Found this on the Athletic. Plenty of Cal references in the article, including Braun quotes. Both of our Wilkes brother alumni are putting their basketball and Cal academic experiences to work for them--Omar as an NBA agent, and Jordan as director of player development for the Lakers. Go Wilkes family! https://theathletic.com/346220/2018/05/09/sports-agent-omar-wilkes-unlikely-journey-and-how-it-led-him-to-his-biggest-client-yet-oklahomas-trae-young/

Really nice article on what has been going on with Omar - great to see his accomplishments as an agent - didn't know that he was representing Trae Young

Some nice stories about him, Jordan, and Braun in the article as well

Man, we really could have used Omar his senior year--add him to Hardin, Ryan Anderson, Jamaal Boykin, Patrick Christopher and Jerome Randle and I bet Braun could have coached us to better than second to last place!

I think you meant, "we could have really used Jordan his senior year," as he had been injured and on the shelf previously one year. It was his fifth year that he could have played, but instead he graduated and went on to other stuff in life.

Omar did play his fifth year senior year. He had sat out as a transfer from Kansas I believe it was.

And yes, I agree with you. I think the team would have been better with Jordan. He was 7 feet tall and had began to show signs of being able to score down low. Of course his rebounding, blocks or shot alterations, and fouls would have been helpful too. I was very disappointed he did not come back to play that year.

concordtom said:

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I think you meant, "we could have really used Jordan his senior year," as he had been injured and on the shelf previously one year. It was his fifth year that he could have played, but instead he graduated and went on to other stuff in life.

Omar did play his fifth year senior year. He had sat out as a transfer from Kansas I believe it was.

And yes, I agree with you. I think the team would have been better with Jordan. He was 7 feet tall and had began to show signs of being able to score down low. Of course his rebounding, blocks or shot alterations, and fouls would have been helpful too. I was very disappointed he did not come back to play that year.

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No, Omar played one year at Kansas, sat out his transfer year, and then played two years here. He left with one year of eligibility left.

I wonder why they both did that.

He was just tired of playing basketball and that goes with it.

GMP said:

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concordtom said:

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I think you meant, "we could have really used Jordan his senior year," as he had been injured and on the shelf previously one year. It was his fifth year that he could have played, but instead he graduated and went on to other stuff in life.

Omar did play his fifth year senior year. He had sat out as a transfer from Kansas I believe it was.

And yes, I agree with you. I think the team would have been better with Jordan. He was 7 feet tall and had began to show signs of being able to score down low. Of course his rebounding, blocks or shot alterations, and fouls would have been helpful too. I was very disappointed he did not come back to play that year.

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No, Omar played one year at Kansas, sat out his transfer year, and then played two years here. He left with one year of eligibility left.

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Exactly. It was Omar's shooting that we needed.

Different years, no?

I recall that I was very much expecting Jordan back to provide depth and size inside.
We ended up having probs that way next year when Jordan was gone.
I was pretty upset!

Omar:
https://basketball.realgm.com/player/Omar-Wilkes/Summary/5339

03-04 Kansas
04-05 transfer, did not play.
05-06 Cal
06-07 Cal

Jordan:
https://basketball.realgm.com/player/Jordan-Wilkes/Summary/6733

05-06 Cal
06-07 Cal
07-08 Cal
08-09 Cal: started all 32 games.

He played 7 games as a soph but was injured early and granted a redshirt year, which he decided to not take in 09-10

Wow. I didn't realize Jordan's missing year was the year we won conference!!
Holy crap.

The 200910 California Golden Bears men's basketball team represented the University of California, Berkeley in the 200910 college basketball season. This was head coach Mike Montgomery's 2nd season at California. The Golden Bears played their home games at Haas Pavilion and participate in the Pacific-10 Conference. The Golden Bears finished the season 2411, 135 in Pac-10 play to win the regular season conference championship, their first regular season title since the 195960 season. They lost to Washington in the finals of the Pac-10 tournament. They received an atlarge bid to the 2010 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, earning an 8 seed in the South Region. They defeated 9 seed Louisvillein the first round before falling to 1 seed and AP #3 Duke in the second round. The Blue Devils went on to claim their fourth national title.

I'll contend that we would have gotten a better than 8 seed with Jordan, and not lost to eventual champion 1 seed in round of 32. Maybe we could have got a 6 seed and upset the 3 for a trip to the sweet 16.

Our 2009-10 roster

Player
Jerome Randle
Patrick Christopher
Jamal Boykin
Theo Robertson
Jorge Gutierrez
Omondi Amoke
Markhuri Sanders-Frison
Max Zhang
Nikola Knezevic
D.J. Seeley
Brandon Smith
Nigel Carter
Bak Bak

Was this the year that Omoke was excused at the end of season? (Yes)

So, Max (7'3" SOPH) played a bit (in 27 games and avg 10.7 mins).
We had two other "bigs": JR Markhuri Sanders-Frison at 6'7" and SR Jamal Boykin at 6'8".

Jordan Wilkes (5th year SR at 7'0") would have been a major upgrade over Max.

I do note the similarity between our height then vs this upcoming season. It CAN be done!

concordtom said:

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Our 2009-10 roster

Player
Jerome Randle
Patrick Christopher
Jamal Boykin
Theo Robertson
Jorge Gutierrez
Omondi Amoke
Markhuri Sanders-Frison
Max Zhang
Nikola Knezevic
D.J. Seeley
Brandon Smith
Nigel Carter
Bak Bak

Was this the year that Omoke was excused at the end of season? (Yes)

So, Max (7'3" SOPH) played a bit (in 27 games and avg 10.7 mins).
We had two other "bigs": JR Markhuri Sanders-Frison at 6'7" and SR Jamal Boykin at 6'8".

Jordan Wilkes (5th year SR at 7'0") would have been a major upgrade over Max.

---

Jordan Wilkes was one of your favorite players. We get that. We also need to understand that memories of our favorite players can get more rosy over time.

My impression of Jordan Wilkes was that he was a nice kid, but a below average center. My memory of him was starting games, and being pulled after just a few minutes, as Braun was wont to to with a lot of players. Ben had a quick hook. I believe Jordan started those 32 games because he was 7'-0" tall and gave Cal the best chance to win the center jump at the start of each game. Both Boykin and Harper Kamp were much better basketball players than Jordan. Both were also more aggressive than Jordan. I don't see any upgrade for Jordan over Max. On a per minute basis their rebounding and scoring stats are just about equal, but Max was a shot blocker, which Jordan was not. I too was disappointed when Jordan did not return for his last season, because he had been improving a little. But as it turned out, with both Boykin and MSF ahead of him, he would have played little, probably splitting minutes with Max.

Omar Wilkes, on the other hand, was a very good player who would have helped almost any Cal team I've seen over the years.

As to Amoke, you are being very politically correct when you say he was "excused." When Sandy met with Mike Montgomery to discuss possible punishments for Amoke, Montgomery reportedly told her that "Amoke will never play for me again. Period." Or words to that effect. Amoke was kicked off the team, plain and simple.

concordtom said:

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Different years, no?

I recall that I was very much expecting Jordan back to provide depth and size inside.
We ended up having probs that way next year when Jordan was gone.
I was pretty upset!

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1. This thread is about Omar Wilkes.

2. I am talking about 07-08 when we finished 9th in the Pac10. That team had Ryan Anderson, Devin Hardin, Jamaal Boykin and Harper Kamp (and yes Jordon Wilkes) up front and Jerome Randle and Patrick Christopher in the back-court. We were stacked up front so Jordan barely played. Omar would have really helped because he was good, could shoot and played a position of need. Still my post was mostly a dig on Braun because even without Omar the above roster should have been able to finish higher than 9th in the Pac-10. It was the worst coaching, the worst squandering of talent I've ever seen. With the above roster we mostly played 3 guards and only man defense and got killed. Omar would have allowed Braun to keep his strategy and win a few games.

I agree that Omar would have helped!
Do recall that PC and JRandle were not yet the seniors who won conference.

No squabble from me that 6'3" Omar was a better player than 7'0" younger brother Jordan.

SFCityBear said:

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concordtom said:

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Our 2009-10 roster

Player
Jerome Randle
Patrick Christopher
Jamal Boykin
Theo Robertson
Jorge Gutierrez
Omondi Amoke
Markhuri Sanders-Frison
Max Zhang
Nikola Knezevic
D.J. Seeley
Brandon Smith
Nigel Carter
Bak Bak

Was this the year that Omoke was excused at the end of season? (Yes)

So, Max (7'3" SOPH) played a bit (in 27 games and avg 10.7 mins).
We had two other "bigs": JR Markhuri Sanders-Frison at 6'7" and SR Jamal Boykin at 6'8".

Jordan Wilkes (5th year SR at 7'0") would have been a major upgrade over Max.

---

Jordan Wilkes was one of your favorite players. We get that. We also need to understand that memories of our favorite players can get more rosy over time.

My impression of Jordan Wilkes was that he was a nice kid, but a below average center. My memory of him was starting games, and being pulled after just a few minutes, as Braun was wont to to with a lot of players. Ben had a quick hook. I believe Jordan started those 32 games because he was 7'-0" tall and gave Cal the best chance to win the center jump at the start of each game. Both Boykin and Harper Kamp were much better basketball players than Jordan. Both were also more aggressive than Jordan. I don't see any upgrade for Jordan over Max. On a per minute basis their rebounding and scoring stats are just about equal, but Max was a shot blocker, which Jordan was not. I too was disappointed when Jordan did not return for his last season, because he had been improving a little. But as it turned out, with both Boykin and MSF ahead of him, he would have played little, probably splitting minutes with Max.

Omar Wilkes, on the other hand, was a very good player who would have helped almost any Cal team I've seen over the years.

As to Amoke, you are being very politically correct when you say he was "excused." When Sandy met with Mike Montgomery to discuss possible punishments for Amoke, Montgomery reportedly told her that "Amoke will never play for me again. Period." Or words to that effect. Amoke was kicked off the team, plain and simple.

---

False assertions, SFC
I never said he was my favorite, and I don't know why you feel the need to get edgy on me.
All I was doing was recalling the season, the team, etc. Sorry to bore you with that.

I did say he would have been a major upgrade, and that was likely too strong a compare. He would have been a very good upgrade, not "major". I was definitely NOT a fan of max. He couldn't catch the goddam ball if you dropped it into the post for him.

And you are correct in saying that Jordan was improving. By the end, he was hitting 10 foot jumpers and had begun to harness his game. By the senior season, I suspect he wouldn't have split with max but mostly owned Max. But, yes, he was not a major center. You are correct that he tipped and subbed out quickly, but recall my prior stats - he played 17.8 mins per game, and that's more than jumping for the tip.

I had hopes for further improvement for Jordan in 2010, which would have really helped (in my eyes). He failed to return and left us with 6'7", 6'8", and clumsy Max. Let's admit it, Max sucked!

We can agree to disagree, but then allow me to fantasy draft against you for money.

$5. Enough to buy a beer, or a wine.

concordtom said:

---

SFCityBear said:

---

concordtom said:

---

Our 2009-10 roster

Player
Jerome Randle
Patrick Christopher
Jamal Boykin
Theo Robertson
Jorge Gutierrez
Omondi Amoke
Markhuri Sanders-Frison
Max Zhang
Nikola Knezevic
D.J. Seeley
Brandon Smith
Nigel Carter
Bak Bak

Was this the year that Omoke was excused at the end of season? (Yes)

So, Max (7'3" SOPH) played a bit (in 27 games and avg 10.7 mins).
We had two other "bigs": JR Markhuri Sanders-Frison at 6'7" and SR Jamal Boykin at 6'8".

Jordan Wilkes (5th year SR at 7'0") would have been a major upgrade over Max.

---

Jordan Wilkes was one of your favorite players. We get that. We also need to understand that memories of our favorite players can get more rosy over time.

My impression of Jordan Wilkes was that he was a nice kid, but a below average center. My memory of him was starting games, and being pulled after just a few minutes, as Braun was wont to to with a lot of players. Ben had a quick hook. I believe Jordan started those 32 games because he was 7'-0" tall and gave Cal the best chance to win the center jump at the start of each game. Both Boykin and Harper Kamp were much better basketball players than Jordan. Both were also more aggressive than Jordan. I don't see any upgrade for Jordan over Max. On a per minute basis their rebounding and scoring stats are just about equal, but Max was a shot blocker, which Jordan was not. I too was disappointed when Jordan did not return for his last season, because he had been improving a little. But as it turned out, with both Boykin and MSF ahead of him, he would have played little, probably splitting minutes with Max.

Omar Wilkes, on the other hand, was a very good player who would have helped almost any Cal team I've seen over the years.

As to Amoke, you are being very politically correct when you say he was "excused." When Sandy met with Mike Montgomery to discuss possible punishments for Amoke, Montgomery reportedly told her that "Amoke will never play for me again. Period." Or words to that effect. Amoke was kicked off the team, plain and simple.

---

False assertions, SFC
I never said he was my favorite, and I don't know why you feel the need to get edgy on me.
All I was doing was recalling the season, the team, etc. Sorry to bore you with that.

I did say he would have been a major upgrade, and that was likely too strong a compare. He would have been a very good upgrade, not "major". I was definitely NOT a fan of max. He couldn't catch the goddam ball if you dropped it into the post for him.

And you are correct in saying that Jordan was improving. By the end, he was hitting 10 foot jumpers and had begun to harness his game. By the senior season, I suspect he wouldn't have split with max but mostly owned Max. But, yes, he was not a major center. You are correct that he tipped and subbed out quickly, but recall my prior stats - he played 17.8 mins per game, and that's more than jumping for the tip.

I had hopes for further improvement for Jordan in 2010, which would have really helped (in my eyes). He failed to return and left us with 6'7", 6'8", and clumsy Max. Let's admit it, Max sucked!

We can agree to disagree, but then allow me to fantasy draft against you for money.

---

You didn't say Jordan was your favorite, and neither did I. I said he was ONE of your favorites, because you implied that when you pumped him up beyond what his performance ever showed, for me, at least. I'm not getting "edgy" on you, just trying to be reasonable and stick with what the stats show, and what my eyes told me when I saw him play.

I don't remember the ten foot jumpers. Jordan averaged less than two buckets a game in his last year, so I guess I missed seeing them. Did you know that In his first 2 seasons he made 5 out of 13 three point attempts, pretty darn good for a seven footer, but only had one attempt in his last season? Braun should have had him out on the perimeter more.

You neglected to mention that there was a coaching change from 2009 to 2010 from Braun to Montgomery. Wilkes was not going to supplant Boykin or MSF, no way. They were both studs, and if MSF had not been playing with injuries and needing rest, neither Max or Jordan would have seen even the 11 minutes Max got. As for who Montgomery would have preferred, I can't say. Max dropped the ball, as you said, but when he did hold on to it, he shot the ball better than Jordan, 63% to 51%. Jordan shot free throws much better, 80% to 50%. They rebounded and scored about the same on a per minute basis. Max blocked 37 shots in his last season, and Jordan blocked 14 in his last season, but on a per minute basis, Max blocked OVER FIVE TIMES as many shots as Jordan Wilkes.

So I guess that if I am the coach and MSF needs a rest, I'd live with the turnovers and the missed free throws, and go with the shot blocker and play Max Zhang before I'd play Jordan Wilkes. But I'm not the coach. Instead, it is Montgomery and Braun who made millions doing that, and you and I sit here with nothing better to do than argue about a couple of Cal's long gone third string centers. How ridiculous is that?

PS: I'd think that Wyking Jones would be happy to have either Max or Jordan this coming season, based on the current roster.

You made me laugh. Congrats and thank you.
But I'm going to be $10 richer than you after I will our bet.

...so, your rationale for Max makes sense (forget O and go for blocks) - well stated. But I'm still going with my eye test.
I think Jordan would have gotten plenty of PT without sanders injuries or max.
And he was not even ONE of my favorite players.

SFCityBear said:

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concordtom said:

---

SFCityBear said:

---

concordtom said:

---

Our 2009-10 roster

Player
Jerome Randle
Patrick Christopher
Jamal Boykin
Theo Robertson
Jorge Gutierrez
Omondi Amoke
Markhuri Sanders-Frison
Max Zhang
Nikola Knezevic
D.J. Seeley
Brandon Smith
Nigel Carter
Bak Bak

Was this the year that Omoke was excused at the end of season? (Yes)

So, Max (7'3" SOPH) played a bit (in 27 games and avg 10.7 mins).
We had two other "bigs": JR Markhuri Sanders-Frison at 6'7" and SR Jamal Boykin at 6'8".

Jordan Wilkes (5th year SR at 7'0") would have been a major upgrade over Max.

---

Jordan Wilkes was one of your favorite players. We get that. We also need to understand that memories of our favorite players can get more rosy over time.

My impression of Jordan Wilkes was that he was a nice kid, but a below average center. My memory of him was starting games, and being pulled after just a few minutes, as Braun was wont to to with a lot of players. Ben had a quick hook. I believe Jordan started those 32 games because he was 7'-0" tall and gave Cal the best chance to win the center jump at the start of each game. Both Boykin and Harper Kamp were much better basketball players than Jordan. Both were also more aggressive than Jordan. I don't see any upgrade for Jordan over Max. On a per minute basis their rebounding and scoring stats are just about equal, but Max was a shot blocker, which Jordan was not. I too was disappointed when Jordan did not return for his last season, because he had been improving a little. But as it turned out, with both Boykin and MSF ahead of him, he would have played little, probably splitting minutes with Max.

Omar Wilkes, on the other hand, was a very good player who would have helped almost any Cal team I've seen over the years.

As to Amoke, you are being very politically correct when you say he was "excused." When Sandy met with Mike Montgomery to discuss possible punishments for Amoke, Montgomery reportedly told her that "Amoke will never play for me again. Period." Or words to that effect. Amoke was kicked off the team, plain and simple.

---

False assertions, SFC
I never said he was my favorite, and I don't know why you feel the need to get edgy on me.
All I was doing was recalling the season, the team, etc. Sorry to bore you with that.

I did say he would have been a major upgrade, and that was likely too strong a compare. He would have been a very good upgrade, not "major". I was definitely NOT a fan of max. He couldn't catch the goddam ball if you dropped it into the post for him.

And you are correct in saying that Jordan was improving. By the end, he was hitting 10 foot jumpers and had begun to harness his game. By the senior season, I suspect he wouldn't have split with max but mostly owned Max. But, yes, he was not a major center. You are correct that he tipped and subbed out quickly, but recall my prior stats - he played 17.8 mins per game, and that's more than jumping for the tip.

I had hopes for further improvement for Jordan in 2010, which would have really helped (in my eyes). He failed to return and left us with 6'7", 6'8", and clumsy Max. Let's admit it, Max sucked!

We can agree to disagree, but then allow me to fantasy draft against you for money.

---

You didn't say Jordan was your favorite, and neither did I. I said he was ONE of your favorites, because you implied that when you pumped him up beyond what his performance ever showed, for me, at least. I'm not getting "edgy" on you, just trying to be reasonable and stick with what the stats show, and what my eyes told me when I saw him play.

I don't remember the ten foot jumpers. Jordan averaged less than two buckets a game in his last year, so I guess I missed seeing them. Did you know that In his first 2 seasons he made 5 out of 13 three point attempts, pretty darn good for a seven footer, but only had one attempt in his last season? Braun should have had him out on the perimeter more.

You neglected to mention that there was a coaching change from 2009 to 2010 from Braun to Montgomery. Wilkes was not going to supplant Boykin or MSF, no way. They were both studs, and if MSF had not been playing with injuries and needing rest, neither Max or Jordan would have seen even the 11 minutes Max got. As for who Montgomery would have preferred, I can't say. Max dropped the ball, as you said, but when he did hold on to it, he shot the ball better than Jordan, 63% to 51%. Jordan shot free throws much better, 80% to 50%. They rebounded and scored about the same on a per minute basis. Max blocked 37 shots in his last season, and Jordan blocked 14 in his last season, but on a per minute basis, Max blocked OVER FIVE TIMES as many shots as Jordan Wilkes.

So I guess that if I am the coach and MSF needs a rest, I'd live with the turnovers and the missed free throws, and go with the shot blocker and play Max Zhang before I'd play Jordan Wilkes. But I'm not the coach. Instead, it is Montgomery and Braun who made millions doing that, and you and I sit here with nothing better to do than argue about a couple of Cal's long gone third string centers. How ridiculous is that?

PS: I'd think that Wyking Jones would be happy to have either Max or Jordan this coming season, based on the current roster.

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Braun used to stockpile big men, then play small ball. Big opporuities for walk-on guards and forwards.