Although the uncertainty regarding Jordan Farmar’s draft situation has settled, heading into this summer’s workouts, the Bruins are still full of questions. Three out of the five starters from last year’s championship runner-up team are gone, and projected key contributor Josh Shipp is coming off of a serious hip injury that sidelined him for most of last year. Most importantly, sophomore guard Darren Collison will be given the enormous task of replacing the All-Tournament performer Farmar at the point guard position. Farmar, for one, thinks Collison will be fine. “Darren is getting nothing but better,” Farmar said. “Every time I come here he’s working hard. He’ll step right in and be ready to go.” During spring workouts, Collison showed he was ready to take on the bigger role. With work in the weight room, he went from his mid-season weight of 148 pounds to a considerably bulkier 160 pounds. “He really committed himself to getting bigger,” Howland said. “He’s the one true point guard on scholarship in the program, and he’s slated to be the starting point guard next year.” Helping out at the point guard position will be junior guard Arron Afflalo, who has played the position intermittently in the program. Having Afflalo withdraw his name from the draft and return to school for his junior year was a big boost for the Bruins, especially considering the youth of next year’s team. “He’s one of the best guards in the country next year,” Howland said. “We’re very fortunate to have him back in the program. He’s just such a great leader and a great person. He’s the total package.” The Bruins’ two freshmen, Russell Westbrook and McDonald’s All-American James Keefe, are also expected to have an impact. Westbrook was a late signing for the Bruins, and will have an even bigger impact now that Collison and Afflalo are the only two scholarship guards. Keefe, meanwhile, has been vocally committed to the Bruins since his sophomore year of high school, and will be looked at to contribute at either the small forward or power forward position. “I think James will be able to come in and immediately compete,” Howland told scout.com. “We have eight players returning as our nucleus right now, and we hope that Russell and James will be able to come in and contribute to that.” Both Keefe and Westbrook are currently playing with the Sinclair Bruins of the Nike SayNo/ProCity Summer League, and work out with current Bruins Alfred Aboya, Lorenzo Mata, Ryan Wright and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, all of whom are staying in Los Angeles to work out over the summer.
STILL NO SPICA: The Bruins’ third signed freshman, Marko Spica of Belgrade, Serbia-Montenegro, has still not received a passing score on the SATs, and is currently not eligible to play for the Bruins next season. Spica, who is 6 feet 9 inches and 225 pounds, averaged 11 points and 7 rebounds for the Serbian Junior national team the past two seasons. There is currently no timetable for when the Bruins will find out if Spica will qualify.
LOVE TO VISIT: High school senior Kevin Love, of Lake Oswego, Ore., will be taking an unofficial visit to the UCLA campus this week with his parents, scout.com reported. Love, the nation’s No. 2 recruit for the high school class of 2007, is deciding between the Bruins and North Carolina, and has said he will take official visits with both programs in the fall before making his decision. Love already came to the UCLA campus earlier this year for a recruiting trip and watched the UCLA-Arizona basketball game in early February.
ASSISTANT COACH LEAVING?: Assistant coach Ernie Ziegler is one of three finalists for the Central Michigan head coaching job. One of Howland’s former assistants at Pittsburgh, Jamie Dixon, is now the head coach at Pittsburgh.