (and somehow pulled off the A). So anything IS possible. But I’m not a total whack job -- finals are big, and I will not belittle their importance. Let’s be realistic here -- no one’s going to give you a job for being a big Bruin fan; they will give you a job for having good grades. I’m just going to say that you pick what is most important to you. One option does not necessarily need to preclude the other, you just have to plan and make careful decisions.

The thing is, I don’t remember a whole lot about analog circuits. I don’t deal with them anymore. I DO remember Arron Afflalo hitting a corner three against Kansas in an Elite Eight game just before halftime, just like I remember almost jumping off the second deck of the Oakland Coliseum while celebrating an improbable Luc Richard Mbah a Moute go-ahead layup and steal to secure the unbelievable UCLA victory over Gonzaga. I will never forget that moment of my life, and that is what makes sports great.

We all love sports for different reasons. But one thing I think everyone loves is the opportunity to see the unforeseen. If we had upset Kansas today, and you hadn’t been there but watched the whole thing on TV while studying, wouldn’t you have wished you’d been there?

When else in your life are you going to have an opportunity like this? Let me tell you, as a fresh graduate working the grind and going to graduate school on the side, the real world isn’t all that much fun. You’re not going to be able to get away with camping out in 60 degree weather, playing video games, eating pizza, and hanging with your friends.

Okay great, so hopefully you’re slightly more convinced (or maybe you just hate me) that it is indeed worth it to attend and expend every ounce of your being into cheering for UCLA. But I like to solve problems, and that doesn’t solve the overall problem – the apathy of those around you. What you can do to change this?

The great thing about sports watching sports live is the power of the crowd. No, not the crowd that is more concerned with doing the wave than watching the 3rd and 2 with 8 minutes to play in a 3 point game. It’s the crowd that buzzes and stirs, that tries to pull up its team during times of struggles or feeds its frenzy it’s on a run. Anyone who has played any type of sport can attest to this. Players draw energy from its crowd’s intensity. For a team predicated on defensive effort and hustle, as ours has for the past six years, energy and intensity are vital to our success. Don’t you miss the hard double team from Lorenzo Mata-Real or the unbelievably hedging from Alfred Aboya 25 feet away from the hoop? Well get loud, and maybe even Jerime Anderson can magically gain a modicum of lateral quickness! Okay, I realize that’s pushing it.

Do you know what my most memorable from 13-9 is? Not the McPick, or Pat "The Cowan" Gazelle galloping through the USC secondary. It came with six minutes left during a timeout. The whole crowd got hyped, with the thought of "Hey, maybe we can really do this!" Each team left its sideline and met at midfield, jawing, whooping, and hollering. There was a sense of magical energy in the air that I’d never (and haven’t since) experienced at the Rose Bowl. It was the type of moment that made you realize how special sports can be.

So yell, scream, jump up and down, and get loud. Not just at the start, not just when we’re on a run, but ALL game. Every possession matters, whether there is 10:30 left in the first half or 2:15 left in the second half, and whether we’re on a 7-0 run or they’re on a 7-0 run. The team can always use your help.

And Alumni! I haven’t been one for long, so I’m not going to make any rash judgments here, but I think we can improve too. Would it kill you to wear blue to the game? When UCLA gave out free UCLA t-shirts to the crowd a few years ago, I’d estimate 60% of the alumni completely disregarded their nicely color coordinated shirts. Can’t mess up the precious sweater-dress shirt combo I guess. And noise. Please. Noise is good (especially when we’re on defense). It doesn’t have to be the 35 seconds of yelling and jumping. It can just be clapping and encouraging our boys. And it’s okay to stretch those legs every once in a while. Stand up during those important situations. If you’re going to stretch during the timeout and halftime anyway, well you can get the blood flowing into the legs during the game too.

I understand that not everyone’s cut out to be hardcore all the time. That’s totally fine – do what you’ve gotta do. Enjoy the game in the way you please. Sports are for fun and entertainment, so treat your fandom with what makes you happy. They should not define your life (this has arguably been a recent revelation for me). But being a passionate fan can also be highly rewarding, and create some beautiful memories. I would not trade my UCLA sporting experience for any other – they truly are some of the most poignant highlights of my college days.

I apologize for this rant. Lay it on me if I’m screwing up here too, I am all for intelligent discourse. I also don’t know if I’m violating some form of etiquette by calling out everyone without saying anything before. I will now go study for MY finals before work tomorrow. Whether you agree or not, as always – GO BRUINS!!!

Coach Howland speaks at alumni event in San Francisco

Point Guard 08 — Wed, 06 May 2009 02:10:05 -0000

Bumped. The details below should be enough to get you fired up other events during UCLA coach's tour scheduled around the country rest of this season. However, open bat for $20. WOW. The next event is scheduled for May 12th in LA where both CRN and CBH are scheduled to speak. Check out the details here. GO BRUINS. - N

As has been mentioned a handful of times here on Bruins Nation, Coach Howland spoke in San Francisco at an event for UCLA alumni last night. It proved to be a really exciting and revealing night, as Coach Howland mingled with the fans beforehand, gave a glimpse into next year's squad (with his usual detailed use of statistics) and a sneak peek into the Pauley renovation project. I’ll try and include as many details as I can about what he spoke about, but forgive me if I leave some things out. There was an open bar, after all.

via photos-d.ak.fbcdn.net

Overall, it was a really fantastic event. It was hosted at the Hyatt Regency on the Embarcadero, and there were probably around 300-350 people there. At 6, there was a reception with all sorts of appetizers, cheeses, and the aforementioned open bar. I just recently graduated last June, so this was pretty much the first alumni event I’ve attended, and it was just an awesome experience being able to meet so many local Bruin alums. There was a good mix of class years amongst the attendees, as well.

At around 6:30, my friend and I noticed that Coach Howland was there, mingling with some of the attendees. I’m not sure when he actually arrived, but it was great seeing him talking with the alumni. I got to meet him right before he spoke, and he was an incredibly gracious, humble person. I kept on trying to thank him for everything he’s done for UCLA, and he constantly thanked me back for attending and my support. It was a very cool experience. We even got to reminisce with him about our favorite Bruin donors, Dick and Trish Grey (I apologize if I messed up their names, but they sit in the front row right in front of the Den, 3 or 4 seats to the right of the announcers). This was the first time I’ve ever personally met him, and I got a great impression from him. Definitely proud to have him running our program.

A little before 7, we all headed into the ballroom next door to begin the program. It started with a 5-minute video regarding the Pauley renovation (I think this was the same video that was shown during the men’s basketball banquet a few weeks ago, although I’m not positive about that). Overall, I was very impressed with the video and the plans. I know you all have debated different possible ideas ad nauseum here at Bruins Nation, and perhaps may not be completely satisfied with the plans, but I was very impressed. The video included quite a few interviews with former athletes who have played in Pauley, not just basketball players, as well as Coach Howland, AD Guerrero and, of course, Coach Wooden.

The basics of the renovation plan: The one thing that looked drastically different was the facade. The outer shell of the new Pauley will have some very nice looking glass windows around the entire perimeter. Within the glass walls, there will be a wide concourse/walking area where people can congregate. In addition, of course, the concessions and restrooms will be totally revamped (this drew the biggest applause of the entire night). As for the seats, the court will be centered, with addtional on either end of the court. There did not appear to be any change to the 300 seating, which I know has been one major complaint. Overall, however, the impression given off by the video was a very positive one. The goal is to maintain the history and legacy of Pauley Pavilion, but modernize it for the 21st century and create a flashy, elegant building that will attract recruits even moreso. I was certainly impressed, although I was very strongly against tearing down Pauley and/or completely rebuilding a new arena.

After an introduction by a local Alumni Association Director, Coach Howland took the stage for what turned into about a 30 minute speech and Q&A session. I’ll do my best to touch on the different points he made.

He started out lauding the three graduation seniors. You really get the feeling that Howland absolutely loves these kids. (The upcoming notes will be summaries of Howland’s words, not mine.) Aboya, he noted, graduated in 3 years and is currently getting ready for the NBA Draft, where he has a chance to sneak into the second round. With regards to Darren, during a Q&A later on, he called Collison an incredibly loyal Bruin (a thinly veiled jab at Jrue, intentionally or not); he had the chance to leave after his sophomore year, and again after his junior year, but decided to stick it out. And finally, Josh, who had to fight through all sorts of hip injuires/rehab/one redshirt year to really have an excellent career as a Bruin. I apologize, because I know I’m omitting a lot of what he said with regards to those 3 great Bruins.

Most of the time, he spent breaking down our chances for next year. Being an eternal optimist, he effusively praised all of our returning players and incoming freshmen. The gist is that everyone is doing an excellent job in their offseason training programs. James Keefe, who he noted had an excellent finish to his sophomore season, but a somewhat frustrating junior season, will certainly be an improved player next year. He also has high hopes for Bobo, who does have excellent hands and can put the ball in the hoop, "which is always important." Jerime Anderson, a guy who didn’t play much last year, will also be a strong player next year, although there will certainly be growing pains as he gets used to playing more minutes, likely in a starting role. Finally, he lavished massive praise at Malcolm Lee, noting his massive wing span and huge build. The most exciting thing he mentioned regarding Lee, that many of you here have commented on, is his defensive abilities. He has the capabilities, according to Howland, of being as good of a defender, if not better, as Afflalo or Westbrook. WOW.

He then moved on to the incoming freshmen, where there was a pretty common trend amongst 4 of the 5 incoming guys: INCREDIBLY SKINNY. Every time he listed the heights and weights of the incoming guys, everyone laughed a little bit. A little time in the weight room will do wonders for these guys, as many of them have massive wing spans and excellent potential. Again, I’m forgetting a lot of the details wrt each individual player, but needless to say he’s very excited about our prospects.

He also mentioned our season last year, how he was overall very satisfied with the results. All things considered: we lost 3 guys, two of whom were on the All-Rookie team, and the third started half of the games with Milwaukee. We had become a little spoiled with the amazing success during the three years prior. Howland offered an interesting anecdote at this point: he always said he would trade all 3 Final Fours for one national championship, then mentioned a conversation he had with Tom Izzo that helped to put things into perspective. Izzo, who also made 3 staright Final Fours with MSU back in the early 00’s, really put things into perspective, showing how incredibly difficult it is to make it to even one Final Four, and how lucky we are with our recent successes. With all of that said, however, Howland strongly stressed that he came to UCLA to win a national championship.

Another interesting anecdote regarding our seeding: as many of you know, Dan Guerrero was on the selection committee, which many people (including Lavin during an ABC broadcast this season) thought would certainly help us. Yet as Howland noted, every time UCLA was mentioned, Guerrero had to leave the room, which ended up hurting us in the end. Nonetheless, he tipped his hat to Villanova. Comparing this season to last year, he said that "last year we seemed to be getting all the calls in the world; this season, everything seemed to go against us." He did not use that as an excuse, although when he mentioned the Darren Collison charge/block at ASU, the crowd groaned and booed.

And the Q&A: (paraphrased)

Q: Who do you think will be our starting center next year, with so many players, from Keefe to Drago to Stover to Bobo competing for it?
A: Exactly. (which drew quite a few laughs).

Q: It’s been said that UCLA, after Stanford, has the second hardest admission requirements in the Pac-10. Your thoughts?
A: It’s an honor, and there is no conference in the nation with three universities as prestigious as UCLA, Cal and Stanford. Ultimately, it is good for the program, because it brings in truly smart kids who can handle the academic rigor and excel, on and off the court. But I can’t comment on exactly what Cal does or does not do.

Q: Many people have commented on your curious strategy with regards to time outs (which drew a huge laugh). What influences your time out strategy?
A: I prefer to coach when I have the lead. So I take time outs to ensure that, to keep everyone sharp. In addition, the first timeout of every half is a full TV timeout, although it is only charged as a 30 second timeout. This allows us to stay even sharper. So much of our energy is used up on defense, that I use time outs largely to rest our guys so that they can be as sharp as possible on the defensive end (He also mentioned earlier that the primary flaw of our team this year was subpar defense, even though we shot the ball very well).

Q: When will we finally be breaking ground on the Pauley renovation?
A: January 2010. (At this point, Howland was pretty abruptly cut off by the host of the event, who seemed to be one of the main guys in charge of the fund raising, and said that more details will be announced next Monday at the official unveiling).

Overall, it was an excellent event. Before and after Howland spoke, there was a strong push towards fund raising for the Pauley Renovation project, which was certainly one of the primary reasons this event was held. Yet it was an excellent event, bringing together Bruins of all ages, and it makes me proud to have Coach Howland leading our program, and extremely excited for the upcoming season.