UCLA Basketball: Ex-Bruin Becomes Dunk Machine In Summer League Opener
One of the biggest question marks surrounding UCLA's star freshman guard Amari Bailey last season was about his athleticism early in the year and that was very surprising to many. ESPN had Bailey ranked as the fifth best player in his graduating class and the years leading up to his UCLA debut consisted of him dominating the high school game.
Whether you watched his mixtapes generated by BallIsLife, Slam or any other YouTube outlet, one could clearly see that the most intriguing part of Bailey's game was his ability to jump out of the gym while standing at 6'5. He had accumulated a number of poster dunks and acrobatic layups during his time at Sierra Canyon High School and it was perceived that he would bring that same energy to the collegiate level.
However, it's important to remember that Bailey spent the first few months of his freshman season at UCLA not only getting comfortable with their offense but also finding his bounce again after a foot injury he suffered in his senior year. He would go on to sprain his ankle in February of 2023 but eventually found his game again just in time for the March Madness tournament, where he thrived.
And now Bailey has reached his ultimate goal and he'll hopefully be playing in official NBA games with the Charlotte Hornets soon and finding a role alongside LaMelo Ball, Mile Bridges, Brandon Miller & More.
For now though, we're able to watch the southpaw guard get some minutes in the summer league and his first game with the Hornets, he dropped six points in 15 minutes to go with a huge dunk to get the crowd on their feet.
Bailey has a ways to go in terms of developing his shot creation and finding his teammates in a half-court setting but I think he's with a perfect young core in Charlotte!
