REPORT: UCLA Among Teams to Have Visited One of Top Class of '26 Hoop Prospects

UCLA men's basketball is reportedly visited one of the top players in the class of 2026.

Feb 4, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins players huddle on the court in the second half against the Michigan State Spartans at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Men's basketball recruiting is going to start ramping up this spring, and UCLA needs to be part of that action, especially considering it has yet to land a commit from the class of 2025.

The Bruins are aiming high, showing interest in some of the top prospects in both the 2025 and 2026 classes, some of which are very close to Westwood.

One of those local recruits is class of 2026 five-star point guard Jason Crowe Jr., son of Jason Crowe, a longtime professional basketball player.

Crowe recently told On3 that assistant coaches from UCLA, Michigan, Georgia Tech, LSU, Washington and Oregon, as well as USC coach Eric Musselman, Kentucky coach Mark Pope and Arkansas coach John Calipari have "been in to see him."

The Bruins representation shouldn't come as a surprise -- Crowe plays for Inglewood High School, just 11 miles from Pauley Pavilion.

Crowe, 6-3, 170 pounds, is ranked the No. 2 point guard in his class, the No. 5 class of 2026 prospect in California and the No. 8 overall player in his class, per the 247Sports Composite rankings.

UCLA offered Crowe in January of 2023. According to 247Sports, he is "warm" on the Bruins.

Crowe has had some standout performances throughout his high school career so far -- one of his best came the day after Christmas when he posted 55 points in "The Classic at Damien," a much-anticipated matchup between Inglewood and Chatsworth High School.

The contest represented a showdown between two of the top recruits in the state -- Crowe and class of 2025 five-star shooting guard Alijah Arenas, son of former NBA player Gilbert Arenas, who recently committed to USC. Arenas scored 34 points, but it was Inglewood that came out on top.

Perhaps the two could face off again as members of the UCLA-USC rivalry, though, if Arenas' game translates to the college level like it should, he could be on his way to the NBA before Crowe gets there.

UCLA hasn't landed a consensus five-star since former Bruins Amari Bailey and Adem Bona from the class of 2022.

We'll see if the cold streak breaks with the 2025 or 2026 classes.

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