Yaaaahh!
The low roar fills the nearly empty arena and intensifies as David Singleton’s UCLA teammates gather around him in a loose circle.
Yip! Yip! Yip!
These teammates push the fifth grader in one direction, then another, all clapping rhythmically, laughs around.
shark! shark! shark!
Singleton calms down and gets ready for the final whistle every 43 minutes.
“Let’s go, white man!” he yelled at the T-Mobile Arena, referring to the team’s uniform color. “Let’s go, white man!”
Another roar ensues as the circle contracts and the arms simultaneously shoot into the air. They do it all one more time just before the game starts, Singleton turns back to his teammates.
“You know,” said point guard Tyger Campbell, “he always seems to know what to say.”
The ritual that has kept the Bruins unbreakable, no matter how many players are injured, begins with a seasoned hype man who knows exactly what he’s doing.
Nobody likes UCLA basketball anymore. The Los Angeles native was so excited to be a Bruin that he stayed on the Pauley Pavilion field as a freshman. He showed up unannounced once and delivered game-worn shoes to a fan’s house, who wrote a letter of admiration.
When coach Mick Cronin said last weekend that he would ask Singleton to return for a sixth season after that NCAA tournament opener Thursday night at the Golden 1 Center against North Carolina Asheville, maybe he wasn’t kidding.
The sniper isn’t just good at sinking threes and making everyone feel good. What makes Singleton irreplaceable to the teammates who push him before every game is his willingness to push back.
Singleton literally pushed six-foot Adem Bona past the baseline earlier this season, a punch to the chest that stopped the freshman from escalating tensions with a Washington counterpart tangled with him under the basket.
“I just told him, ‘Don’t talk to them, talk to us,'” Singleton said of his conversation with his team-mate.
He got in the face of Dylan Andrews during a game against Arizona State after the freshman guard received a technical foul for mocking a poster.
“I said to him afterwards, ‘Yo, good energy, good think,'” Singleton said, “but stay professional.” “
He even got into his coach after Cronin was called for a surprise technical foul at Stanford, telling him not to get another one that would result in his ejection.
Cronin said, “I was upset because I got an unfair ‘T’ from a guy I hadn’t even spoken to. So I think Dave thought I was going crazy.”
Singleton said: “Coach and I both know we’re playing for something bigger than both of us. He gets a little hot sometimes, but I’m thankful we have a coach who wants it so badly, you know?
Cronin returned the favor by keeping Singleton in the starting lineup after Jaylen Clark lost to a leg injury, though the manager admitted part of him wanted to put newcomer Will McClendon in that role. His justification?
“David was the most loyal player I ever coached,” said Cronin, who is about to finish his 20th season as collegiate head coach and 27th overall in Division I.
Cronin went on to say that the trajectory of UCLA’s career changed the moment he made Singleton the starter after a home loss to Stanford in January 2020.
“We turned our season around,” said Cronin, whose team won 11 of the last 14 games before the COVID-19 shutdown, “simply by following orders.”
The following season, with the arrival of star transfer Johnny Juzang, Singleton returned to the bench, his influence growing quietly.
“Don’t say a word, play big, help us beat Alabama in overtime, we’re going to the Final Four,” Cronin said.
It was around this time that Singleton began leading the pre-game hype group and came up with the idea after seeing Michael Jordan talk to his Chicago Bulls teammates in the documentary “The Last Dance.” Singleton uses similar phrases, shouting “Hard work now!” before adding something tailored to what he’s feeling at the time.
“It’s a great boost to the game,” Andrews said. “He always has his little encouragement with us, lets us know early in the game to kick these guys on the neck and if we can pull that off nobody can really stop us, man. That’s why we love Dave.”
Pumping up the volume is necessary given the nature of the other seniors. Campbell doesn’t like to say much. Jaime Jaquez Jr., the Pac-12 Player of the Year, may be too nice to get someone. Singleton does not have this problem.
“I understand I may not be the best player on the pitch,” said Singleton, “but I know I can contribute and leadership is what this team needs to take the next step to the next championship.” I will lead that team.”
are you ready for basketball
Yaaaahh!
Source: LA Times