Right here he was, the highest level guard within the switch portal, and Donovan Dent was being instructed what he couldn’t do.
Pleasantries weren’t the purpose of the convention name with Mick Cronin. The UCLA basketball coach requested the participant who might assist his workforce contend for a nationwide title about his plans after faculty.
That was simple sufficient. Dent instructed Cronin that he needed to play within the NBA.
OK, Cronin responded, let’s say you’re taking part in the Lakers tomorrow. Who would you guard?
It couldn’t be their major ballhandlers, Luka Doncic and LeBron James, as a result of they’re 6 toes 6 and 6-9, respectively, whereas Dent is simply 6-2. So who do you guard subsequent?
Persevering with down the roster, Cronin acquired to Austin Reaves, the 6-5 dynamo.
“Cronin’s like, well, you’re not a good enough defender to guard him,” stated Josh Giles, who was on the decision final spring as an advisor to Dent after having coached him at Corona Centennial Excessive. “And so he’s like, that’s your biggest issue is you’ve got to be a better defender.”
Cronin went on to inform Dent that if he hollered at him about protection in observe, he can be doing his job to assist him play within the NBA.
This was a distinct strategy than that of most coaches pursuing the honorable point out All-American from New Mexico. They had been identified for being constructive and taking it simple on their star gamers, hardly ever difficult them.
Having already coached 5 high-level prospects who went on to play for Cronin, Giles was one thing of an knowledgeable on his UCLA counterpart. Giles cursed and yelled however was most likely nearer in temperament to the agreeable coaches than he was to Cronin.
Ensuring Dent understood what he can be signing up for if he transferred to UCLA, Giles reiterated after the decision ended that he can be held accountable, that he can be known as out if he faltered.
“Well,” Dent responded, having been offered, “maybe that’s exactly what I need.”
His expertise reveals itself in so some ways.
Throughout UCLA’s first exhibition sport, with a big lead having uncomfortably dwindled, Dent used a burst of velocity to get to the rim on a number of late possessions. He made a layup or drew a foul every time, sinking each free throw to assist his workforce prevail.
In the course of the Bruins’ second exhibition sport, taking part in solely the primary half of a 30-point blowout, Dent made an array of floating jumpers and logged eight assists to go together with one turnover and one steal.
Exceeding his statistics had been the raves he drew from teammates afterward.
Mentioned ahead Tyler Bilodeau: “He can break down any defense.”
Mentioned guard Skyy Clark: “He makes life a lot easier, for sure.”
UCLA gamers (from left) Tyler Bilodeau, Skyy Clark and Donovan Dent have fun an exhibition victory over San Diego State.
(Orlando Ramirez / Getty Photographs)
Maybe most happy was the coach who instructed Dent that he needed to retain the offensive brilliance he had proven at New Mexico whereas reducing down on turnovers and tightening up on protection.
“I mean, I love that he kept it real,” Dent stated of Cronin’s convention name. “Like, he didn’t sugarcoat, he didn’t try to kiss my you-know-what for me to come here. He just kept it real. He’s like, ‘I’m gonna coach you. We gotta work on your defense if you wanna get to the next step that you wanna go. You can’t have no more silly one-hand pass turnovers.’”
Rising up in Riverside, Dent developed a deep appreciation for the UCLA level guards who preceded him. He admired Russell Westbrook, Jaylen Palms, Jrue Vacation and Tyger Campbell however modeled his sport most after the free-and-fast model of Lonzo Ball.
“That’s kind of how I like to play,” Dent stated. “I like to get to the rim and play a lot at a fast pace and just move around a little bit and get my teammates involved.”
There was one other lure to placing on a UCLA jersey in addition to custom and hard teaching.
A detailed member of the family is battling a severe sickness, giving Dent extra purpose to battle visitors for weekend commutes residence to the Inland Empire.
“I’m not gonna smoke too much of it out there because, like, that’s my inner circle stuff,” Dent stated of the scenario, “but that was the only reason I didn’t go to Big Ten media day. I had to be around my family for an important moment. We’re still kind of going through it, so still trying to figure it out.
“We’re praying right now. It’s been great for us and it’s definitely trending more in the upward direction, so we’re just hoping it stays that way.”
Dent’s former highschool teammate knew the place the dialog was headed when a reporter inquired about “the pass.”
“The one-handed pass?” requested Eric Freeny, now Dent’s faculty teammate.
That’s proper. That one.
Throughout a highschool championship sport towards Harvard-Westlake, Dent’s teammate grabbed a rebound and threw him an outlet cross close to the left sideline above the three-point line within the backcourt. The cross was behind Dent, so he needed to attain again together with his proper hand, his again turned towards the basket on the far finish of the court docket.
In a single movement, Dent spun round and hurled a bounce cross between two defenders as if throwing a baseball, hitting Freeny in stride for a layup.
Standing in entrance of the Centennial bench, Giles turned towards his assistant coaches.
“That’s the best pass I’ve ever seen,” the veteran coach instructed them.
Almost 4 years later, in a nod to Dent’s passing wizardry, Freeny conceded solely that the cross was amongst Dent’s high 5.
“I just know that’s not the No. 1,” Freeny stated with a chuckle. “He’s just a great point guard. He sees everything. He’s got eyes behind his head, he knows where all the spots are.”
In one other playoff sport, towards Sierra Canyon, Giles requested his level guard to be extra of a scorer than a facilitator. Identified for extraordinary velocity with the ball in his palms, Dent was given a mandate every time a sure defender tried to cease him.
“It was like, ‘Donny, just go by him,’” Giles stated of a plan that led to Dent scoring 18 factors throughout an surprising blowout.
Dent received a state championship however may need suffered from having an excessive amount of expertise on his workforce. With recruiters fixated on fellow guards Jared McCain and Kylan Boswell, Dent was largely neglected. Cronin admired Dent’s expertise however didn’t want one other level guard with Dylan Andrews set to reach in Westwood, so he inspired shut good friend Richard Pitino, the coach at New Mexico, to recruit him.
“Everybody was looking at certain guys,” Giles stated of the faculty coaches, “and I’m like, ‘Hey, this guy right here, I’m not so sure he can’t be the best of everybody. Don’t sleep on this guy right here.’ ”
Cronin’s recruiting tip proved to be a superb one. Dent grew to become a star by the top of his three years at New Mexico.
In his ultimate season with the Lobos, Dent confirmed the Bruins what they had been lacking. Frequently attending to the rim and discovering his teammates with passes for straightforward baskets, Dent helped New Mexico beat UCLA final November.
He went on to grow to be the primary NCAA participant with 600 factors and 200 assists in the identical season since Ja Morant at Murray State in 2018-19. But Dent’s heavy utilization got here with a draw back.
His turnovers ticked upward — he had 9 alone within the victory over the Bruins — and his protection slipped from the place it had been in highschool.
“It’s funny, all these guys, once they start learning how to score a little bit,” Giles stated, “that defense kind of drops sometimes, and now that Donnie can score it a little bit, he’s not necessarily the same defender.”
UCLA guard Donovan Dent is understood for his burst of velocity with the ball in his palms and the flexibility to shoot floaters and jumpers on the transfer.
(Gregory Bull / Related Press)
Thus the convention name from Cronin, who wanted a brand new level guard final spring after Andrews transferred to Boise State.
The coach didn’t wish to change every little thing about Dent. Like his new high participant, Cronin was abruptly feeling the necessity for velocity as a part of a stylistic makeover.
“We’re getting up the court really fast right now,” stated Clark, Dent’s new backcourt sidekick. “I love the way we’re playing.”
Taking part in alongside a robust supporting solid that features Clark, Bilodeau and Eric Dailey Jr. — who averaged a mixed 33.4 factors final season — ought to cut back the burden on Dent to make each play.
“What I tell him, on this team, he does not need to be Superman,” Cronin stated. “I think there’s times because he had to do it at times last year for his team, he had to kind of try to put the cape on, and there will be times maybe he has to do that here.”
If all goes nicely, these alternatives will prolong into early April. Simply as Cronin instructed Dent on that convention name that he wouldn’t carry him to UCLA to lose within the second spherical of the NCAA match — as each of their groups had final spring — Dent instructed his new coach that he needed an opportunity to play within the Closing 4.
They ended the decision in lockstep. The purpose guard was coming residence after what felt extra like an affirmation than a recruitment.
“It was more, like, ‘Hold on a second,’” Cronin stated. “ ‘Let me tell you how this is gonna go before you say yes.’”
