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How UCLA thrived in basketball free agency after its ‘NIL grew exponentially’

Related Topics: UCLA, Mick Cronin

The wooing is over, the cash committed, the targets landed.

What could be considered the first free-agency class in UCLA basketball history — six transfers who might fill all the team’s needs, not to mention as many as four starting spots — materialized in the wake of Mick Cronin’s worst season in 16 years.

Never one to hold back, Cronin told his players several harsh truths after they staggered to a 16-17 record. He was the coach at UCLA. He needed to assemble the best possible team, which meant overhauling a young roster.