Bozeman Signed To Hawks Training Camp Roster

By Bruin Basketball Report

Former UCLA Bruin Cedric Bozeman has signed a free-agent contract with the Atlanta Hawks to play in the team's upcoming training camp.

The Hawks will have nineteen players in camp. When the regular season begins at the end of the month, NBA teams are required to trim their roster to just fifteen players.

Of the fifteen roster spots, teams must designate 12 active players and 3 inactive players. Inactive players may be assigned to the respective team's NBDL team affiliate.

The Hawks currently have thirteen players with guarenteed contracts, and more than likely, will only sign two additional players from the camp barring any player transactions.

Atlanta coachng staff like Bozeman's versatility to play both small forward and point-guard. However, he may have a difficult time cracking the roster since the team is already loaded at both spots with guarenteed-contract players.

Bozeman played with the Hawks summer league team at the Rocky Mountain Revue (RMR) in Salt Lake City this year.

The former Bruin started all six summer games for the team, playing primarily in the backcourt, averaging 7.7 points, 2.0 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in 23 minutes per game. He shot 43.6% from the field, 44% (4-9) from three-point distance, and 80% from the free throw stripe.

The Hawks' training camp opens October 3.

(BruinBasketballReport.com)

(photo credit: NBA.com)

Goodman On Shipp And Bruin's PG Situation

By Jeff Goodman
Fox Sports

UCLA began classes today and Ben Howland is excited at the progress that Josh Shipp has made on the one-year anniversary of his surgery.

The Bruins began individual workouts a couple weeks ago and Howland said that it's the first time that Shipp, who missed nearly all of last season, has appeared 100 percent in a while.

"He's done a real good job with his rehab," Howland said. "He's 220 pounds, but is still bouncy athletic."

"We really missed him last year," added Howland. "I'm just glad he seems to be back at full strength."

While Shipp's return will be pivotal to the Bruins making another Final Four run this season, he won't be the most important player on the team.

That distinction belongs to sophomore point guard Darren Collison.

With Jordan Farmar's departure to the NBA, Collison is not only the starter - but the lone true floor leader on the team.

"It's amazing how quick he is," Howland said of Collison. "He might be the best on-ball defender I've coached in my 25 years."

The options at the backup point guard spot are freshman Russell Westbrook, Arron Afflalo and walk-on Mustafa Abdul-Hamid.

"I think at the end of the day, Westbrook will be the guy for the long haul," Howland added.

(For further reading on the Bruin's PG situation go to BBR's 6/20/06 article: "Collison Will Need Help At Point )

(BruinBasketballReport.com)

Coach John Wooden Post Office Dedication Ceremony

Courtesy of UCLA Alumni.net

Coach John Wooden is scheduled to receive a special 96th birthday present on October 14 – a post office named in his honor.

Saturday, October 14, 2006
10:00-11:00 AM
United States Post Office
7320 Reseda Boulevard
Reseda, CA 91335

Reseda Boulevard between Canby and Wyandotte will be closed for the ceremony.

Program:
1. Welcoming Remarks: Postmaster
2. National Anthem: UCLA Student Performer
3. Invocation: Mike Warren ’71
4. Presentation of Colors: U.S. Navy Reserve
5. Speakers:
- Post Office Representative
- Wooden Family Member
- Coach Valorie Kondos Field ’87
- Los Angeles City Councilmember Dennis Zine
- Congressman Brad Sherman
- Coach John Wooden
6. Unveiling of the Plaque

Questions:
Contact Mannik Sakayan, assistant director of UCLA federal relations at 310-794-0760 or msakayan@support.ucla.edu.

Special Postmark:
The U.S. Postal Service is offering a special pictorial postmark in commemoration of the dedication of the Reseda post office building to UCLA's John Wooden on October 14, 2006. There is no charge for this special postmark, but it will be available for only 30 days after October 14.

The special pictorial postmark will be available at the Reseda post office during normal lobby hours -- or via mail by sending the item with postage affixed, under cover to:

John Wooden Postmark, c/o Postmaster
7320 Reseda Blvd.
Reseda, CA 91335-9998

Be sure to include special instructions and your return address and phone number.

Any item can be postmarked as long as it is of a material that will absorb ink and postage is affixed. Other than envelopes and postcards, some items commonly submitted for postmarking are programs, books, posters and backs of photographs. One could even have a basketball postmarked as long as there is a postage stamp affixed. Allow enough room for this special postmark – it is 3.5” by 2”.

All requests must include a stamped envelope or postcard bearing at least the minimum First-Class Mail postage. Customers can also send stamped envelopes and postcards without addresses for postmark, as long as they supply a larger envelope with adequate postage and their return address. After applying the pictorial postmark, the Postal Service returns the items (with or without addresses) under addressed protective cover.

(BruinBasketballReport.com)

Bruin Recruiting: Prep News Roundup (9/25)

By Bruin Basketball Report

Prep News Roundup is published every Monday.

Recruits

But one school Kyle Singler will not visit is Washington. The versatile 6-foot-9 forward from South Medford has removed the Huskies from his list of finalists, which now includes Duke, Arizona, UCLA and Kansas. "It was hard, but Kyle called coach (Lorenzo) Romar and told him he wouldn't be going to Washington," said Kyle's father, Ed. The Oregonian 9/20

Ed Singler, the father of highly regarded Oregon high school forward Kyle Singler, said Arizona remains on his son's list after an enjoyable visit to Tucson last week. "It is evident that he can get a quality education from U of A, that the basketball facilities, staff, community and fan interest, academic support and the school opportunities are awesome at U of A," Ed Singler wrote in an e-mail. "More than anything, Kyle felt the people were great that he met from the coaching staff, school administrators and students he had a chance to meet while on his visit. U of A has a great story to tell, and Kyle saw that first hand." Ed Singler said his son will visit Duke (this week), Kansas (Oct. 14) and possibly UCLA before deciding. Arizona Daily Star 9/21

The first visit came Sept. 9, when Gordon and Derrick Rose, a point guard from Simeon High in Chicago, visited and scrimmaged with IU players. At least one recruiting service -- Rivals.com -- has listed Gordon (No. 2 nationally) and Rose (No. 3) ahead of the former king of the Class of 2007, guard O.J. Mayo (No. 5). Rose has included IU in his five final. DePaul, Kansas, Memphis and UCLA are the competition. Courier-Journal 9/21

Singler in-home: Self, who has been out recruiting the past two weeks, on Tuesday had an in-home visit with Kyle Singler, a 6-8 senior forward from South Medford, Ore. Singler will visit KU for the Oct. 13 Late Night in the Phog. The No. 4 player in the Class of 2007 will visit Duke this weekend. He’s already visited finalists Arizona and UCLA. “The visit with the KU coaching staff certainly improved my feelings about Kansas. I was able to get a better feeling for the school and program,” Singler told rivals.com. Lawrence Journal- World 9/22

When Mac Koshwal made his verbal commitment to DePaul's Jerry Wainwright today, what exactly did he say to him? “He said ‘Coach, what is Derrick Rose’s phone number?’,” Jackson said, referring to the elite Class of 2007 point guard from Chicago Simeon High School. “Mac is trying to get in touch with Derrick.” WeAreDepaul 9/22

Luke Babbitt has some heavyweights interested to be sure, and it's my guess that he'll stay somewhere out West, which could include Nevada, Stanford, Gonzaga, UCLA, Arizona and Washington.He can't go wrong with any of those schools, as all are perennial NCAA Tournament teams. He also is scheduled to visit Duke when Galena High's team goes to South Carolina for a tournament later this year. Babbitt visited Texas two weeks ago, and was lucky enough to watch the Texas-Ohio State football game. Nevada Appeal 9/23

As for Derrick Rose, an unofficial visit to Notre Dame last weekend may have been as much to visit with friend and former Morgan Park football standout Demetrius Jones. The Irish were not on Rose's final five list announced in late August, though he did not leave campus without meeting with Irish coach Mike Brey. Chicago Tribune 9/23

Vaccaro and Rose: Fact, Fiction: Argument: Vaccaro is now a confidant to the Roses. Counterpoint: Actually, that's true. The Roses are leaning on Vaccaro to some extent, but then again, the guy has been doing this for 40 years.Vaccaro and Reggie Rose have spoken about "shoe things," as Vaccaro says, and they stay in touch regarding Derrick Rose's recruiting."I feel very close to them in a strange way," Vaccaro says. "Because I think they trust me. And I think the reason they trust me is, I've never told them what to do." Chicago Tribune 9/23

Boys To Men's Mac Koshwal, a 6-9 center, gave an oral commitment to DePaul. On Thursday, Dar Tucker, a 6-5 shooting guard from Michigan, orally committed to DePaul. Both players are rated among the top 50 in the country. ''You now have the greatest college basketball buzz in Chicago since Pat Kennedy first arrived on the scene,'' said Roy Schmidt of the Illinois Prep Bulls-Eye Report. ''DePaul is on the verge of a stellar class. I really think this enhances their chances with [Simeon guard] Derrick Rose. Chicago Sun-Times 9/23

Justin Holiday from North Hollywood (CA) Campbell Hall High School has committed to Washington. His father Shawn just confirmed to us on the phone that he committed on his trip to Seattle over the weekend. Husky Digest saw him playing pick-up with the team on Friday and Shawn also confirmed that Quincy Pondexter was his host on the trip. Holiday took in the Washington football team's win over UCLA and took the visit with his mother Toya. HuskeyDigest 9/24

The Washington men's basketball team has received a commitment from Justin Holiday, a 6-foot-6, 170-pound swingman from North Campbell Hall High School in North Hollywood, Calif. Holiday committed after taking a recruiting visit to UW this weekend. He has been described as a player in the mold of former UW forward Bobby Jones and also reportedly had offers from the likes of Arizona State, Nevada, Texas Tech and USC. Holiday is the older brother of Jrue Holiday, a high-school junior who is rated as the No. 2 shooting guard in the nation for the recruiting class of 2008 by Scout.com. Jrue Holiday is also being recruited by Washington. Seattle Times 9/25

(BruinBasketballReport.com)

(photo credit: Mail Tribune)

Earl Watson In Hometown to Unveil Basketball League

By Nick Sloan
The Kansas City, Kansan

Thanks to Earl Watson, Kansas City, Kan. middle school students interested in basketball will have a new league to play in.

Watson, a Washington High School graduate who plays on the NBA’s Seattle Supersonics, returned to KCK Friday afternoon to introduce the program.

“We are really excited about it,” Watson said. “I owe it to my city. It’s time to give back. They supported me from middle school on and it’s time for me to bridge that gap.”

Watson will underwrite the Earl Watson Youth Metro basketball league. The leagues will operate for sixth, seventh and eighth graders in both KCK and Kansas City, Mo.

“It’s like we are one city and we are bringing the two cities together with this program,” Watson said.

This will be the first time Watson has worked with Kansas City, Mo., in charitable actions. Watson jokingly said he had time to think of the program since Sonics misses the playoffs last season.

Watson, originally drafted by the Sonics, was traded back to Seattle from the Denver Nuggets.

“Being in the NBA is a false reality,” he said. “You have to stay humble. I think basketball for me growing up in Wyandotte County was an escape. In sports, you can’t win every game, and in life, you can’t win every day.”

The league will be open to 10 teams for each grade, with each team featuring between 7-10 players along with a coach.

Earl Watson Sr., Watson’s father, said the program will be featured in different recreational centers in Wyandotte County.

“He sponsored one of our tournaments,” Watson Sr., said. “These leagues will be going all around Wyandotte County.”

Unified Government officials said the program would give players the opportunity to compete against those outside of Wyandotte County.

“It’s going to give them the opportunity to be better by playing better competition,” said Jim Rusconi, program coordinator of sports at the parks and recreation department. “They’ll have time to increase their skills. It brings folks outside of the KCK area and interact with our students.”

Watson expects Seattle to have a good year.

“I’m excited for the young team we’re going to have,” he said. “We’re going to be a physical team. My career is still on an incline.”

Watson will play in Kansas City in an NBA exhibition game. Seattle will play against the Chicago Bulls. Along with Watson, the game is expected to draw interest locally because of Kirk Hinrich and Nick Collison, two University of Kansas All-Big 12 team members.

“We talk about Kansas a lot,” Watson said of his teammate Collison.

The registration deadline will be Oct. 6, and with space limited. It’s a first come, first served opportunity.

(BruinBasketballReport.com)

(photo credit: nba.com)