LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- If Luc Richard Mbah a Moute decides to return to UCLA, he has a chance to go to four Final Fours during his NCAA career, a feat that would be matched by fellow Cameroonian countryman and teammate Alfred Aboya, as well as fellow classmates Darren Collison and Josh Shipp.
But the chance for Aboya, Collison and Shipp to reach one more Final Four could be tied to Mbah a Moute's decision in the next few weeks.
Mbah a Moute is here at the NBA pre-draft camp to see if he can get, at the very least, a guaranteed second-round contract. Anything short of a guarantee, and he'll return to the Bruins, he said. That's not what he wants, but he'll take the option since he said he will be six classes away from graduating after the spring quarter concludes next month. That means he could graduate in December and have a stress-free Pac-10 and NCAA tournament in 2009.
Mbah a Moute isn't Kevin Love. But he is a vital piece of Ben Howland's team. He's an experienced player who understands what Howland wants. He's a key rebounder at both ends of the court and would potentially give the Bruins four experienced senior players heading into 2008-09 (Shipp declared but has since withdrawn from the draft, according to published reports in Los Angeles).
The Bruins did lose a first-team All-American and Pac-10 Player of the Year in the freshman Love. Sophomore guard Russell Westbrook is likely going into the top 12 in the draft and will probably sign with an agent soon. But if Mbah a Moute returns, the Bruins will have six of their top nine players back, including four players (Collison, Shipp, Mbah a Moute and Aboya) who have started plenty of games for them over the past two seasons. The recruiting class, was rated No. 1 by Scouts Inc., has a little bit of everything: multiple ballhandlers in Jrue Holiday (also a prolific scorer), Jerime Anderson and Malcolm Lee; an up-and-down scoring forward in Drew Gordon; and a solid post player in J'Mison Morgan, who was released from his national letter of intent with LSU and just signed with the Bruins last week.
The Bruins expect to play much more up tempo next season, and if Mbah a Moute returns, they'll have a crafty player who can work the angles in the halfcourt, too.
But Mbah a Moute isn't here for a relaxing week in central Florida. He's here to try and stay in the draft.
"You only get one opportunity for this and you do your best," Mbah a Moute said. "I'm doing this like I'm not coming back. But if I have to, I will."
Mbah a Moute said going to three Final Fours and not winning any of them has left him a bit empty.
The Bruins will be the consensus pick to win the Pac-10, with Arizona State and possibly Cal (if Ryan Anderson withdraws from the draft) trailing behind. UCLA also will have a legitimate shot to be a No. 1 seed again next season. Having Mbah a Moute isn't a must for this to occur, but he would certainly help. If he returns, there will be less pressure on Morgan and Gordon to produce immediately.
"Hopefully I'll know where I stand after this camp," said Mbah a Moute, who plans on working out for individual teams the first few weeks of June prior to the deadline to withdraw on the 16th. "I can be a second-round pick, but it depends on how much interest. You have to see if it's a good opportunity."
Final nuggets
• USC freshman
Davon Jefferson said the decision to stay in the draft and sign with an agent was his and his alone. He said he didn't have a problem coming to play this week because "I wanted to play with the best players and have fun."
Jefferson said he knew during the season that he was ready to leave USC and felt he was ready for the NBA.
"The main thing was it was the best thing for me and my family," Jefferson said. "We had an OK year. Coach [Tim] Floyd taught me a lot as a man and as a person off the court. It was a tough situation, but I enjoyed it while I was there."
Jefferson is a likely second-round pick heading into the camp.
When asked about knowing of any extra benefits for former teammate O.J. Mayo, Jefferson said, "I don't think he did anything wrong, that I knew of."
• Following up on Tuesday's Daily Word about the list here, there were a few other potential first-round picks that likely turned down invitations to be at the draft camp: Washington State senior Kyle Weaver, Indiana senior D.J. White, Western Kentucky senior Courtney Lee and Kansas junior Brandon Rush.
• Every year at the NBA draft camp there are interesting sightings of coaches who may be looking for work. The most jarring one was seeing former Indiana interim coach Dan Dakich, now unemployed, standing above the Milk House court, while former head coach Kelvin Sampson was down below since he is now a member of the Milwaukee Bucks coaching staff.
• The MAC meetings are going on in Chicago, and according to a coach in attendance, there was more talk about expanding the league to 14 teams with adding Temple (Atlantic 10 for all sports but football) and Western Kentucky (Sun Belt) as full members. Temple plays a MAC schedule in football and has added MAC nonconference games for basketball. This kind of decision would be made for football, but if they did ever join the league in hoops, it would make this league even tougher and potentially put it in position to earn multiple bids (which hasn't happened since 1999).
Andy Katz
