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UCLA Basketball: What Cal’s hiring of former assistant David Grace means

By Mike Regalado

BERKELEY, CA - DECEMBER 15: A general view during the California Golden Bears game against the Creighton Bluejays at Haas Pavilion on December 15, 2012 in Berkeley, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
BERKELEY, CA - DECEMBER 15: A general view during the California Golden Bears game against the Creighton Bluejays at Haas Pavilion on December 15, 2012 in Berkeley, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /
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Former UCLA basketball top assistant David Grace has found an ideal landing spot at Cal after parting ways with the Bruins due to an apparently rocky relationship with Steve Alford. With Grace staying in the Pac-12, what does this mean for UCLA?

Wyking Jones. I have a feeling there is a good number of people reading this article that have no idea who that is, but know that he just made one of the boldest moves among Pac-12 basketball coaches as he has just hired former UCLA basketball assistant David Grace.

RELATED: UCLA assistant David Grace fired… what was Steve Alford thinking?

So who is he? Mr. Jones is the head basketball coach at California, UCLA’s in-state and UC rival and he just made next season very intriguing.

Let us back up to this past weekend when news broke about UCLA head coach Steve Alford firing Grace. Not only was it revealed that Grace had been let go before the Final Four, but the circumstances surrounding it has put Alford in an awkward position.

Grace spoke with L.A.Times reporter Ben Bolch and stated that, “[Alford] said that [UCLA Athletic Director] Dan [Guerrero] wanted to make the change and the next day I talked to Dan and Dan said he never told him to make a coaching change, so I don’t know where that came from.”

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On Monday, UCLA announced the hiring of new assistant Murry Bartow (who is replacing Grace) and in the same release, Alford made a brief statement about how the termination went down, “David and I have differing accounts of our conversation, but the bottom line is that I thank him for his impact here and wish him the best moving forward.” Awkward indeed.

So what is all the hubbub about Grace? He has been the lead recruiter for the Bruins which have resulted in a few Top 10 recruiting classes. Some of the players he has been able to bring to Westwood include Kevon Looney, Lonzo Ball, TJ Leaf, Kris Wilkes and Shareef O’Neal, just to name a few.

He also has ties to one of the biggest AAU basketball teams on the West Coast, the Compton Magic. Guess what Bruin fans? He is taking it with him.

This is huge for Cal because Grace can still keep his So Cal connections (nothing a 45-minute flight can’t handle) as well as starting/strengthening ties up north. Not only that, he can bring his knowledge of UCLA basketball to Cal. Last season, the Golden Bears had a league-worst 2-16 record (8-24 overall), so bringing in Grace is a big deal for playing style and recruiting.

Currently, UCLA has the 4th best recruiting class in the nation. Along with the returning roster, the Bruins were expected by some to be the favorites to win the Pac-12 next year, but their chances have taken a hit with the exit of Grace. Going forward, it is going to be interesting to see how Alford handles recruiting, one of the few things that has been a consistent positive for the Bruins.

Next: UCLA Basketball: The Top 10 Recruiting Classes Since 2000

Well now it seems Wyking Jones has that consistent positive in his midst. Well played, coach.