UCLA Basketball: Bruins Officially Sign Elite, International Wing Berke Buyuktuncel
Your UCLA men's basketball program continues to come through with exciting announcement after exciting announcement. First off, they fully took advantage of the NCAA's newest coaching staff rules and welcomed in multiple, experienced names to help oversee the development of their current team.
On top of that, 7'3 big man Aday Mara, who has drawn comparisons to NBA legend Pau Gasol, finally got out of his contract with his Spanish professional team and signed with the UCLA Bruins ahead of his freshman season.
However, it looks like head coach Mick Cronin has his final puzzle piece to it all as a 6'6 forward from Turkey by the name of Berke Buyuktuncel has also officially signed with UCLA and will be suiting up alongside Mara and the rest of the squad this coming. season.
"๐๐๐ซ๐ค๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ค๐ญ๐ฎ๐ง๐๐๐ฅ, ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐๐๐๐. Itโs official The Bruins have signed Berke Buyuktuncel, a 6-foot-9 forward from Turkey, who has played for Tofas S.K. He will join UCLAโs program as a freshman this fall."
(Via UCLA MBB)
Buyuktuncel can do so many different things on the basketball court and he does so with a very high IQ.
Fans of the UCLA Bruins have gotten accustomed to watching Jaime Jaquez, a guard with size, operate at all three levels and either get the ball in the basket or set teammates up for easy looks. Buyuktuncel is his own unique player but when it comes to filling that role, he can definitely do so.
Here's what head coach Mick Cronin had to say about the newest signing.
"Our program is very excited to be adding Berke this season," Cronin said. "He has established himself as a versatile forward with tremendous talent. Not only can he create for his teammates and score, but he has also developed an identity as a defensive stopper. Berke has become a well-known, highly-regarded international prospect. We can see him excelling at UCLA, both in our basketball program and in the classroom. With Jaime Jaquez having graduated in the spring, we had been searching for a multi-dimensional player with good size, and Berke fits that description. He can do it all on the basketball court. We really like our frontcourt and we're going to have depth there, with returners and and incoming freshmen Aday Mara and . Adding an impact player with Berke will be a major asset, and we're looking forward to having him join us in Westwood."
(Via UCLA Bruins)
Even though UCLA lost a number of key contributors to the NBA Draft these past couple of months, they have quite the squad entering the new season.
We wish for health and great chemistry above all else but if all of these guys can co-exist in the system, the Bruins will have a special group on their hands!
