Last year, Thomas Welsh reminded me of myself.
Sure, the then-freshman center had an extra 7 or 8 inches of height and a lot more basketball talent, but I still felt a connection to the Bruins’ gangly 7-foot giant.
Everything about him was awkward – the way he ran down the court, his inconsistent jumper and his seeming discomfort every time he touched the ball – yet, as the former tall kid who clumsily trampled over opponents, I knew exactly what that was like.
But something changed over the summer.
Maybe we can credit his stint with the USA Men’s U19 World ChampionshipTeam. Maybe it was his extensive training with UCLA basketball assistant coach Ed Schilling. Maybe it is just the natural improvement of a young college player.
Whatever the case, the UCLA fan favorite has rocketed onto the court in full force over the course of the past week.
Welsh went from averaging 3.8 points last year to a 34-point outburst in the first two games of the 2015-2016 season, sporting a newfound baseline jumper and a confidence that was seldom evident in his first year with the Bruins.
It’s a small sample size, yes, but it’s hard not to get excited when you realize that UCLA fans really should have seen this coming.
“If there’s a better, more coachable young man in college basketball, I sure haven’t seen him,” Schilling told the Daily Bruin in June. “I’ve trained everyone from the number-one pick in the draft to NBA All-Stars, and his attitude and work ethic are second to nobody.”
That’s some high praise, but Schilling was not alone in recognizing Welsh this summer.
Arizona coach Sean Miller, who led the U19 team to a gold medal in Greece, had only good things to say at the Pac-12 Media Day before the season.
“You’ve been around a lot of kids for brief periods of time, sometimes guys you’ve coached or even going back to when I played the game, teammates,” Miller said. “I don’t know if I’ve been around a nicer kid.”
Of course, nice sentiments about character don’t necessarily translate to statistical success, but Welsh has always been a late bloomer on the court. He spent his first year at Loyola High School on the JV squad, made varsity as a sophomore and eventually started as a junior. Then, following that natural progression, he wasted no time in casually becoming an All-American his senior season.
“He’s one of those guys that gets better before your eyes,” Schilling said. “He just gets better day after day.”
It would be wise to temper expectations going forward – the young Bruin will have his ups and downs like any college athlete – but the early results speak for themselves.
In two games, the front-court tandem of Welsh and senior center/forward Tony Parker have combined for an impressive 69 points and 48 rebounds. While they may not punish Pac-12 opponents quite like their nonconference foes, the promise of further growth is an exciting prospect.
In a season where things could quickly go south for UCLA, Welsh could emerge as the shining star. My basketball career may have stalled after my junior year of high school, but Welsh’s is just taking off.