Just a few days after bulking up their 2006 recruiting class,
the Bruins received a boost to their 2007 recruiting class. Sources
have indicated that junior Chace Stanback, a small forward/shooting
guard out of Fairfax High School, has verbally committed to UCLA.
Stanback, who attends the same high school that redshirt sophomore
guard Josh Shipp attended, is rated as a four-star recruit by both
scout.com and rivals.com. Scout.com rated him as the 14th-best
small forward in the nation for the class of 2007. Stanback is
UCLA’s first committment for the 2007 basketball
class. Oregon and Arizona had also expressed interest in Stanback.
Kyle Singler and Kevin Love, who both hail from Oregon, are two of
UCLA’s most sought-after recruits in the 2007
class. Both are being recruited by numerous schools and neither has
reached a decision yet.
WESTBROOK SIGNS: Just days after giving a verbal committment to
UCLA, guard Russell Westbrook made his commitment official by
signing a National Letter of Intent on Saturday. Westbrook, a
6-foot-3, 180-pound shooting guard out of Leuzinger High School, is
expected to add to both ends of the floor right away for the
Bruins. “I’m very excited
about Russell Westbrook’s decision to join the
UCLA family,†UCLA coach Ben Howland said in a UCLA
release. “He’s an outstanding
basketball player, who is an equally impressive young man. I think
he’s going to be able to come in and compete and
help us win basketball games immediately.†Westbrook
becomes UCLA’s third recruit from the 2006 class
to sign a National Letter of Intent, joining power forwards James
Keefe and Marko Spica. “This is a great fit all
the way around,†said Westbrook’s
high school coach, Reggie Morris Jr. “Russell is
a high-quality individual with high-quality potential at the
collegiate level. This is a good match for everyone.â€
Westbrook provides added depth if sophomore guards Arron Afflalo
and Jordan Farmar do elect to keep their names in this
June’s NBA Draft.
LAVIN OFFERED JOB: The Sporting News reported
that ex-UCLA coach and current ESPN college-basketball analyst
Steve Lavin was offered the head coaching job at North Carolina
State last Friday. If Lavin were to take the job, he would be
filling the void that was left when former Wolfpack coach Herb
Sendek departed to fill the head coaching void at Arizona State.
Lavin has not coached since being released from UCLA after the
2002-2003 season and has worked as an ESPN analyst since that time.
It was reported that Lavin is still considering the offer and
working out contract details. Lavin led UCLA to five Sweet Sixteen
appearances and one Elite Eight appearance, but went 10-19 in his
final season with the Bruins.