Mustafa Abdul-Hamid was never supposed to be the key to the UCLA basketball team’s success.
For his first three years in Westwood, his job was in large part to push the other players hard during practice in an empty arena, so that they ““ not he ““ would be prepared to play hard in front of a stadium at full capacity. Four of those guards Abdul-Hamid played against every day in practice have gone on to fulfill NBA aspirations.
Now, at the start of what seems the most unpredictable season in recent history for the Bruins, the former walk-on has been given the opportunity to ditch the practice jersey and share the same spotlight his former teammates did.
“You can’t replace that kind of experience at the end of the game, where your legs are completely shot,” he said after starting in the Bruins’ first exhibition game this year. “When there’s 6,000 people there and the expectation of your peers and your school … you got to give it your all and you got to play defense.”
Abdul-Hamid had never played more than 11 minutes in a game at UCLA, but over the course of one night, he gained a season’s worth of perspective.
With its recent exodus of players to the professional ranks, UCLA has been left with a scarcity of point guards on campus, so almost as a matter of necessity, coach Ben Howland laid out his mandate for Abdul-Hamid before the season began.
“There’s no doubt in my mind that Mustafa will be thrusted into games this year for one reason or another ““ whether it’s foul trouble or whatever ““ that are going to be big games,” he said.
A trial run for one of those big games came much sooner than anyone thought.
When UCLA’s starting point guard, sophomore Jerime Anderson, suffered a groin injury that forced him to miss the first two weeks of practice, Abdul-Hamid, whose 82 minutes of career court time had generally come during the final minutes of landslide victories, was the only one left to quarterback his team’s offense.
Abdul-Hamid’s first ever collegiate start came against Concordia on Nov. 4. With Anderson on the bench in a sport coat and sweater, the intense spotlight of the UCLA basketball program was firmly on Abdul-Hamid’s white jersey for two 20-minute halves.
At best, his performance was hard-fought; at worst, it was terrifying to watch. For Abdul-Hamid, it was just reality.
“You’re thrust into a situation, you have no other options, no choice,” he said. “You have to kind of man up and say, “˜you’ve got to find a way.'”
The Bruins trailed for most of the game against an opponent that plays in the small-school NAIA conference. The turnovers piled up to further cripple a tepid offense ““ Abdul-Hamid committed seven by himself.
But with 16 seconds left, he nailed a three-pointer to save face and give UCLA the 62-61 victory.
“It felt good to get the heck out of there,” he said.
Bruin fans were officially put on edge by the Concordia debacle. Losing an exhibition contest would have been out of the question for a school with 11 NCAA championships.
Much of the blame was directed at the lack of a steady hand leading the offense and specifically to Abdul-Hamid, who played 36 minutes of the game.
“I’m not going to sit here and tell you I was not fatigued,” he said. “Our entire team was very fatigued. I think that showed.”
The responsibility for the near-loss was further highlighted by a reversal of fortune in UCLA’s 17-point defeat of Humboldt State last Tuesday, in which the outcome was heavily influenced by the return of Anderson and senior off-guard Michael Roll to the starting backcourt.
Abdul-Hamid played just two minutes against Humboldt, with Anderson and fellow sophomore Malcolm Lee handling the ball for a great majority of the night. After the game, Howland made it clear that the considerable number of minutes allotted to Abdul-Hamid against Concordia would not be the norm, but that unfavorable circumstances could always catch up with the team again.
If ever there was a season where that would occur, it seems to be this one, given that eight players on the roster have already missed time with injury or sickness.
“I’m not looking at him necessarily every night to play a certain amount of minutes,” said Howland of Abdul-Hamid. “But he’s going to end up playing in important games. He’s going to be relied upon when we get in foul trouble, in the backcourt especially because we’re thin right now.”
Such a swing in responsibility and playing time has all the power to dislodge a player from emotional stability, but Abdul-Hamid has tried to stick to a constant philosophy since day one.
“I looked at (my role then) the same way I do now: I’m a very good player and I’m going to be starting the next game,” he said. “Even though it wasn’t true then, and it probably won’t be true now, that’s how I look at it. I look at it as I’m preparing to lead this team and try to win the next game whether it’s Humboldt State or whether it’s KU (No. 1-ranked Kansas).”
No doubt the product of his years on the practice squad, he spoke of a dichotomous attitude that has allowed him to compete at the highest personal level despite a position that often lacks constant reward.
“I think you have to be able to hold those two ideas in your mind at the same time,” he said. “You have to be able to say, “˜You know what, I’m good enough to be the starting guard. I believe in myself. I’m confident,’ but at the same time realize that I’m not going to play, so I have to go work harder and harder.”
With such a young team, the outcome of UCLA’s season will rely ““ more so than usual ““ on individual player improvement. Abdul-Hamid’s work ethic remains a prime example for his teammates to follow, especially now that he is being put to his toughest task yet.
“It starts in practice,” he said. “It’s an attitude. It’s a mentality. Little things: getting on the floor, competing to win in every drill, and not taking any play off.”
As a high school senior from St. Louis, Abdul-Hamid turned down an acceptance from Harvard for an opportunity to play at UCLA. Before coming here, Howland told him he might find him a scholarship eventually, but he could not hand out any guarantees.
Sure enough, Abdul-Hamid earned it by his junior year.
“It means something in terms of earning the respect of your teammates, and in terms of earning the respect of the community,” he said.
“He’s worked very hard,” Howland said. “He’s a great kid and I’m really proud of him.”
Abdul-Hamid’s greatest value may not be as the Bruins’ starting point guard, but with a season that appears prime for instability, it is his attitude that could prove to be one of the team’s most indispensable assets.
“Coach always talks about to play hard is a skill that very, very few people have and I think that’s an important skill that I’ve developed,” he said.
“I’ve got to put it into use.”