UCLA Bruins Insider Podcast: The State of Bruins Basketball and More

Our latest episode of the UCLA Bruins Insider Podcast breaks down the latest struggles for the Bruins men's basketball team and where it currently stands in the Big Ten. The football program also landed another transfer offensive lineman this week.

Dec 28, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; UCLA Bruins head coach Mick Cronin talks to his team during a timeout in the second half against the Gonzaga Bulldogs at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images / Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images

In this episode of the UCLA Bruins Insider Podcast, UCLA Bruins On SI beat writer Tom Cavanaugh talks about the current state of UCLA men's basketball after a two-game skid and harsh comments from Coach Mick Cronin, as well as a notable commitment that the football program garnered on Tuesday.

You can watch the episode below:

The No. 22 UCLA Bruins are likely going to drop out of the rankings and are now 2-2 in conference play after losing their past two games, both to tough Big Ten teams in Nebraska and No. 24 Michigan. Two of the worst shooting performances came for the Bruins as they sit in a very rough spot right now.

After the Bruins fell to the Wolverines by 19 points on Tuesday night, Cronin spoke to the media and gave them the honest truth about how he feels about his team. Cronin called it "soft," "delusional" and said, "We've got guys that think they're way better than they are."

Besides the offensive struggles, the team's inability to play with 100% effort for all 40 minutes has been something that Cronin had to address. He would not have blown up on his team like he did if he did not have a fair reason to show his frustrations.

The Bruins are at their lowest point right now, losing back-to-back games for the first time all season. They can only afford roughly two or three more conference losses to even have a chance at competing for a Big Ten regular season title, which is completely doable if they change their competitive mindset.

In other news, the Bruins football team has continued to stay red hot in the transfer portal, recently landing Jacksonville State sophomore offensive lineman Kaiden Arnold. After two seasons with the Gamecocks, Arnold will take his talents to Westwood in hopes of being an offensive starter.

The Bruins are one of the top 10 teams in the country this offseason in terms of transfer portal recruiting and are stacking up a hefty roster of stars from different programs. This UCLA team is going to be extremely different from what was shown in its 5-7 season a year ago.

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