In Reply to: Regradless of any of the who's and why's, posted by ej on April 10, 2026 at 11:36:30
Here are the problems with your post:
Like many, you put an equal sign between UCLA basketball and Cro-magnon. That's ridiculous. UCLA basketball is bigger and more distinguished than this diminutive, peevish man. So when guys commit to and stay at UCLA, they're very rarely doing so because they like Cro-magnon. They're here because it's freaking UCLA. It's one of the best public universities in the world, and in spite of our long dry spell in hoops, we remain an elite program historically. This will be true well after Cro-magnon has been replaced by a better coach, which can't happen soon enough. We will *always* attract talent because of the visibility of UCLA hoops and our track record for producing good pros. That has nothing to do with Cro-magnon whatsoever.
Secondly, it's interesting that we don't hear a single other coach complaining about needing more money. That sounds to me like a guy without a long-term, strategic recruiting plan. It also sounds like a guy who's a terrible salesperson for UCLA basketball. Selling UCLA hoops shouldn't be that hard. Steve Alford did it very well, and it led to our only Final Four of the past decade. Cro-magnon is prickly, uncharming and inarticulate. One can imagine how that plays on a phone call with a 17 year old.