Don't get me wrong- I hop that Kuony is a great player and that he comes to Cal if that's the case, but Cal's presence on the recruiting and transfer trail (at least not in the premium space of this website) is next to nothing. There is zero buzz. We don't seem to be on any short lists.

We currently have 9, maybe 10 players for next year. I sure hope that this staff can coach. Because I really see little recruiting going on.

parentswerebears said:

---

Don't get me wrong- I hop that Kuony is a great player and that he comes to Cal if that's the case, but Cal's presence on the recruiting and transfer trail (at least not in the premium space of this website) is next to nothing. There is zero buzz. We don't seem to be on any short lists.

We currently have 9, maybe 10 players for next year. I sure hope that this staff can coach. Because I really see little recruiting going on.

---

Nathan said coaches are being super stealth, but usually we can hear stuff on Twitter from recruits and recruiting services. But yah, besides Kuony only other real link is that 6'11" kid from Georgia in the 2020 class. If we have nothing going on, Joel Brown's teammate Zane Meeks seems like a guy we should consider. 6'9" guy that shoots like 44% from three? That alone sounds like someone we need.

KoreAmBear said:

---

Nathan said coaches are being super stealth,

---

Hmmm.... Ok. Let's see how that plays out.

(Hint: it's actually code for "we can't possibly recruit a 4 or 5 star so we're out trying to find diamonds in the rough)

parentswerebears said:

---

KoreAmBear said:

---

Nathan said coaches are being super stealth,

---

Hmmm.... Ok. Let's see how that plays out.

(Hint: it's actually code for "we can't possibly recruit a 4 or 5 star so we're out trying to find diamonds in the rough)

---

Who knows. I just want us to field a legit team.

parentswerebears said:

---

We currently have 9, maybe 10 players for next year.

---

I count 8 so far: Austin, Anticevich, Harris-Dyson, Bradley, Gordon, Kelly, Brown, Thorpe. That's assuming Vanover, Sueing, and Davis are gone, and I'm not counting walk-ons.

Quote:

---

(Hint: it's actually code for "we can't possibly recruit a 4 or 5 star so we're out trying to find diamonds in the rough)

---

It's awfully late to find 4 or 5 star uncommitted 2019 players. Maybe for 2020 but I think our chances will be better from 2021 onwards (if we can win a few games with the players we have).

The staff seems to prefer stealth but also it's finals week or close to it at a lot of schools. So, for transfers that action likely won't pick back up for a couple of weeks. Jordan Brown said essentially that himself.

Kuany's recruitment heating up? [EDIT -- SORRY THAT WAS ON KUANY'S FEED, IT'S HIS FRIEND]

Isn't that a completely different dude (and different year) or am I missing something?

TheSouseFamily said:

---

Isn't that a completely different dude (and different year) or am I missing something?

---

LOL the world of Twitter is amazing. Thanks for checking. Sorry, I saw on Kuany's feed so for some reason I thought it was him.

OK still down to us, Wazzu and Nevada.

KoreAmBear said:

---

TheSouseFamily said:

---

Isn't that a completely different dude (and different year) or am I missing something?

---

LOL the world of Twitter is amazing. Thanks for checking. Sorry, I saw on Kuany's feed so for some reason I thought it was him.

OK still down to us, Wazzu and Nevada.

---

Haha. Hang in there, buddy. We're gonna get through this!

TheSouseFamily said:

---

KoreAmBear said:

---

TheSouseFamily said:

---

Isn't that a completely different dude (and different year) or am I missing something?

---

LOL the world of Twitter is amazing. Thanks for checking. Sorry, I saw on Kuany's feed so for some reason I thought it was him.

OK still down to us, Wazzu and Nevada.

---

Haha. Hang in there, buddy. We're gonna get through this!

---

When?

KoreAmBear said:

---

OK still down to us, Wazzu and Nevada.

---

Imaging going from Kenya to Pullman or Reno. Brrrr!

Maybe we get the grad transfer from Iowa...
Doubtful.

parentswerebears said:

---

Maybe we get the grad transfer from Iowa...
Doubtful.

---

There's a coaching connection.

I'm not sure what people expect...

1. mostly slim pickin's left from the 2019 prep class
2. new staff, still with damage to repair from the old staff, and not super-highly regarded in their own right
3. hard as heck to get grad transfers here
4. wary (and rightly so) of "pulling a Chauca/Winston/McCullough"

We'll be lucky to fill 1-2 holes this spring. A big guy and a shooter who could both crack next year's rotation would be great.

Big C said:

---

I'm not sure what people expect...

1. mostly slim pickin's left from the 2019 prep class
2. new staff, still with damage to repair from the old staff, and not super-highly regarded in their own right
3. hard as heck to get grad transfers here
4. wary (and rightly so) of "pulling a Chauca/Winston/McCullough"

We'll be lucky to fill 1-2 holes this spring. A big guy and a shooter who could both crack next year's rotation would be great.

---

Perfectly summarized.

Big C said:

---

I'm not sure what people expect...

1. mostly slim pickin's left from the 2019 prep class
2. new staff, still with damage to repair from the old staff, and not super-highly regarded in their own right
3. hard as heck to get grad transfers here
4. wary (and rightly so) of "pulling a Chauca/Winston/McCullough"

We'll be lucky to fill 1-2 holes this spring. A big guy and a shooter who could both crack next year's rotation would be great.

---

stu said:

---

parentswerebears said:

---

We currently have 9, maybe 10 players for next year.

---

I count 8 so far: Austin, Anticevich, Harris-Dyson, Bradley, Gordon, Kelly, Brown, Thorpe. That's assuming Vanover, Sueing, and Davis are gone, and I'm not counting walk-ons.

Quote:

---

(Hint: it's actually code for "we can't possibly recruit a 4 or 5 star so we're out trying to find diamonds in the rough)

---

It's awfully late to find 4 or 5 star uncommitted 2019 players. Maybe for 2020 but I think our chances will be better from 2021 onwards (if we can win a few games with the players we have).

---

It's also highly unlikely that any of them want to come to a program that is, to put it kindly, rising from the toilet.

bluesaxe said:

---

stu said:

---

parentswerebears said:

---

We currently have 9, maybe 10 players for next year.

---

I count 8 so far: Austin, Anticevich, Harris-Dyson, Bradley, Gordon, Kelly, Brown, Thorpe. That's assuming Vanover, Sueing, and Davis are gone, and I'm not counting walk-ons.

Quote:

---

(Hint: it's actually code for "we can't possibly recruit a 4 or 5 star so we're out trying to find diamonds in the rough)

---

It's awfully late to find 4 or 5 star uncommitted 2019 players. Maybe for 2020 but I think our chances will be better from 2021 onwards (if we can win a few games with the players we have).

---

It's also highly unlikely that any of them want to come to a program that is, to put it kindly, rising from the toilet.

---

Are we rising? That would be positive news.

Hoosiers.

NYCGOBEARS said:

---

bluesaxe said:

---

stu said:

---

parentswerebears said:

---

We currently have 9, maybe 10 players for next year.

---

I count 8 so far: Austin, Anticevich, Harris-Dyson, Bradley, Gordon, Kelly, Brown, Thorpe. That's assuming Vanover, Sueing, and Davis are gone, and I'm not counting walk-ons.

Quote:

---

(Hint: it's actually code for "we can't possibly recruit a 4 or 5 star so we're out trying to find diamonds in the rough)

---

It's awfully late to find 4 or 5 star uncommitted 2019 players. Maybe for 2020 but I think our chances will be better from 2021 onwards (if we can win a few games with the players we have).

---

It's also highly unlikely that any of them want to come to a program that is, to put it kindly, rising from the toilet.

---

Are we rising? That would be positive news.

---

I think filling out the roster with 1) grad transfers, 2) JC transfers and 3) those from the transfer portal would be understandable and kick the recruiting can down the road but not tie up the scholarships for too many years.

Big C said:

---

I'm not sure what people expect...

1. mostly slim pickin's left from the 2019 prep class
2. new staff, still with damage to repair from the old staff, and not super-highly regarded in their own right
3. hard as heck to get grad transfers here
4. wary (and rightly so) of "pulling a Chauca/Winston/McCullough"

We'll be lucky to fill 1-2 holes this spring. A big guy and a shooter who could both crack next year's rotation would be great.

---

I agree with all of this. As for #3, it is hard , but it is doable. Cuonzo got Tarwater in his first season and Mullins in his final season as coach. Mullins was a good player.

Historically speaking, if you're looking at Cal, it has been difficult for coaches in their first season to land an impact player. Freshmen were first allowed to play in the 1972-3 season, which happened to be Dick Edwards' first season as coach. He landed Ricky Hawthorne, and exciting player who became an immediate starter. Dick Kuchen landed Kevin Sparks, who also became a starter as a freshman. Campanelli did not land any recruits of note in his first season, except possibly Jon Wheeler, who was a starter in his second and final season at Cal. Ben Braun landed only part time player Sean Jackson and several walk-ons. Mike Montgomery landed only Jorge Gutierrez who turned out to be a diamond in the rough, the best recruit ever landed by a Cal coach in his first year, IMO. Cuonzo Martin landed a decent project in Kinglsey Okoroh, and a real bust in Brandon Chauca. Wyking Jones landed a decent player in McNeill, along with McCollugh and Winston, who were busts.

So it is a short list, and if we look at history, a Cal coach in his first season would be fortunate to get one player who could contribute. On the other hand, it has been done. It is possible to get an impact player like Hawthorne, Jorge, or Sparks. I don't know who is starting with a weaker roster, Jones or Fox, but if Fox adds one good impact recruit, plus a couple of walkons, that would make a 10-12 man roster. He is a likely a few years away from having a rotation of decent D1 players, unless he gets the portal players back. I hope they are still talking with him.

parentswerebears said:

---

Don't get me wrong- I hop that Kuony is a great player and that he comes to Cal if that's the case, but Cal's presence on the recruiting and transfer trail (at least not in the premium space of this website) is next to nothing. There is zero buzz. We don't seem to be on any short lists.

We currently have 9, maybe 10 players for next year. I sure hope that this staff can coach. Because I really see little recruiting going on.

---

When you fish in a lake with not a lot of fish, it's hard to catch a lot of fish. May is not the time of year you want to be filling your team up.

Personally, I'd be targetting guys with mid-major LOI's and sick mothers in the Bay Area.

Yogi Bear said:

---

parentswerebears said:

---

Don't get me wrong- I hop that Kuony is a great player and that he comes to Cal if that's the case, but Cal's presence on the recruiting and transfer trail (at least not in the premium space of this website) is next to nothing. There is zero buzz. We don't seem to be on any short lists.

We currently have 9, maybe 10 players for next year. I sure hope that this staff can coach. Because I really see little recruiting going on.

---

When you fish in a lake with not a lot of fish, it's hard to catch a lot of fish. May is not the time of year you want to be filling your team up.

Personally, I'd be targetting guys with mid-major LOI's and sick mothers in the Bay Area.

---

Literally every team in America is still filling out their roster in May. Ok, so maybe not 5 spots like we likely have available but still. This is an active recruiting period for everyone, not just programs struggling to fill spots and going through the discount bin.

TheSouseFamily said:

---

Yogi Bear said:

---

parentswerebears said:

---

Don't get me wrong- I hop that Kuony is a great player and that he comes to Cal if that's the case, but Cal's presence on the recruiting and transfer trail (at least not in the premium space of this website) is next to nothing. There is zero buzz. We don't seem to be on any short lists.

We currently have 9, maybe 10 players for next year. I sure hope that this staff can coach. Because I really see little recruiting going on.

---

When you fish in a lake with not a lot of fish, it's hard to catch a lot of fish. May is not the time of year you want to be filling your team up.

Personally, I'd be targetting guys with mid-major LOI's and sick mothers in the Bay Area.

---

Literally every team in America is still filling out their roster in May. Ok, so maybe not 5 spots like we likely have available but still. This is an active recruiting period for everyone, not just programs struggling to fill spots and going through the discount bin.

---

Most teams are only filling spots created by guys leaving early or transferring. As a bottom feeder program, we get the least appealing of those options.

SFCityBear said:

---

Cuonzo got Tarwater in his first season and Mullins in his final season as coach. Mullins was a good player.

---

I think another Mullins would really help this team. Or a male Recee Caldwell (2018 grad transfer on our women's team).

SFCityBear said:

---

Historically speaking, if you're looking at Cal, it has been difficult for coaches in their first season to land an impact player. Freshmen were first allowed to play in the 1972-3 season, which happened to be Dick Edwards' first season as coach. He landed Ricky Hawthorne, and exciting player who became an immediate starter. Dick Kuchen landed Kevin Sparks, who also became a starter as a freshman. Campanelli did not land any recruits of note in his first season, except possibly Jon Wheeler, who was a starter in his second and final season at Cal. Ben Braun landed only part time player Sean Jackson and several walk-ons. Mike Montgomery landed only Jorge Gutierrez who turned out to be a diamond in the rough, the best recruit ever landed by a Cal coach in his first year, IMO. Cuonzo Martin landed a decent project in Kinglsey Okoroh, and a real bust in Brandon Chauca. Wyking Jones landed a decent player in McNeill, along with McCollugh and Winston, who were busts.

---

Todd Bozeman?

Judging by the comments here on another thread, Bozeman would get a lot of support from this site if he came back and continued his realistic methods.

JimSox said:

---

SFCityBear said:

---

Historically speaking, if you're looking at Cal, it has been difficult for coaches in their first season to land an impact player. Freshmen were first allowed to play in the 1972-3 season, which happened to be Dick Edwards' first season as coach. He landed Ricky Hawthorne, and exciting player who became an immediate starter. Dick Kuchen landed Kevin Sparks, who also became a starter as a freshman. Campanelli did not land any recruits of note in his first season, except possibly Jon Wheeler, who was a starter in his second and final season at Cal. Ben Braun landed only part time player Sean Jackson and several walk-ons. Mike Montgomery landed only Jorge Gutierrez who turned out to be a diamond in the rough, the best recruit ever landed by a Cal coach in his first year, IMO. Cuonzo Martin landed a decent project in Kinglsey Okoroh, and a real bust in Brandon Chauca. Wyking Jones landed a decent player in McNeill, along with McCollugh and Winston, who were busts.

---

Todd Bozeman?

---

I left Bozeman off my list on purpose, because he had huge advantages over other Cal coaches in their first year at Cal. Going into his first recruiting season as head coach, he had already been previously elevated to the head coach position when Campanelli was fired mid season. So he had already coached the Bears for several games, and had brought success to Cal in the NCAA. He already had been recruiting and landed players for Cal under Campanelli, and very likely had made contact and was continuing to recruit the players he had been recruiting for Campanelli for the next season. The coaches in my list all came to the head coach job cold, having to start all over at a new school, and likely make new contacts for recruiting in California. They had to try and hold on to national recruits they had already been recruiting, but pitch to them a different school with different teammates, and try to get them into a school which likely had higher academic requirements than the coach's previous school. This list does not even address the fact that Bozeman recruited some players by unlawful or unethical means, and we don't really know how many players were influenced to take these bribes.

I left coaches who coached at Cal prior to 1972 off the my list, because freshmen were not eligible to play before 1972, and could therefore have no first year impact on the varsity. One of those coaches was Rene Herrerias, who was a Cal assistant coach for many years prior to being named head coach. He likely had a big advantage recruiting, not only in reputation but in the numerous players he had already been recruiting for the 1961 season and beyond.

Bobodeluxe said:

---

Judging by the comments here on another thread, Bozeman would get a lot of support from this site if he came back and continued his realistic methods.

---

So illegal and unethical behavior in a coach is now called "realistic"? As a society, we can't sink much lower than that. I hope it never returns to Cal. I really did not enjoy seeing my University on probation. I'll leave that to the USC's of the world.

SFCityBear said:

---

Big C said:

---

I'm not sure what people expect...

1. mostly slim pickin's left from the 2019 prep class
2. new staff, still with damage to repair from the old staff, and not super-highly regarded in their own right
3. hard as heck to get grad transfers here
4. wary (and rightly so) of "pulling a Chauca/Winston/McCullough"

We'll be lucky to fill 1-2 holes this spring. A big guy and a shooter who could both crack next year's rotation would be great.

---

I agree with all of this. As for #3, it is hard , but it is doable. Cuonzo got Tarwater in his first season and Mullins in his final season as coach. Mullins was a good player.

Historically speaking, if you're looking at Cal, it has been difficult for coaches in their first season to land an impact player. Freshmen were first allowed to play in the 1972-3 season, which happened to be Dick Edwards' first season as coach. He landed Ricky Hawthorne, and exciting player who became an immediate starter. Dick Kuchen landed Kevin Sparks, who also became a starter as a freshman. Campanelli did not land any recruits of note in his first season, except possibly Jon Wheeler, who was a starter in his second and final season at Cal. Ben Braun landed only part time player Sean Jackson and several walk-ons. Mike Montgomery landed only Jorge Gutierrez who turned out to be a diamond in the rough, the best recruit ever landed by a Cal coach in his first year, IMO. Cuonzo Martin landed a decent project in Kinglsey Okoroh, and a real bust in Brandon Chauca. Wyking Jones landed a decent player in McNeill, along with McCollugh and Winston, who were busts.

So it is a short list, and if we look at history, a Cal coach in his first season would be fortunate to get one player who could contribute. On the other hand, it has been done. It is possible to get an impact player like Hawthorne, Jorge, or Sparks. I don't know who is starting with a weaker roster, Jones or Fox, but if Fox adds one good impact recruit, plus a couple of walkons, that would make a 10-12 man roster. He is a likely a few years away from having a rotation of decent D1 players, unless he gets the portal players back. I hope they are still talking with him.

---

You are generally correct, but your point is even more correct point if you don't overstate the contribution of a player recruited for the first season of a coach. It is kind of funny to see you list Kevin Sparks as an "impact" player in the same sentence with Jorge Gutierrez or even Ricky Hawthorne. While Sparks was a starter off and on during the 78-79 season, it wasn't due to his being an "impact player" so much as the absence of anyone of quality to play PG (when Kuchen was hired, Gene Ransom and Tyrone Davis were both expected to be playing in 78-79 but both were lost to academics).

Sparks got starts out of desperation, not out of being an impact player. Sparks was still on the team in 79-80, but he didn't get meaningful playing time, even on a team that went 3-15 in conference, and he did not come back after that season.

If you can get lucky to recruit a Ricky Hawthorne or a Jorge Gutierrez before the first season of coaching, great. If you're getting Kevin Sparks level players, well, that may be a little better than Chauca or McCullough or Winston, but surely not much.

I will say, however, that given the lack of point guards on the team, I was truly concerned when, over winter break 78-79, I almost killed Kevin Sparks. I was turning right to go northbound onto College Avenue from Forrest Ave. at night. I'm looking for vehicles to my left, and when it was clear, I turned. As I'm accelerating making my turn coming onto College, there was a bicyclist riding on the wrong side of the road going southbound on College in the dark, with dark clothing and no lights, and we're about to collide. As we both made sudden maneuvers to avoid a collision and both stopped, having barely avoided a crash, I realized that the guy riding the wrong way in the dark with no lights was Kevin Sparks. Yeah, he wasn't very good, but still, we needed him, and it would have hurt the team if he had been killed or seriously injured. My quick reaction that night was probably my greatest contribution to Cal basketball in 45 seasons of being a fan.

Cal8285 said:

---

SFCityBear said:

---

Big C said:

---

I'm not sure what people expect...

1. mostly slim pickin's left from the 2019 prep class
2. new staff, still with damage to repair from the old staff, and not super-highly regarded in their own right
3. hard as heck to get grad transfers here
4. wary (and rightly so) of "pulling a Chauca/Winston/McCullough"

We'll be lucky to fill 1-2 holes this spring. A big guy and a shooter who could both crack next year's rotation would be great.

---

I agree with all of this. As for #3, it is hard , but it is doable. Cuonzo got Tarwater in his first season and Mullins in his final season as coach. Mullins was a good player.

Historically speaking, if you're looking at Cal, it has been difficult for coaches in their first season to land an impact player. Freshmen were first allowed to play in the 1972-3 season, which happened to be Dick Edwards' first season as coach. He landed Ricky Hawthorne, and exciting player who became an immediate starter. Dick Kuchen landed Kevin Sparks, who also became a starter as a freshman. Campanelli did not land any recruits of note in his first season, except possibly Jon Wheeler, who was a starter in his second and final season at Cal. Ben Braun landed only part time player Sean Jackson and several walk-ons. Mike Montgomery landed only Jorge Gutierrez who turned out to be a diamond in the rough, the best recruit ever landed by a Cal coach in his first year, IMO. Cuonzo Martin landed a decent project in Kinglsey Okoroh, and a real bust in Brandon Chauca. Wyking Jones landed a decent player in McNeill, along with McCollugh and Winston, who were busts.

So it is a short list, and if we look at history, a Cal coach in his first season would be fortunate to get one player who could contribute. On the other hand, it has been done. It is possible to get an impact player like Hawthorne, Jorge, or Sparks. I don't know who is starting with a weaker roster, Jones or Fox, but if Fox adds one good impact recruit, plus a couple of walkons, that would make a 10-12 man roster. He is a likely a few years away from having a rotation of decent D1 players, unless he gets the portal players back. I hope they are still talking with him.

---

You are generally correct, but your point is even more correct point if you don't overstate the contribution of a player recruited for the first season of a coach. It is kind of funny to see you list Kevin Sparks as an "impact" player in the same sentence with Jorge Gutierrez or even Ricky Hawthorne. While Sparks was a starter off and on during the 78-79 season, it wasn't due to his being an "impact player" so much as the absence of anyone of quality to play PG (when Kuchen was hired, Gene Ransom and Tyrone Davis were both expected to be playing in 78-79 but both were lost to academics).

Sparks got starts out of desperation, not out of being an impact player. Sparks was still on the team in 79-80, but he didn't get meaningful playing time, even on a team that went 3-15 in conference, and he did not come back after that season.

If you can get lucky to recruit a Ricky Hawthorne or a Jorge Gutierrez before the first season of coaching, great. If you're getting Kevin Sparks level players, well, that may be a little better than Chauca or McCullough or Winston, but surely not much.

I will say, however, that given the lack of point guards on the team, I was truly concerned when, over winter break 78-79, I almost killed Kevin Sparks. I was turning right to go northbound onto College Avenue from Forrest Ave. at night. I'm looking for vehicles to my left, and when it was clear, I turned. As I'm accelerating making my turn coming onto College, there was a bicyclist riding on the wrong side of the road going southbound on College in the dark, with dark clothing and no lights, and we're about to collide. As we both made sudden maneuvers to avoid a collision and both stopped, having barely avoided a crash, I realized that the guy riding the wrong way in the dark with no lights was Kevin Sparks. Yeah, he wasn't very good, but still, we needed him, and it would have hurt the team if he had been killed or seriously injured. My quick reaction that night was probably my greatest contribution to Cal basketball in 45 seasons of being a fan.

---

Forget the contribution to Cal basketball, you made a much bigger contribution to a young man's life by not killing him. You did not say it, but you did look both ways, right? I am so long in the tooth now that I look both ways at least two or three times so I don't kill someone, even if the young drivers behind me get annoyed.

I didn't remember it, but I guess bicyclists were as negligent at obeying traffic laws in 1979 as now. I can remember as a kid growing up in the City in the 1950s, we had to get a bike license from the DMV and cops even gave cyclists tickets for violations.

I don't remember Sparks very well. I'm sure you are right, but I don't always think that whether a player gets minutes or not is the player's fault, especially if he played for a losing coach like Kuchen. Losing coaches are sometimes not the best judge of who should get minutes and who should ride the pine.

I was not enamored with Hawthorne. I thought he was a ball hog. He went coast to coast regularly, which was grade school stuff where I came from. Cuonzo Martin brought it back by actually encouraging it as a strategy. But Ricky was a scorer, I'll give him that.

SFCityBear said:

---

Cal8285 said:

---

SFCityBear said:

---

Big C said:

---

I'm not sure what people expect...

1. mostly slim pickin's left from the 2019 prep class
2. new staff, still with damage to repair from the old staff, and not super-highly regarded in their own right
3. hard as heck to get grad transfers here
4. wary (and rightly so) of "pulling a Chauca/Winston/McCullough"

We'll be lucky to fill 1-2 holes this spring. A big guy and a shooter who could both crack next year's rotation would be great.

---

I agree with all of this. As for #3, it is hard , but it is doable. Cuonzo got Tarwater in his first season and Mullins in his final season as coach. Mullins was a good player.

Historically speaking, if you're looking at Cal, it has been difficult for coaches in their first season to land an impact player. Freshmen were first allowed to play in the 1972-3 season, which happened to be Dick Edwards' first season as coach. He landed Ricky Hawthorne, and exciting player who became an immediate starter. Dick Kuchen landed Kevin Sparks, who also became a starter as a freshman. Campanelli did not land any recruits of note in his first season, except possibly Jon Wheeler, who was a starter in his second and final season at Cal. Ben Braun landed only part time player Sean Jackson and several walk-ons. Mike Montgomery landed only Jorge Gutierrez who turned out to be a diamond in the rough, the best recruit ever landed by a Cal coach in his first year, IMO. Cuonzo Martin landed a decent project in Kinglsey Okoroh, and a real bust in Brandon Chauca. Wyking Jones landed a decent player in McNeill, along with McCollugh and Winston, who were busts.

So it is a short list, and if we look at history, a Cal coach in his first season would be fortunate to get one player who could contribute. On the other hand, it has been done. It is possible to get an impact player like Hawthorne, Jorge, or Sparks. I don't know who is starting with a weaker roster, Jones or Fox, but if Fox adds one good impact recruit, plus a couple of walkons, that would make a 10-12 man roster. He is a likely a few years away from having a rotation of decent D1 players, unless he gets the portal players back. I hope they are still talking with him.

---

You are generally correct, but your point is even more correct point if you don't overstate the contribution of a player recruited for the first season of a coach. It is kind of funny to see you list Kevin Sparks as an "impact" player in the same sentence with Jorge Gutierrez or even Ricky Hawthorne. While Sparks was a starter off and on during the 78-79 season, it wasn't due to his being an "impact player" so much as the absence of anyone of quality to play PG (when Kuchen was hired, Gene Ransom and Tyrone Davis were both expected to be playing in 78-79 but both were lost to academics).

Sparks got starts out of desperation, not out of being an impact player. Sparks was still on the team in 79-80, but he didn't get meaningful playing time, even on a team that went 3-15 in conference, and he did not come back after that season.

If you can get lucky to recruit a Ricky Hawthorne or a Jorge Gutierrez before the first season of coaching, great. If you're getting Kevin Sparks level players, well, that may be a little better than Chauca or McCullough or Winston, but surely not much.

I will say, however, that given the lack of point guards on the team, I was truly concerned when, over winter break 78-79, I almost killed Kevin Sparks. I was turning right to go northbound onto College Avenue from Forrest Ave. at night. I'm looking for vehicles to my left, and when it was clear, I turned. As I'm accelerating making my turn coming onto College, there was a bicyclist riding on the wrong side of the road going southbound on College in the dark, with dark clothing and no lights, and we're about to collide. As we both made sudden maneuvers to avoid a collision and both stopped, having barely avoided a crash, I realized that the guy riding the wrong way in the dark with no lights was Kevin Sparks. Yeah, he wasn't very good, but still, we needed him, and it would have hurt the team if he had been killed or seriously injured. My quick reaction that night was probably my greatest contribution to Cal basketball in 45 seasons of being a fan.

---

Forget the contribution to Cal basketball, you made a much bigger contribution to a young man's life by not killing him. You did not say it, but you did look both ways, right? I am so long in the tooth now that I look both ways at least two or three times so I don't kill someone, even if the young drivers behind me get annoyed.

I didn't remember it, but I guess bicyclists were as negligent at obeying traffic laws in 1979 as now. I can remember as a kid growing up in the City in the 1950s, we had to get a bike license from the DMV and cops even gave cyclists tickets for violations.

I don't remember Sparks very well. I'm sure you are right, but I don't always think that whether a player gets minutes or not is the player's fault, especially if he played for a losing coach like Kuchen. Losing coaches are sometimes not the best judge of who should get minutes and who should ride the pine.

I was not enamored with Hawthorne. I thought he was a ball hog. He went coast to coast regularly, which was grade school stuff where I came from. Cuonzo Martin brought it back by actually encouraging it as a strategy. But Ricky was a scorer, I'll give him that.

---

The closet I have come to being hit by a car while riding a bike has been two different times when cars didn't come to a full stop at a red light, were focused on the traffic to their left and didn't see me right in front of them as they turned right, so I do understand the danger of not stopping and looking where you are going.

Winter break 78-79, I came to a full stop and certainly looked where I was going as I was making the turn, but the cars parked along College partially blocked the view of the bike and made it a lot harder to see a bike going the wrong way, especially when Sparks and the bike were really tough to see in the dark anyway, and I wasn't expecting any vehicle, much less an unlit difficult-to-see vehicle, to be heading going the wrong way towards me in the lane I was turning into.

About 11% of bike deaths come from riders going the wrong way (significantly higher than the percentage of bikes that actually ride the wrong way), about 34% come at night (again, significantly higher than the percentage of bikes that ride at night), most of those night deaths are riders who don't have legal lights. Sparks combined those two very dangerous activities.

In 78-79, Kuchen didn't have any choice but to play somebody more minutes than they "deserved" at point guard, because the talent wasn't there. Sparks (and anybody else playing point) getting the minutes he did was really due to both Ransom and Davis getting the academic boot, leaving the cupboard bare at PG.

I really only saw Hawthorne's final season in 75-76 (I think he sat out 74-75, but that was my first season of Cal basketball and I didn't go to many games that year), but I don't disagree with your assessment. Still, it might be fair to put him in second place among players in the last 50 years recruited by a Cal coach before his first season with the Bears, although IMO it is a distant second behind Jorge.

Ben Braun didn't have any recruits for his first year as Cal coach, because wasn't he hired in September of 1996 - just before the season began?
So, in his first class, he got Sean Lampley. Carlisle may have already transferred and was sitting out the 96-97 season. But, Braun also got Kilgore, Gill and Elson whom I think were JC transfers.