Cal Announces Tonight's Basketball Game vs. USC at Haas Pavilion is a Sellout
When USC faces Cal on Wednesday night in front of a capacity crowd at Haas Pavilion (8 p.m., Pac-12 Network), their rosters will include just one player nearly certain to be chosen in the 2024 NBA draft.
But USC point guard Isaiah Collier (15.4 points, 3.6 assists), a three-time Pac-12 Freshman of the Week, won't be on the court, sidelined for at least another week or two after breaking his right hand on Jan. 10 vs. Washington State.
The Bears (9-13, 5-6) are hoping to break an 11-game losing streak against the Trojans (9-13, 3-8), whose 82-54 win over Oregon State on Saturday was their first after six straight defeats since Collier was injured.
Cal announced this news on Wednesday morning:
Capacity at Haas Pavilion is listed as 11,877 and this will be the Bears' first sellout Haas since a 66-55 win over Stanford on Jan. 29, 2017 -- a span of 2,565 days.
The Bears and Trojans both have players earning scrutiny from NBA scouts, albeit with different contexts. Neither Cal’s Jaylon Tyson or USC’s Bronny James is a sure thing to enter the draft, much less be selected.
But Tyson, who is the second-leading scorer in the Pac-12 at 20.0 points per game, is beginning to show up on NBA mock draft lists. A 6-foot-7 junior guard, Tyson has 13 games of at least 20 points and twice has scored 30.
He is sixth in the Pac-12 in rebounding at 7.4 per game, has seven double-doubles and recently has shown his ability to get his teammates involved, averaging 4.5 assists over the past four games.
NBAdraft.net projects him as the No. 53 pick, where he would not earn a guaranteed contract. Bleacher Report has Tyson going at No. 29 — the end of the first round — and provided this detailed scouting report on the transfer from Texas Tech:
“Jaylon Tyson is starting to generate conversation in scouting circles after his second 30-point game of the month. At 6'7", he's been a very effective pick-and-roll ball-handler using his ball-handling and size on drives, passing, pull-up shots and floaters.
“He's had less success executing without a screen, so skeptics may question how much of his creation will translate. But between his positional tools, shotmaking, secondary playmaking and scoring production, there is enough here for teams to starting taking Tyson more seriously.”
None of six other mock drafts we checked includes Tyson among its potential draftees, although most of them project only the first round.
Bronny James drives against a UCLA defender.
Photo by Kirby Lee, USA Today
Meanwhile, USC’s James is cropping up here and there primarily, we assume, because of his potential . . . and his famous father.
A 6-4, 210-pound shooting guard and former McDonald’s All-American, Bronny does not boast the physique of LeBron James. Who does? The start of Bronny's freshman season was delayed after he scary suffered cardiac arrest incident during a workout last summer, a situation since resolved.
Through 14 games, he is averaging 5.9 points and 2.6 assists, shooting 37 percent from the field and 27.5 percent from 3-point range. He’s dishing 4.8 assists over the past five games and is viewed as a player who understands the game and plays it the right way.
But he has had modest success to start his college career. James scored 10 points in the first game vs. Cal and had a season-high 15 vs. Oregon State. He also has four games with no more than two points.
Still, James is getting attention. SB Nation suggested he will go at No. 23 to the Cleveland Cavaliers, where his father’s career began:
“Any flashes of self-creation would be welcome, and that starts with tightening his handle. James’ lack of size will be a knock against him, and he’s going to have to shoot it better to draw real interest. Being LeBron James’ son certainly can’t hurt his draft stock.”
Yardbarker projects James at No. 30 to the Boston Celtics:
“How hilarious would this be if the Celtics — LeBron James Eastern Conference nemesis — drafts Bronny James and asks LeBron to join them at a steep discount? . . . He’s an excellent athlete, defender and connector on offense who needs to improve his shooting efficiency, but has the mechanics to do so. To be clear: He hasn't played like an NBA player thus far in his college career. However, he deserves at least the rest of the season to see if he can get back on the trajectory he was on last spring.”
Tyson has another year of collegiate eligibility and presumably will wait until getting serious evaluations from NBA teams before plotting his next step.
James’ situation is more complicated, in part because LeBron, now 39 years old, has repeatedly expressed the desire to play alongside his son in the NBA. And as far as we know, even LeBron can’t play forever.
Whether that influences Bronny to go pro earlier than he might otherwise remains to be seen.
Cover photo of Cal guard Jaylon Tyson by Joe Camporeale, USA Today
Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo
