DO I FEEL A DRAFT?

With no Bruins (or trojans, of course) getting selected in today’s NBA Draft, allow me to shift your attention to more UCLA-centric matters

About 44 years ago, UCLA’s Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) was the first pick in the NBA Draft, and his Bruin teammate Lucius Allen was the third pick.  Today, the University of Kentucky topped that, by having Wildcats taken at the top two slots of the Draft.  They later had four more players selected, giving them a total of six players selected in the two-round affair.  The University of North Carolina had four players swooped up today, as the two schools dominated the event.  But don’t despair, Bruin fans — The way Ben Howland recruited this year, UCLA will start having their presense felt in the Draft, starting with next year, when Shabazz Muhammad will probably top the board… hopefully after winning a Title for UCLA in his one year, just like today’s #1 Anthony Davis did for UK.

While the Draft was taking place, there WAS one Bruin getting a nice honor:  It was Eric Karros Bobblehead Night at Dodger Stadium.  It’s just too bad that Eric’s special night came at a time when the Dodgers are in a tailspin, freefalling all the way out of first place, with their 3-2 loss to the Mets.  Meanwhile, the Angels continue to win, with Albert Pujols collecting four hits tonight, for the first time in his tenure as an Angel.  Even as Pujols rounds into form, two other Angels have been much brighter stars:  Mark Trumbo and Mike Trout are both All-Star-caliber so far this year, with Trout, who is leading the AL in hitting, even getting mentioned as the MVP.  With the Dodgers tanking and the Angels surging, their respective records, and places in the standings, are finally coming into line with the unanimous pre-season predictions.

Meanwhile, Bruin star Trevor Bauer made his Major League debut tonight, for the Arizona Diamondbacks.  It wasn’t pretty, as he was a little wild and got a no-decision, but the D-Backs beat the Braves 3-2, to keep even with the division-leading Giants, only 5 games back.  Bauer could easily play a major role in a Pennant Race over the next few months.

With UCLA Football still about 63 days away, there isn’t much pigskin to discuss.  However, Vegas lines have been popping up recently, with the over/under for UCLA Wins this season being set at 6.  I would take the OVERS, since I believe the Bruins will go 7-5 this year.  But please, bet at your own risk.  It’s been a long time since UCLA exceeded expectations.

Speaking of exceeding expectations, the 2009 Spirit Squad was not expected to maintain the astronomical standards set for them in the previous 4 years, but the naysayers were wrong.  Here are 21 photos from ’09, that for some reason never got posted until now.  Please enjoy this trip down Memory Lane.