Tag: USC Trojans basketball

UCLA one of several programs to contact Team USA U17 star

UCLA is trying for another big hoops commit.

One of the Bruins‘ top targets received some recognition from several schools following his performance in the FIBA U17 World Cup.

Brandon McCoy Jr., a five-star point guard from Bellflower, California, recently was one of twelve high school basketball players to compete for the United States.

In the title game, in which the United States dominated Italy 88-129, McCoy Jr. scored 13 points on 6/13 shooting, two rebounds, and four assists.

After winning the gold, a whopping eleven teams reached out to McCoy Jr., including the Bruins. Among the teams that contacted him were Arkansas, Duke, Texas, Houston, Baylor, Michigan, California, Kentucky, and rival USC.

As the number two-ranked player in the nation in the class of 2026 according to 247Sports, it is no wonder that McCoy Jr. has a lot of interested programs reaching out. But with the Bruins being close to home with championship pedigree, UCLA likely has a strong pitch for McCoy Jr. in what would be a potentially program-changing commitment if Mick Cronin can land him.

Eric Musselman names emerging leaders on new USC basketball roster

Trojans Wire writer Tim Prangley talked to coach Eric Musselman about the emerging culture of leadership on the USC roster.

Year 1 of Eric Musselman’s USC basketball tenure is off and running. On a team that returns only one player from last season, Harrison Hornery, Musselman pointed to sources of vocal leadership after a practice held in the Galen Center.

You won’t typically find a roster which is created almost entirely from the transfer portal the way this USC basketball roster was assembled, but Eric Musselman had no choice in the matter. Andy Enfield’s sudden departure to SMU, which was not expected by anyone inside the USC athletic department, initiated the coaching search which led to Musselman’s arrival. Musselman has a reputation for being able to work the transfer portal better than most in college basketball. He went to the portal quite liberally and frequently to replenish his rosters at Arkansas and make three straight Sweet 16 appearances in the NCAA Tournament, including two straight Elite Eights in 2021 and 2022. It is important that leaders do emerge on this USC roster, so that the Trojans form the cohesion and chemistry they will need if they are going to make the 2025 NCAA Tournament in the Big Ten Conference.

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Oregon, USC headed to 2025 Maui Invitational

The Maui 2025 field is set.

The Maui Invitational is always one of the premier events in college basketball. The 2025 field was released recently with a number of Big Ten Conference teams in the mix.

Andy Katz revealed the loaded field for the 2025 Maui Invitational, and two Big Ten teams made the cut: The Oregon Ducks and USC Trojans.

Dana Altman’s Ducks team won the Pac-12 Conference tournament this past season and USC is bringing in a new era with Eric Musselman as the new head coach. 

Here are the other teams heading to the Maui Invitational in 2025: Baylor, Chaminade, NC State, Texas, UNLV, and Seton Hall.

The 2023 Maui Invitational field is also loaded with talent with Auburn, Colorado, Dayton, Iowa State, Memphis, Michigan State, North Carolina, and UConn in the mix.

The Big Ten Conference gets two teams in the 2025 field with Oregon and USC both new additions to the conference.

UCLA’s Kobe Johnson one of the best Big Ten transfer moves

The Kobe Johnson hype continues.

The UCLA Bruins men’s basketball team is full of talent for the upcoming 2024-2025 season.

One of the biggest additions by many is ex-Trojans player Kobe Johnson, who has garnered a lot of buzz this offseason.

Cater Bahns of 247Sports revealed the 10 best transfer portal moves for the Big Ten Conference, and former USC player Kobe Johnson was third on the list: 

The transfer portal opened the door to a new era of college athletics wherein players often move from one school to a rival program, and that is what Kobe Johnson elected to do with his intra-city transfer from USC to UCLA. He brings with him to Westwood two years of starting experience and three years of development as a stellar defensive weapon. Johnson appeared on the last two Pac-12 All-Defensive Teams. His offensive production is not entirely lacking, but a step forward in the shooting department would go a long way in making him a complete player.

Johnson’s impact will be a big one, and Trojans Wire believes he could come in and start for Mick Cronin’s team. 

The top two players on this list are great Osobor, who went to Washington, and Oumar Ballo, who went to Indiana, in a pair of Pac-12 departures.

Former USC forward is down to six programs, including Texas A&M

Former USC forward Brandon Gardner has included Texas A&M as a potential transfer destination

Texas A&M head basketball coach Buzz Williams has surprised a bulk of the Aggie fan base this offseason with increased utilization of the transfer portal, already adding former Nebraska sharpshooter CJ Welcher, former Minnesota forward Pharrel Payne, and now, former SMU veteran guard Zhuric Phelps as of Monday afternoon.

However, Williams apparently isn’t done adding more front-court depth. It has been revealed that USC forward Brandon Gardner, who redshirted during his only season with the Trojans, has included the Aggies, Arizona, Arizona State, NC State, San Francisco, and Jacksonville as potential transfer portal destinations.

As a former four-star prospect in the 2023 recruiting class, Gardner was one of the top players in the New York area during his senior season, averaging 12 points, ten rebounds and two blocks per game in his final year at Christ the King High School, while being named “Mr. Basketball” at the end of the season.

Standing at 6-8 and nearly 220 pounds, Gardner is a highly athletic big who, on paper, looks like the perfect fit in Buzz Williams’ system.

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UCLA loses out on Penn transfer Clark Slajchert to USC

Clark Slajchert landed at USC…

The USC Trojans-UCLA Bruins rivalry might be getting even hotter this offseason. D’Anton Lynn left UCLA to go to USC, and then UCLA landed Kobe Johnson in the transfer portal.

Now, the Trojans landed Penn hoops transfer Clark Slajchert despite having UCLA as one of his final eight programs.

The other finalists for the talented Penn transfer included Cal, Davidson, Stanford, San Francisco, Utah State, and Michigan.

Adding Slajchert to the Bruins roster would’ve been a massive boost after bringing in Skyy Clark and Johnson so far, but he chose to go and join Eric Musselman and the Trojans.

Slajchert was second-team All-Ivy League this past season and is a big boost for Musselman as he makes the transition from Arkansas to USC.

But, Mick Cronin losing out on a top target is a big blow to the program, especially with the fact he went to USC instead.

Kobe Johnson’s shooting needs to improve for UCLA

Kobe Johnson has some things to work on as well.

What does Kobe Johnson bring to the table? The UCLA Bruins’ big transfer addition from USC has a lot of talent and is a welcomed addition to the program.

Trojans Wire site editor Matt Zemek examined his strengths and if he can be a starter for UCLA. Now, he speaks on the weaknesses of Johnson’s game and what he needs to improve on.

Johnson needs to work on his offense, particularly his shooting. He simply did not shoot the ball well. If he can become a knockdown 3-point guy for the Bruins, UCLA will be extremely tough to beat. However, who would look at this past season at USC and say that Kobe Johnson will be a breakthrough offensive player? Kobe actually did hit some big late-game 3-pointers for USC in the 2022-2023 season, and we all hoped he would take the next step as an offensive player in 2024, but that simply did not happen. Mick Cronin has to develop Kobe on offense for UCLA to realize its potential in 2025.

There is a lot to like about Kobe Johnson going from USC to UCLA, but he needs to improve his shooting.

Trojans Wire mentions why Kobe Johnson could be a starter for UCLA

Kobe Johnson could be a starter next year for UCLA.

The UCLA Bruins men’s basketball team landing Kobe Johnson in the portal was a massive addition to Mick Cronin’s team.

Early on in the offseason, UCLA has struck gold by landing Johnson and Louisville transfer Skyy Clark.

The big question about Johnson is where he fits in the roster and whether or not he will be a starter next year. We asked Trojans Wire site editor Matt Zemek that question, and here’s his answer:

Kobe Johnson did not have a strong 2024 season at USC, but yes, he will be a starter. Seniors who come back for one more season instead of going pro are expecting to be starters. This is true in football, and it is also true in basketball. Would Kobe have transferred to UCLA if he knew that Mick Cronin would relegate him to a backup/role player spot on the roster? Highly doubtful.

As Zemek mentions, it is doubtful that Johnson would’ve come to Westwood knowing he was going to be a role player. But, the Bruins have expressed a ton of interest in other players in the portal, and we won’t know the official answer to this question for a while.

But, Kobe Johnson as a starter wouldn’t be surprising.

Trojans Wire details underrated part of Kobe Johnson’s game

@TrojansWire mentioned the underrated part of Kobe Johnson’s game, and UCLA fans should be happy.

The UCLA Bruins landed a massive commitment in the transfer portal from USC wing Kobe Johnson. The addition of Johnson came a day after landing Skyy Clark in another portal move, so the offseason has gotten off to a terrific start.

Trojans Wire site editor Matt Zemek, who saw plenty of Johnson during his days at USC, detailed the most underrated part of his game:

Kobe Johnson doesn’t hijack a team’s offense. He might not be that great a shooter or scorer, but at USC, he didn’t try to dominate the ball or take shots away from Boogie Ellis and Isaiah Collier. He took shots because he was open, not because he insisted on being the man to take a shot. He will be selfless and a team player, and that is certainly part of what attracted Mick Cronin when he pursued Kobe in the transfer portal.

Johnson’s selflessness and team-first mentality will be a big addition for the Bruins as they load up in hopes of making a return to the NCAA Tournament in 2024-2025.

College Sports Wire has UCLA as potential Bronny James landing spot

Could Bronny James come to UCLA?

The USC Trojans saw Bronny James enter the transfer portal along with a flurry of others following Eric Musselman becoming the new head coach. Bronny also declared the NBA Draft but kept his college eligibility open while entering the portal, so there are a lot of different scenarios for the son of LeBron James.

Does he go to the NBA? Does he decide to return to USC? Or does he go elsewhere?

Andy Patton of College Sports Wire laid out some destinations for Bronny, including the NBA, and had UCLA as one of the choices. Here’s what Patton said:

If Bronny wants to stay in the LA area near his family, but he is ready to move on from USC, he could follow in the footsteps of teammate Kobe Johnson and transfer to UCLA.

Mick Cronin’s team already added Johnson and Skyy Clark via the portal, but coming off a disappointing 16-17 season this team could use all the offensive firepower they can find. Cronin isn’t one to promise playing time, so Bronny will have to fight to get minutes, but the fit is there if he is willing to jump ship to the other LA school.

Whether or not Bronny James returns to college remains to be seen, although his NBA Draft stock isn’t very promising after the year USC had.

So, there is a chance Bronny stays in LA and plays for the Bruins.