In Reply to: Cronin = Howland: Offense only as good as the players posted by Dr.Bruin on January 13, 2026 at 12:23:09
It's too late to expect Cronin to re-invent himself as a coach.
He learned to coach in environments that were never going to land ultra-athletic offensive stars, so he adapted. What worked was building defense-first teams. Defense is teachable, elite athleticism - the kind required to be a high-level scorer - is not. You can take a one or two star recruit and turn him into a reliable, three-star defender. Who honestly thinks you can do the same on the offensive end?
That’s who Cronin is as a coach, and by extension, that’s what UCLA basketball has become. It’s not a bad way to build a program, but if you grew up on Showtime Lakers basketball, it’s never going to feel inspiring. In Cronin’s system, the offense flows out of the defense. The problem right now is that the defense isn’t at the level it needs to be, so the offense has nothing to flow from.