In reading the recent headlines about Westbrook, KLove, and Mbah a Moute, I began to think about their single commonality; CBH.

I've always thought that a coach's success is not merely measured by wins and losses, but how much he contributes to his player's lives.  Although I wasn't born until after Coach Wooden retired, I have always had admiration for a man that helped build a foundation for so many of his players.

Unfortunately, I was a Bruin during the Lavin era.  Not only did he always appear to be a slimeball- although, he was a very kind person when I met him - he did not ever seem to help his players grow.  The players that went to the NBA from his program were there on pure talent alone.  Kapono and Gadzuric actually got worse as their careers progressed under his coaching. 

CBH has now put a few players in the NBA.  With the exception of KLove, I don't believe any of them were surefire NBA players based on their talent alone.  Farmer and Afflalo were definitely talented, but CBH's tutelage clearly helped them along.  Westbrook and Mbah a Moute would not likely be making a living in the NBA if it weren't for CBH.

On top of the athletic success, CBH has helped build men who are good people.  I can't name a single player that CBH recruited that doesn't appear to be a stand up individual, yet have not sacrificed an ounce of competitiveness.  Name another program that can say that.

As much as I would love to see UCLA hanging another banner, I'm proud to have a coach as successful as our CBH is, with or without the banner.