LOS ANGELES - Kyle Anderson and Shabazz Muhammad brought a lot of fanfare with them to Westwood.
However, Larry Drew II may be the most important piece to the puzzle that will make up the Bruins success this season.
Just ask Ben Howland.
“He’s our most indispensable player,” said UCLA head coach Ben Howland, who’s entering his 10th season as head coach. “If there’s any one player we can’t afford to lose, it’s Larry Drew.”
Drew II will be counted on immediately to change the pace of Howland’s offense as the Bruins look to push the ball more this season. It will be familiar territory for Drew II who formerly quarterbacked Roy Williams’ Secondary Break at North Carolina. He had to do so at break neck pace. When they’re going, there aren’t many teams that can play as fast as the Tar Heels.
The North Carolina transfer is back home after an abrupt departure from Chapel Hill. He says he wasn’t comfortable there and didn’t realize how much he was going to miss his family before he left.
Now back home and “comfortable” Drew II will make his debut as a Bruin on Friday night when UCLA hosts Indiana State to open the sold out 13,800-seat new Pauley Pavilion.
UCLA was the only school Drew II says he had contact with after he left North Carolina. He even had to pay his own way for his first two quarters on campus in the spring of 2011. He has just one year of eligibility but Howland believes it to be worth it to have brought him aboard for a simple reason. “He’s a good player,” Howland said. “Plain and simple.”
Although Howland wants his team to run the ball more this season, they won’t be doing it nearly as fast as North Carolina which Drew II says suits him better.
“It was just go 100 miles per hour the whole time (at North Carolina),” Drew II said. “That really wasn’t my game. “People haven’t really seen me play my game at a consistent level but I definitely think that this year, coach Howland, he has the confidence in me to do so.”
Anderson, now free and clear of the NCAA, will be in the starting lineup at small forward when the Bruins take the court on Friday night. His presence, essentially gives the Bruins two point guards on the floor at the same time, which excites Howland.
“We both have pretty good instincts,” Drew II said.
Muhammad, on the other hand, still hasn’t been given the green light from the NCAA. The freshman suffered a shoulder sprain on Oct. 25. Howland said it’s “possible” for him, physically, to be able to play in the opener, but seems less than likely because of the ongoing NCAA investigation. The Bruins were picked to finish second in the Pac-12 conference behind Arizona and once Howland reeled in the nation’s No. 1 recruiting class, there have been talks around Westwood about a possible return to the Final Four.
A lot of that hinges on the eligibility of Muhammad.
Will he be cleared to play for the Bruins this season?
Howland still doesn’t know the answer but remains “optimistic.” Muhammad’s teammates say they are preparing as if the star freshman won’t play. In February, the NCAA informed schools that were recruiting Muhammad of their investigation.
Without Muhammad out and Tyler Lamb potentially available but limited following knee surgery, the Bruins are left thin on the wing.
Sophomore Norman Powell is expected to start at shooting guard in the opener. Freshman Jordan Adams provides just about all of the depth on the wing until Lamb is back to 100 percent and Muhammad is cleared.
They are even thinner at point guard where Drew II and Anderson are the only viable options and they are both in the starting lineup.
The Wear Twins are expected to join Anderson in the starting lineup up front. Junior Josh Smith and heralded freshman Tony Parker provide some girth in the front court. However, Smith may be at a disadvantage with the Bruins’ faster pace.
As a team, they’ll be hamstrung by the NCAA as they await ruling on Muhammad.
