California Golden Blogs

Cal Baseball At Stanford: Game 1 Open Thread

2012-05-25T23:30:09Z

When: 5:30 pm PT
Radio: KALX, KNEW 960 locally
Gametracker

It's Matt Flemer vs. fancy-pants-Mr.-I'm-gonna-be-the-#1-Draft-Pick Mark Appel. Sink them on that diamond, Bears!

Alex Morgan returns to Diamond Bar High School

2012-05-25T22:49:43Z

Alex Morgan returns to Diamond Bar High School

"U.S. Women's National Team striker Alex Morgan visits Diamond Bar (Calif.), her alma mater, to work with current girls' soccer players."

Pics and video too...

Super-Regional Preview: Cal Softball vs. Washington

2012-05-25T18:30:05Z

Jace Williams broke Washington.

At least, that seems to be the reasonable conclusion. On March 30th, 3rd ranked Washington hosted the Bears in Seattle. The Huskies entered the day with a record of 32-1. Their only loss was a neutral-site defeat to a top 15 Missouri team. And for six innings Washington absolutely stymied the Cal offense, allowing just one hit.

But in the 7th Frani Echavarria doubled, Jamia Reid singled, Valerie Arioto walked, and Jace Williams stepped to the plate with 2 outs and the bases loaded. Jace doubled down the line to drive in the tying and winning runs, and Cal won. The Bears would go on to win the final two games of the series by more comfortable margins.

After Jace's double the Huskies went 4-15 to close out the regular season, finishing 2nd to last in the Pac-12. Jace broke them, and she broke them good.

But to Washington's credit, they got back enough mojo to win their own regional with a perfect record. Three shut-out wins over Harvard, Texas Tech and Harvard have given the Huskies a second shot at the Bears. But Cal already swept Washington in Seattle, so why should we expect things to finish differently in Berkeley?

Well, you shouldn't. There's a reason that every ESPN expert has picked Cal to win this series in two games. The Bears are the superior team by pretty much any measure.

Washington can be a dangerous team because of Kaitlin Inglesby. When UW was destroying non-conference competition, it was because Inglesby was near-unhittable. She carried that momentum through six innings against Cal before Jace's double, and like the rest of her team it just hasn't been the same since. Inglesby's Pac-12 ERA is 3.60. Nothing to be ashamed of, but nowhere near how she had been pitching earlier in the year.

Inglesby pitched 10 innings in last week's regional, allowing only 8 baserunners, no extra base hits and no runs. I can only speculate on how much of a challenge Harvard was, but Washington's hopes ride on Inglesby rediscovering her early season mojo against one of the nation's elite offenses.

And unfortunately for UW, run scoring has arguably been a bigger issue than pitching. Only 2-22 Utah scored fewer runs during conference play, and the Huskies finished last in the conference in home runs. Washington has scored more than four runs only five times in the regular season since Jace's double, and not coincidentally, those five games include every UW win in that span of games.

Even when they swept through regionals the Huskies only scored eight runs in three games. In terms of power threats it's Inglesby again (like Val, a two-way threat who plays 1st when she's not pitching) and then not much. Inglesby has 10 home runs and is one of just three regulars with a slugging percentage over .500 (Cal, by comparison, has six such players).

So the Bears have the pitching advantage and the hitting advantage, and they have the better fielding percentage. That's good. Really, the only question Cal fans have to ponder is: who pitches Game Two? We all know that Jolene will be in the circle for Game One. And we also know that if she can pitch five games in three days she can probably handle three games (if necessary) in two.

Even still, Valerie Arioto picked up a win against the Huskies and despite a rough couple of ABs against Arkansas is still an elite pitcher. It's an embarrassment of riches. I doubt Jolene needs the rest, but a light week ahead of a potential CWS run would be nice. This is me being greedy.

In case you needed a reminder, every game this weekend will air nationally on ESPN2, so don't miss it. Go Bears!

Cal Women's Crew: NCAA Championship Day One Open Thread

2012-05-25T12:30:04Z

Online Stream: Via NCAA

The second Cal Women's sport to win a team National Championship, after those trailblazing softballers in 2002, were the Cal Women's Crew who went back to back in 2005 and 2006. The second of which was won at Lake Mercer in West Windsor, NJ, the site of this year's championship. The #1 Bears look to make 3 both the number of Women's Rowing Championships won but also the number team championships won this year (after the two swimming and diving wins this year). GO BEARS!

According to the Women's Crew Bear Blog, the team has been on the East Coast for a few days now (and training in Philadelphia). In winning the Pac-12 conference championship, all three boats won their races. The Varsity Four has a perfect season thus far, so does the Freshmen Eight (not sure how they are a part of this weekend's competition). The Cal Varsity Eight has won 6 consecutive races.

How the National Championship is determined: Unlike Men's crew (not an official NCAA championship for supposedly their unwillingness to adopt this scoring system), where the winner of the Varsity 8 is the National Champ, Women's crew reward the National Championship based on the results of all 3 races (Varsity 4, Second Varsity 8, and the Varsity 8 (tiebreaker if teams finish with the same total team points)).

Cal result for Day 1: via Cal Women's Crew twitter

Good day first day at NCAA's. WV8 second to Ohio State. W2V8 and WV4 win heats. All boats straight to semi's. Big day tomorrow. Go Bears!

Schedule of events:

Friday:

9 a.m. I Eights Heat 1 Lake Mercer Division I
9:15 a.m. I Eights Heat 2 Lake Mercer Division I
9:30 a.m. I Eights Heat 3 Lake Mercer Division I
9:45 a.m. II Eights Heat 1 Lake Mercer Division I
10 a.m. II Eights Heat 2 Lake Mercer Division I
10:15 a.m. II Eights Heat 3 Lake Mercer Division I
10:30 a.m. Fours Heat 1 Lake Mercer Division I
10:45 a.m. Fours Heat 2 Lake Mercer Division I
11 a.m. Fours Heat 3 Lake Mercer Division I

Saturday:

9 a.m. I Eights Semifinals Lake Mercer Division I
9:15 a.m. I Eights Semifinals Lake Mercer Division I
9:30 a.m. II Eights Semifinals Lake Mercer Division I
9:45 a.m. II Eights Semifinals Lake Mercer Division I
10 a.m. Fours Semifinals Lake Mercer Division I
10:15 a.m. Fours Semifinals Lake Mercer Division I

Sunday:

10:25 a.m. Fours Grand Final (places 1-6) Lake Mercer Division I
11:15 a.m. II Eights Grand Final (places 1-6) Lake Mercer Division I
12:05 a.m. I Eights Grand Final (places 1-6) Lake Mercer Division I

Cal Football Recruiting- 2013 Commit #5: LB Chad Whitener

2012-05-25T10:00:13Z

The Cal staff has reached out of state once again, securing a verbal commitment from Mansfield (TX) linebacker Chad Whitener on Tuesday night. Whitener is the fifth commit in Cal's 2013 recruiting class, and the third on the defensive side of the ball.

So what are we getting? How about a 6'1', 235 pound tackling machine that plays in the most competitive tier of high school football in the state of Texas? In his junior year, Chad compiled a ridiculous 194 tackles, 4 sacks, 2 interceptions, 2 fumble recoveries, and one forced fumble. That was good enough to garner him District 5-5A co-defensive MVP honors in a stacked district. Oh. and he also carries a 3.75 GPA. Merry Texmas, y'all!

via media.247sports.com

Chad was offered by Cal linebackers coach and Texas native Kenwick Thompson last Thursday after Coach Thompson visited Mansfield and briefly saw Chad in action. After just five days, Chad elected to commit to Cal prior to actually visiting the campus. That doesn't mean he made a hasty decision necessarily. Chad and his family did some lengthy research on Cal and felt that it was the right place to be. Works for me! The Whitener family had already scheduled a visit to campus for the weekend of June 1, so hopefully that will just cement the decision.

After the jump, we'll take a look at Chad's measurables and ratings from the various recruiting services, his highlights, and provide some analysis....with three times the evals thanks to a couple guest contributors!

Welcome to Cal, Chad. Go Bears!

MEASURABLES AND RANKINGS

Height: 6'1"

Weight: 235 lbs

Rivals rates Chad as a 3-star prospect.

Scout also rates Chad as a 3-star prospect.

247 rates Chad as a 3-star prospect (86 grade).

ESPN has yet to rate and evaluate Chad.

Chad committed to Cal over offers from Colorado State, SMU, Rice and Louisiana Tech. He was also receiving interest from TCU, Oregon, Arkansas, Arizona State, Oklahoma and Texas A&M.

Here are Chad's 2011 season highlights. TWO OPTIONS!:

OPTION THE FIRST! No music, kinda generic but conveys the point...

OPTION THE SECOND! Something a little longer, musical score included, and just more badass. Quality production and a delightful romp!

ANALYSIS...with some special guests who are smart and know stuff!

One thing that stands out right off the bat is that Whitener is built like a truck. At 235 or 240 pounds, he has college inside linebacker size already. And it isn't bad weight; he's very strong and pretty explosive. He uses that strength well when he comes into contact with the ballcarrier, often times negating their momentum and pushing or hauling them backwards. He's a very sure tackler, in case there was something about "194 tackles in a season" that you found confusing. He can lay a hit, and keeps his hands active. Once Chad gets his hands on a guy, they don't get much further. He's very strong against the run, capable of stuffing holes inside and also showing the sideline to sideline speed to chase down plays to the outside. He shows a great motor when in pursuit and has a nice burst when firing towards the line. When he reads a play, he's decisive and gets to the ball in a hurry. His speed is not elite, but we're talking about a 230+ pound linebacker, not a 170 pound running back. He has very good speed for his size and especially for a guy playing inside. Just note the number of outside runs he chases down.

We see a few pass breakups, but I can't speak much to how Chad performs in coverage. He has stated that it's an area he'd like to improve on, so I'll take him at his word. While not a primary duty inside, it's still critical. And I hope no one else just had a flashback of Chris Polk's 70 yard touchdown over DJ Holt. Oops, now you did! Another segment Chad has stated his desire to improve in is shedding blocks. He's very good at getting to the ball quickly, but we don't see many instances where he had to really fight to get there. Can he engage and shake off an interior lineman to get there? He has the strength to. With teaching and technique I don't think that will be much of a concern.

Here's what I do see: aggression, decisiveness, speed, strength, size and a motor to boot. Everybody loves a tackler. I also see a guy that should easily transition to our 3-4 defense as an inside linebacker in the Mike role. He's made for it.

On to the bonus takes!

Here's an evaluation from a guy who knows a thing or two about Texas prospects. Thanks to Wescott Eberts, editor of Burnt Orange Nation (follow him on twitter @SBN_Wescott for all things recruiting in the state of Texas), for weighing in on Chad's commitment and what we're getting.

The 2013 linebacker class in Texas is heavy on the outside linebacker types who look and run like safeties, so there's some necessary context when noting that Whitener is one of the best inside linebackers in the state. With that being said, it's a bit hard to understand why his recruitment was so slow to pick up, especially given that Mansfield is loaded with talent right now. I have to think that it would have picked up fairly substantially had he opted to continue the process and hold off on a commitment.

The best explanation for the relative paucity of offers is his size -- were Whitener 6-3, he would be a consensus four-star prospect and hold 20 or more offers as a national recruit. At nearly 240 pounds, Whitener moves extremely well for a linebacker of his size, which also means that he won't have to work to add mass in college, as he's already at an ideal playing weight.

A wrap-up tackler who strikes well, Whitener plays with the barely controlled recklessness that defines the best linebackers, though I would like to see more evidence on film of his ability to hit and separate from offensive linemen, as that will be crucial to determining his collegiate upside. For linebackers, having ideal height is more about the type of reach it creates so they don't get engulfed at the second level or on blitzes.

As long as Whitener can succeed there, he has all the other attributes to become a successful player at Cal.

You want some more? Let's hear from another guru of Texas recruiting who has some great thoughts and info on Chad. Thanks to Inside Texas Recruiting Editor Eric Nahlin (follow him on twitter @EricNahlin for more tasty Texas recruiting morsels) for sharing his thoughts on our newest commit.

Cal got a good one, especially for ILB in their 34 defense. I've been a fan of his ever since he made me feel foolish for discounting him as a prospect at the first sound of Chad. I actually saw him today as I stopped by Mansfield.

Chad's early favorite was Texas A&M but the Aggies have their eyes set elsewhere, perhaps blindly. A&M alerted Mansfield Coach Jeff Hulme that they'd like to see Chad run. Coach Hulme responded, "Geez you'd think they might watch the film they requested I send."

A&M is looking at some quality linebackers so I don't necessarily blame theme there, but Whitener is a viable in-state take for them, which makes him a fine OOS take for Cal.

And yes, he can run. In fact it's the first thing that stood out about him. He may not be the tallest or most dexterous linebacker, but he's intelligent and decisive with innate downhill aggression as well as good horizontal tracking. His lone question would be in coverage because he hasn't been asked to do a whole lot of that, but he's gamer with solid upside. He's an absolute tackling machine that will probably play better in games against schools like USC than Oregon.

I've talked to Chad numerous times and he hates that I have him ranked as the fifth best linebacker in Texas. I like that about him.

TIDBITS

Here's some quotes and comments from a few other pieces written on Chad's commitment to Cal.

From Jim McGill's free article over at Bear Insider:

"Coach Thompson offered me on the 17th," said Whitener. "He visited here and then offered me later on the phone.

"He likes my physical style of play and thinks I'll fit in well at Cal.

"Me and my family have done a lot of research," said Whitener. "Cal plays a 3-4 style of defense I like and their academics are outstanding. Their facilities are top notch and they've renovated their stadium so things are looking great at Cal."

Staff stability is another attraction to the big Texan, with Cal head coach Jeff Tedford's 12-year tenure the longest in the Pac 12, not to mention Thompson's stay in Berkeley since 2006.

"Coach Thompson's my position coach and he's been there six years," said Whitener. "Overall, it just seems like the perfect place to be."

From Ryan Gorcey's free article over at Bear Territory:

"I am a Bear," he said excitedly. "I felt like it was the opportunity of a lifetime, and I really wanted to take it. It's really just the whole academic situation there, and I looked at how the depth chart would work out by the time I get there, and they recruited me at the position I want to play. We did our own homework on the school, too, don't get me wrong, but it's the perfect place for me."

Clearly, Chad feels good about his commitment, and is very excited about his future as a Golden Bear. Just wait till he and his family get to campus next weekend. I feel good about it too. I'd echo both Eric and Wescott's opinions that it's a bit puzzling that a player of this caliber was sitting on just four offers. I see a guy who brings a lot to the table; size, speed, smarts, and most of all production. Numbers don't lie, the man has a nose for the ball. I have a feeling that a few more major programs may come knocking in the fall. Let's cross that bridge when we come to it though, doomsayers. For now, let's enjoy our newest addition. I sure as hell hope we keep him. Could be another great Golden Bear from the Lone Star State.

What are your thoughts on Chad? Let's hear in the comments.

Go Bears!

CGB Hall of Fame Voting Ends Soon!

2012-05-25T00:41:41Z

CGB Hall of Fame Voting Ends Soon!

Be sure and get your votes in before the polls close on Friday!

Geoff McArthur is holding a steady lead over Mike Mohamed

Pete Cutino is nursing a slender lead over Tyson Alualu

Mychal Kendricks has almost twice as many votes as Ryan Anderson

Hardy Nickerson has two-thirds of the vote over Bruce Synder

So who gets your vote?

Golden Nuggets: Beating Cal Appears to be the Key to Success in the Pac-12

2012-05-24T22:30:04Z

Ted Miller continues to run through his "Most Important Game" series, which is looking more and more like "Everyone's success is predicated on a victory against Cal." Today we have two more whose seasons will be made or broken after a trip to Memorial Stadium. As they are our two California rivals, let us hope we break their seasons with extreme prejudice. First up are the Lobsterbacks.

The visit to Cal feels important because it something more approximating a "must-win." Start with the fact that Stanford, Washington and California seem like a troika that falls together -- in that order -- below Oregon in the Pac-12 North Division pecking order. This could serve as a separation game for the Cardinal, which will have already visited Washington on Sept. 27. Stanford has dominated the Huskies lately, so a win over Cal may be enough to ensure at least a second place finish in the North -- with a puncher's shot still remaining in Autzen Stadium. So this is a rivalry game with significant North Division ramifications.

But it's even more than that. Stanford has won two Big Games in a row and played in two consecutive BCS bowl games. It has taken over the Bay Area after years of struggling versus Jeff Tedford and the Bears. Some Cal fans might try to write off the Cardinal surge as something produced by a serendipitous aligning of the college football planets. As in by the flash-across-the-sky tenures of charismatic former coach Jim Harbaugh and a once-in-a-generation quarterback. If Cal wins this game, it could claim exactly that with justification. "Ah, the Bay Area pecking order has been righted," Bears fans might say. "Stanford's reign of terror is at an end. Ad perpetuam memoriam! Or not. And ad victoriam!"

But wait, there's more! UCLA at Cal was tabbed as the Bruins' most important game.

Not counting Nebraska in Week 2 -- which falls under the category of we won't know much about the Bruins -- Cal is UCLA's toughest opponent in the first half of the season. And it's on the road.

Tevin McDonald had the game of his career last season with three interceptions in a 31-14 win over Cal, so there is some internal confidence that this is a winnable game. Plus the Bruins rushed for 294 yards on Cal. Don't expect those kinds of numbers again with Cal's talented defensive line. But if UCLA and new coach Jim Mora want to make a statement, this is the game to do it.

After the jump the Bears pick up a linebacker commitment and several teams shake up their coaching staffs.

Football

Larry Scott and the Pac-12 are candidates for awards from the Sports Business Journal. The Pac-12 was nominated for "Sports League of the Year" and Scott was nominated for "Sports Executive of the Year."
"Love to Hate" week continues at ESPN as Uncle Ted looks at coaches who left Pac-12 programs with less than ideal timing. He mentions Bruce Snyder and Steve Mariucci for the Bears.
Jon Wilner ponders which Week 1 game the Pac-12 Network will select after ESPN selects its #1 choice.
Three-star Texas LB Chad Whitener committed to the Bears.

Softball

Cal hosts Washington in this weekend's Super Regional. It will be televised on ESPN2 on Saturday and Sunday.
Valerie Arioto is one of three finalists for the USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Year Award.

Basketball

Olympic gold medalist and 1990 NCAA champion Katy Steding has joined Coach Gottlieb's staff.

Gymnastics

Danna Durante resigned after one year of coaching the Bears. The Bears made progress on the field and in the classroom under Durante's short tenure.

Crew

Field Hockey

After spending 10 season as an assistant at Dartmouth, former member of the US National Team coaching staff Andy Smith will join the Bears.

Tennis

Jana Juricova was named the ITA National Senior of the Year.

Shareef Abdur-Rahim: College Graduate, California Golden Bear Alumnus!

2012-05-24T17:30:03Z

Avinash: With Shareef graduating, might be a good chance for us to write about his spectacular freshman season at Cal (like we did with Kidd a few years back).

LeonPowe: With Jason Kidd and Lamond leaving school in 1994, we brought in a highly ranked recruiting class consisting of Jelani Gardner and Tremaine Fowlkes. And while the kids (mainly Folkes) were very good - with Folkes winning the Freshman of the Year honors, unfortunately our upper class leadership (Monty Buckley, Al Grigsby and Ryan Jamison) and returning players (Anwar McQueen / Randy Duck) wasn't good enough to lead Cal to the post-season in 1994-95; although that team probably would've done pretty well in last year's Pac-12.

But then Bozeman landed Shareef Abdur-Rahim. The Future. No, seriously, that was his nickname, because in "The Future" guys were going to be his size 6'10", but also be able to handle the ball and attack the basket from a face-up as well as from the post. A quiet Muslim kid all the way from Atlanta - supposedly our Islamic Studies program was the key to landing 'Reef - so not just a great basketball player, but a kid who was thoughtful, religious and also had a killer spin move. So, we eagerly tuned in to that spring's McDonald's All America game to see our new prize recruit take on the best in the US.

So with the entire roster sporting giant white pieces of tape over their ears (apparently they all got their ears pierced) we watched as some kid named Kevin Garnett proceeded to block about 100 of 'Reefs shots - I remember thinking "this was the #3 recruit in the country?" He looked terrible! (Ok, so that Garnett kid turned out to be pretty good)

So then Reef came in and quickly put those fears to rest though. He was unstoppable. A combination of quickness, agility and fundamental post moves he racked up points more easily than any freshman I've ever seen at Cal - or even the Pac-10. Combining with high scoring JuCo transfer guard Ed Gray, the suddenly deep Bears looked like a contender to play deep into March. And Reef? Man, he was a monster. He played like an evolutionary James Worthy. A guy with a power forward's size, but a small forward's skill, touch and that spin move. Oh that spin move - he would just torture people with that. Then when people would play the base to take away that spin, he'd counter into the middle with a jump hook or then put them in the washing machine with a Sikma reverse pivot and pop the 12 foot jumper. I've never seen a college freshman come in with that many post moves. He became the first Pac-10 freshman to be voted Pac-10 player of the Year (granted, Lew Alcindor and Bill Walton were inelgiable for the award as freshmen) and third team all American, averaging 20 and 8.5 rebounds and dominating older, more experienced power forwards.

Unfortunately, Bozeman's ability to bring in key high school players was a lot better than his ability to coach them (and that ability to recruit may just have been aided by FedEx envelopes full of cash) and despite having Tremaine Fowlkes, Gray, McQueen, Gardner, Sean Marks, Yogi Stewart, Tony Gonzalez and Reef, we got bounced in the first round in Dallas by Kelvin Cato and the Iowa State Hurricanes, leaving me and my friend a non-changeable air ticket back to the Bay Area on Monday so we rented a car from the airport - drove to Shreveport Louisana, lost $300 more dollars, drove back, slept on the floor of the airport until our flight. Not that I'm bitter about that trip or anything.

OhioBear: I didn't attend many games during Reef's one and only season at Cal. But I saw most (if not all) of the televised games that season. (I was a second-year law student who took school waaaayyyyy too seriously. I attended every football game, but let my basketball attendance fall by the wayside. But I digress...)

I kid you not (pun intended): at the time, I thought that Reef was the BEST freshman I ever saw play at Cal. Let that sink in. Yes, we had Jason Kidd just three seasons before Reef, but I actually put Reef a cut above him, purely in terms of his freshman year play from start to finish. Reef came in as incredibly polished. It was amazing to watch him work -- he had post moves, he had touch, and he had a knack for hitting that difficult baseline turnaround jumper. I thought he was simply amazing. And apparently so did the rest of the league: he was the Pac-10 player of the year as a freshman, something that seemed unheard of at the time.

Kodiak: Unlike OhioBear, I was a true Cal fan and saw all of Reef's games.

I will disagree that he's the best true frosh I've ever seen. That is and may forever be Jason Kidd. But as far as frosh bigs go, Shareef is easily the best. In fact, he may be the best Cal big man that I've ever seen in person regardless of age.

Polish and skill are the two words that first come to your mind when you think of Reef's game. You just don't see guys with that type of footwork as freshmen. Heck, you rarely see it in seniors. He had an array of post moves on either block and could score just as well with either hand. He could handle the ball, lead the break, and hit the open three. It was mildly ridiculous how skilled he was. He never overpowered guys or outjumped them, but he was so smooth with the ball that he was able to beat double and even triple teams. Keep in mind that he played during a "rebuilding" year. Teams knew to throw everything at him. Yet, I don't remember games where he was shut down. He was that good. And yet, it never seemed like he was a ball hog or a volume shooter.

I had the opportunity to meet him at the team's awards banquet. He was humble, polite, and surprisingly quiet. It's too bad that chronic knee issues plagued his career. He wore braces on both knees while he was a Bear, and that persisted during his time in the league.

LeonPowe: Relevant:

Ok, it wasn't THAT relevant (in fact, you can see why someone may have wanted to pay jelani $$$ - but there was a good stretch of reef highlights around the 5 minute mark

OhioBear: Just realized that if Shareef had stayed one more year, we wouldve had a nice lineup of Shareef, Tony G, Yogi Stewart, Prentice McGruder, and Randy Duck, with Grigsby, McQueen, and Sean Marks off the bench. Without Shareef (and without Gray in the NCAA tournament for that matter), Cal got to the Sweet 16 as it was.

LeonPowe: And if Dirk Nowitzki had come too (and number 1 overall recruit Julian Sensley - but he turned out to be not good for Hawaii)

Reef: The comments do a great job capturing what he was and why his short tenure at Cal was memorable. I would add a couple things, both of which stem from the same core: Shareef always seemed far older than his years.

On the court, his game was old school and old man. He had average athleticism for a Pac-10 big, but a set of skills an NBA 10-year-veteran would envy. He could handle up top and on the wings, hit from midrange, turn on you in the post. He had an endless array of offensive skills. But what was most fascinating and fun to watch for me was how slow he seemed to move. Everyone around him always looked much quicker, but despite this he was never, ever in a hurry. He set up his moves like a chessmaster. If they stepped back he'd shoot over them. If they overshaded one side he'd cross them over. If they leaned on him he'd drop step or spin. If they got in the air he'd pump fake. He boarded the same way. It's like he never got off the ground, never outjumped anybody, but the ball was waiting for him because he was in the right spot. In the modern era they talk about James Harden having the old man YMCA game. That was Shareef. Calm. Deliberate. Another bucket.

I think Jason Kidd was the most impactful freshman in Cal history. But nobody came to Cal ready to score like Shareef.

His maturity off the court was just as impressive. I watch tape of interviews from his graduation, and it's like he hasn't aged a day, because that's what he was like as a freshman. Quiet. Thoughtful. Humble. Midway through the season there was a lot of talk in the media about Ramadan. Would the fasting affect him during a critical time in the season? It seemed like the only one completely unconcerned was Shareef. Every time he was asked about it he calmly said it was his faith and changing his behavior was not an option, but it would have no effect on what he did on the court. And when it didn't, and everyone wanted to ask him why it didn't, he didn't get annoyed, he again just patiently talked about his faith and the basketball. In the end that's what it seemed to come down to in his game and in his life. Simplicity. What was real. There was never any of the drama, never any of the ego, that came with other players of the Cal era. There was just his faith and his basketball.

Regardless of the time frame, regardless of the circumstances, graduating with a BA from the University of California at Berkeley with a 3.8 GPA is a towering achievement. But from that man, I would have expected no less. Todd Bozeman did a lot of things wrong, but seeing the pictures and watching the video of Shareef Abdur-Rahim in Lower Sproul in a cap and gown, I think this is one of the things he did right.