With UCLA Basketball missing the 2016 NCAA Tournament, we look to the future of the program and what we should expect going into next season.
Well, How Did We Get Here?
Head Coach Steve Alford and the UCLA Basketball team were not invited to the NCAA Tournament, which means they have all summer to come up with a plan for the 2016-17 season.
RELATED: UCLA Is Not Going To The NCAA Tournament
Things did not turn out as hoped for the Bruins as this roller coaster of a season had come to a bumpy end after a promising start.
Despite a season opening loss to Monmouth and a blundering exhibition in the Maui Invitational, the Bruins turned around their misfortune with one particular event that seemed to set the tone for the non-conference schedule and possibly the rest of the season.
On Thursday, December 3, the UCLA Bruins took on the #1 Kentucky Wildcats at Pauley Pavilion. The Bruins decimated the Wildcats, 87-77. It was not just a late push that got the victory, but a game in which UCLA was in total control.
UCLA Bruins
It was more than a time for celebration, it meant that UCLA Basketball was on its way back to elite status and it got even better.
The Kentucky game was followed up by huge road win at Gonzaga. There were also several home victories against leaser teams that aided the Breuin’s cause and though a few of those cupcakes nearly upset UCLA, the end result was a win for the Bruins win a 9-4 record in the non-conference. Things were looking good for UCLA.
Then conference play started. With such promise, the Bruins traveled north to the state of Washington, hoping to get the first road sweep in the Alford era… instead the Bruin got swept themselves and they started Pac-12 play 0-2.
Things did improve when they returned home the next week. A last second victory over Arizona and then a close win over Arizona State evened the Bruins record, but that was the beginning of a long and uncomfortable Pac-12 season, one that ended with only 6 wins and 12 losses.
It got worse for the Bruins in the Pac-12 Tournament. UCLA faced USC, a team that had beat them by double-digits twice in the regular season, who then ran the Bruins out of Las Vegas as they Trojans won by a score of 95-71.
After this, rumblings emerged as fans and boosters requested change in the coaching position, but as we found out last Friday, UCLA will retain Steve Alford. So now, with UCLA Basketball free of post-season responsibilities, we look to the future.
Next: One Step Forward, Two Steps Back
One Step Forward, Two Steps Back
In his Pac-12 Tournament post-game presser, UCLA Basketball Head Coach Steve Alford said that the team had a “poor” performance and that it was on him. Continuing his theme for improvement, he always stated that UCLA needs to do better.
Betsided
The awkward thing is that Alford has been saying this all season. “We have to get better” was echoed throughout Pauley Pavilon every time Alford spoke to the media, but he never seemed to make it a happen, at least not that we saw on the floor.
Because of this, it has led Bruin fans to believe that things will not change going into next season. If you look deeper and follow the patterns from all three of Alford’s seasons, one could see that there are coaching flaws that are not being shored up, and even worse, might flat out be ignored.
I will not even mention the issue with Alford showing favoritism to his son, Bryce Alford. That is for another article.
So Alford has another year to prove that he can make UCLA into a contender, but seeing how he has handled his Bruin teams, it seems things are going in the wrong direction.
Here is UCLA Basketball’s record and acheivments in Alford’s first three years:
2013-14: 28-9, 12-6, Pac-12 Tournament Champions, Sweet 16
2014-15: 22-14, 11-7, Sweet 16
2105-16: 15-17, 6-12
Though it is a small sample, it clearly shows that UCLA has declined in the Alford era, making the future a little murky.
Next: Putting All Hope In A Recruiting Class
A Top Recruiting Class Can’t Save A Program
The good news going into next year is that UCLA Basketball has a Top 5 recruiting class coming in. PG Lonzo Ball, PF T.J. Leaf, C Ike Anigbogu and SG Kobe Paras are all expected to not only particapte, but raise the level of UCLA Basketball. That is where problems arise.
Though certain players have the ability to improve the quality of a program, it is absurd to think that they can save it. Let us look at Alford’s first team as an example, which was clearly his best squad to date.
Alford inherited Ben Howland recruits Kyle Anderson, Jordan Adams and Zach LaVine who added to a core of veteran players Norman Powell, David Wear, Travis Wear and Tony Parker. It was a solid roster that ran through several teams. Things looked promising early in the season until the Bruins were actually tested.
UCLA was put in their place by teams like Missouri and Duke and even lost several close games in conference where they had the advantage. Though the Bruins made it to the Sweet Sixteen (against cupcakes like Tulsa and Stephen F. Austin), the true nature of the Bruins was revealed in a 79-68 beating by Florida.
Why do I bring this up? Seeing as the Bruins return the majority of their roster in 2016-17 and adding four newcomers, it is hard to see UCLA Basketball rising to elite status next season.
An example of this is Cal (not to rub them wrong way) as they had two fantastic freshmen this year, Jaylen Brown and Ivan Rabb, and were only 4th in the Pac-12 with a semifinal Pac-12 Tournament loss. It does not matter how much talent you have, if their is no coaching or elite leadership, the program will not do much.
Next: Elite or Bust
Elite or Bust
With Alford on the hot seat, every game next season will be under a microscope by fans, boosters, the UCLA AD, writers and national college basketball critics, at the very least (oh, the things Bill Walton is going to ramble on about). To say Alford has to improve is an understatement, but what will he need to do to save his job?
The focus for Alford at this point, seems to be “surviving”. That is far removed from the goal of playing for National Championships.
It is obvious Dan Guerrero does not want to be known as the athletic director that made (another) hiring mistake, so it is also in his best interest for the Bruins to improve or he will have to fire Alford and that will not be good for him despite the fact that he is retiring in a few years.
With that, UCLA needs to win the Pac-12 regular season championship and/or Pac-12 Tournament to show that there is improvement, but unfortunately, there will moments where they stumble and make UCLA look bad once again (I fear the UCLA game at Kentucky).
The sad thing is, UCLA making it to the Sweet Sixteen could be enough to extend Alford’s time in Westwood, despite how the team performs in the regular season (isn’t the goal at UCLA to win National Championships?). Adding in the fact that Ball and Leaf could jump to the NBA after next season does not help the program the following year.
The Bruins look to have a solid recruiting class coming in with PG Jaylen Hands, SG Liangelo Ball and PF Jalen Hill coming to Westwood, but Bruin fans fear the team will be in an unbreakable cycle of not being good enough to hang another banner while teams like Duke, Kentucky, Kansas and North Carolina continue to thrive on a yearly basis.
Unfortunately, at UCLA, that seems to not be the focus. The focus for Alford at this point, seems to be “surviving”. That is far removed from the goal of playing for National Championships.
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Next: The UCLA Basketball All-Time Team
UCLA Basketball will never have another John Wooden, but it should not have to settle for Steve Alford. Until the UCLA Atheltic Department realizes that, it will be a long time before the Bruins get to hang a banner in Pauley Pavilion.