WATCH: Jules Bernard Discusses UCLA Fanbase, Getting Comfortable at the Point

Bernard is one of five starters from the Bruins' March Madness run coming back for the 2021-2022 season.

UCLA men’s basketball guard Jules Bernard talked to the media about taking on even more of a load on the ball and how he’s prepared himself for running the offense behind Tyger Campbell this season.

JULES BERNARD

Getting ready to run it back?

It's been great. We have added motivation but we're just excited to get back, we have an opportunity to play in front of fans again, which is pretty amazing. And then we have a great fanbase, ever since the end of the game against Gonzaga, a lot of fans have been reaching out and stuff to all the players and everything, so we're just excited to get out on the floor and be back playing again.

Most interesting thing a fan has said?

Nothing really crazy to be honest. Just encouraging us for this upcoming season and congratulating us for last season, but we know that we want to improve every year. So we had a great season last year and then we want to improve this year so we gotta get back to the gym, keep working, but the support from fans has been great, they've just been very encouraging.

More buzz hearing from fans and alums this year compared to past few seasons?

I mean, as basketball players, we all know how fans are sometimes in all great organizations. So obviously we understand that as players, but we just gotta keep an open mind to it. And obviously, we're very grateful for the fans we have and the support we're getting now, but it is what it is. We're glad that we're in the position that we are now.

Been around alums since the Final Four? Run mean a lot to them?

Not as much. We had Lonzo, he came to practice, that was pretty cool to see him. Even during the run, actually, we got a video from a whole bunch of basketball alums, which was amazing just to see all of the support we had from them, so that was pretty cool.

Working on anything specific in your game?

Just being a more cerebral guard, being able to learn how to run the team, it takes a lot of pressure off Tyger. And then just working on everything, you can never be satisfied with where your stride is at or where your handles are at, so I'm just trying to work on everything.

Comfort level running point?

Oh, I'm comfortable with it. I think last year helped me a lot cause I had a lot of, especially down the stretch, I had a lot of run from the point position. So just getting those reps in a game under my belt helped a lot. And so coming into this season, I feel a lot more comfortable.

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