More than just a former walk-on, Abdul-Hamid is the real deal

Lots of times you read about resiliency in sports, and it feels a little manufactured or artificial.

But, trust me, Mustafa Abdul-Hamid is the real deal. Here’s a UCLA basketball player who looks at things the right way, prepares the right way and, when it comes down to the wire, never wavers.

Thursday night at Pauley Pavilion Abdul-Hamid demonstrated all that. With just three seconds remaining, the Bruins surrendered a basket to Washington’s Venoy Overton. They suddenly trailed, 61-60.

This was a moment of basketball chaos, when lots of players ““ and fans ““ entered a state of panic.

Abdul-Hamid simply called for the ball, caught it and knifed toward the top of the 3-point arc. He wasn’t in a hurry. He paused to pump-fake a Husky defender and then, with about .2 seconds remaining, fired a shot.

Swish.

UCLA wins, 62-61.

Pauley went nuts. The Den tried to rush the court, and the UCLA players all sprinted toward Abdul-Hamid. This was the type of elation that UCLA basketball has missed so sorely this season, the type that makes everyone stop worrying about the Bruins’ 8-10 overall record.

And it all amazed me even more, because of a conversation I’d had with Abdul-Hamid after the Bruins’ previous game.

Less than a week I ago I had asked Abdul-Hamid if he was frustrated with the playing time he was receiving. Abdul-Hamid, a fourth-year junior from St. Louis, had played nine minutes that day, and the Bruins’ were thrashed by USC, 67-46. He had not played a single minute in three of UCLA’s first four Pac-10 games.

This is a sensitive subject with athletes, as I’m sure you can imagine. It cuts into their sense of pride and their rationale for devoting so much time and energy to a sport.

Here is how Abdul-Hamid explained how he avoids frustration and discouragement and keeps on grinding.

“It goes back to why you play the game,” he said. “I’ve had to evaluate and re-evaluate that constantly over these four years, and in the past when I was younger.

“You play because it is an opportunity in which you are thrown into the fire. You face disappointment and frustration, and you’ve got to overcome it.”

Abdul-Hamid said he’s motivated to get the details right and to have what he called “a high basketball IQ.”

“I won’t fail to prepare,” he said, echoing John Wooden, the legendary former UCLA coach.

Our conversation touched on Abdul-Hamid’s interest in the Rhodes Scholarship, and his possible return to UCLA for a fifth year. (He has one year of eligibility remaining after this one but has not made a final decision.) The conversation wasn’t filled with the cliches or empty phrases heard so commonly among elite athletes.

Abdul-Hamid is just a hard worker and a really smart player. Announcers always like to attach the “former walk-on” phrase to his name, but at this point it’s kind of silly. Abdul-Hamid has spent four years learning the speed and intensity of college basketball, and UCLA coach Ben Howland has awarded him a scholarship. At this point he’s just a solid college basketball player.

On Friday, people across the country will see the highlight of Abdul-Hamid’s game-winning shot against Washington and think of it as wild and lucky. They fail to consider the hours of practice that he needed to craft his jumper, master his pump-fake or build his poise.

But UCLA fans should know better. Abdul-Hamid has been preparing to take that shot for the last four years, and when the chance came, he was ready.

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