2015-16 UCLA Men's Basketball Outlook

Through two seasons in Westwood, head coach Steve Alford has helped guide UCLA to back-to-back Sweet 16 appearances while sending seven players to the NBA. This fall, the Bruins return a corps of six veterans from last year's rotation, seeking an even deeper run in the NCAA Tournament.

UCLA returns four of its top six scorers from 2014-15 – junior Bryce Alford (15.4 ppg), senior Tony Parker (11.5 ppg), junior Isaac Hamilton (10.6 ppg) and sophomore Thomas Welsh (3.8 ppg).

Also returning to the Bruins include junior Noah Allen (1.3 ppg), who played in all 36 games last season, and sophomore György “G.G.” Goloman (1.3 ppg), who competed in 35 of 36 contests.

The Bruins must overcome the loss of two players who started all 36 games last season before being selected in the NBA Draft – guard Norman Powell, who led UCLA with 16.4 points per game, and forward Kevon Looney, who averaged 11.6 points and a team-leading 9.2 rebounds per game. Powell graduated from UCLA just two weeks before landing with the Toronto Raptors as a second-round draft pick. Looney was the No. 30 overall selection by the Golden State Warriors after his freshman season.

Five players could make their collegiate debuts this fall, including sophomores Jonah Bolden and Ikenna Okwarabizie and freshmen Prince Ali, Aaron Holiday and Alex Olesinski.

“We really like our team's depth, especially when you talk about our guards and the versatility that they'll provide us,” Steve Alford said. “Between our backcourt and our frontcourt, we have four veterans in Tony, Thomas, Bryce and Isaac who logged a lot of minutes last season and picked up a ton of experience. That's really going to help us as we get going this season.”

BACKCOURT
Bryce Alford and Isaac Hamilton each averaged over 33 minutes per game as sophomores in 2014-15. Alford finished the year as UCLA's second-leading scorer, behind Powell, and established the school's single-season record for three-point field goals (91). He finished fourth in the Pac-12 in assists per game (4.9) and fifth in assist-turnover ratio (2.0).

Hamilton, who sat out the 2013-14 season, improved as the year went on, pouring in a season-high 36 points against USC in a must-win game in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 Tournament. In his first collegiate season, Hamilton shot nearly 39 percent from 3-point range and dished 3.2 assists per game.

“Both Isaac and Bryce had outstanding summers and are really looking to build off last season,” Steve Alford said. “Both of those players have gotten bigger, quicker and stronger, and we're confident that they'll really be able to lead this team.”

Bolden, Holiday, Ali and Allen will help provide welcome depth to a Bruins' backcourt that had little margin for error or injury last season. Hailing from Sydney, Australia, Bolden has shown the ability to help make an immediate impact for UCLA from the start.

“Jonah's going to be a big part of this team,” Alford said. “At 6-foot-10, he gives us something a little different than what Norman provided at that big guard position. Jonah has a great basketball IQ, he's a very good rebounding guard and he can shoot the ball out to the three. We'll look different than we did last season, but as Jonah develops, he's going to be an exciting player to watch.”

Holiday, the younger brother of former UCLA guard Jrue Holiday, starred at Campbell Hall High School in nearby North Hollywood and impressed his coaches and teammates during the summer. The 6-foot-1 guard will be relied upon to step in at both the point guard and shooting guard positions during his freshman season.

“Aaron's a relentless guard who has that Russell Westbrook mentality of just going at you on every possession,” Alford said. “He has a high motor who can really be disruptive, both on the defensive and offensive ends. As he continues to learn the college game, he's really going to develop into being that bulldog we need.”

Ali, a 6-foot-3 guard originally from the Bronx in New York, played his high school basketball in Florida, spending the last two seasons at The Sagemont School (Weston, Fla.). At UCLA, he has been reunited with former high school teammate G.G. Goloman. Ali's athleticism will make him an exciting player to watch as adjusts to the college game's learning curve.

“We really like Prince because he is very good with the basketball,” Alford said. “He's a great athlete who has a chance to be a really special player. Like with Aaron, as Prince learns our team's system and gets more comfortable on the floor, he's going to really help this team's backcourt.”

FRONTCOURT
Parker and Welsh will be relied upon to anchor UCLA's frontcourt. Parker, a senior from Atlanta, has played in 104 games the last three seasons, making 42 starts the previous two years. As a junior last season, Parker averaged 11.5 points and 6.7 rebounds per game, continuing a trend of marked improvement from year to year.

The 6-foot-9 Parker scored in double figures in 20 games, registering a career-best 28 points and 12 rebounds in UCLA's 92-75 win over UAB in the Bruins' second game of the NCAA Tournament.

Welsh, a 7-foot freshman from Redondo Beach, Calif., played in all 36 games as a freshman, averaging 3.8 points and 3.8 rebounds per game. Welsh led UCLA with 39 blocks, logging as many as four blocks in two games late in the season.

“Both Tony and Thomas are going to be keys to this team,” Alford said. “Tony is a very seasoned player who knows what's expected, and we're looking for very consistent output from him. He is our team's only senior and has really improved during his three seasons at UCLA.”

Welsh took advantage of an opportunity to play for the USA Basketball U19 team over the summer, helping Team USA win the gold medal at the FIBA U19 World Championships in Greece. In seven games of international competition, he registered 2.7 points and 3.3 rebounds in 9.2 minutes per contest.

“Thomas had a great experience with USA Basketball, and we've seen that he's carrying himself with a lot of confidence coming into this season.”

Goloman has added nearly 20 pounds to his 6-foot-11 frame since he arrived at UCLA over one year ago and will take on a larger role for the Bruins in 2015-16. He played in all but one game as a freshman, averaging 1.3 points and 1.5 rebounds per game. Goloman didn't attempt a 3-pointer until mid-January, but finished his season making 6 of 12 shots from long range.

“G.G. has a chance to be our team's X factor,” Alford said. “He really got better as last season continued, he had a great summer and he picked up weight in the offseason. With G.G. in the rotation, it allows our team to play Jonah Bolden at multiple positions and gives our team some different looks.”

UCLA's frontcourt has also welcomed the additions of Olesinski, a 6-foot-10 forward from Roswell, N.M., and Okwarabizie, a 6-foot-9 center who played last season at Tyler Junior College in Tyler, Texas. Both Olesinski and Okwarabizie competed with the team during summer workouts and will push for playing time in 2015-16.