Cronin Teaching More Than Just Basketball at UCLA

Posted by author February 26, 2025 Basketball

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The UCLA Bruins (20-8, 11-6) possess one of the best coaches in all of college basketball, not because of the big wins and NCAA Tournament appearances, but due to how and what Bruins coach Mick Cronin teaches his players. It is about much more than basketball for Cronin.

Last Sunday, the sixth-year UCLA head coach celebrated his 500th career win, defeating the Ohio State Buckeyes (15-13, 7-10) at Pauley Pavilion. Following the win, a pair of Bruin players spoke about what Cronin’s teaching styles and attitudes have been like in their first seasons learning from him.

Both sophomore guard Eric Dailey Jr. and junior guard Skyy Clark are first-year transfers this offseason and are receiving their first seasons as a Mick Cronin-coached player. The way they both spoke about his coaching style proves that they are beyond grateful for the job he has done this year.

Clark is at his third school in three years and it may be safe to say he is enjoying this season the most. Something about this UCLA program and the way Cronin teaches this team has resonated with Clark and grown him into a smarter and more talented player.

“Since my first day here until now, I’ve definitely matured probably the most I have in a season,” Clark said. “He’s [Cronin] taught us a lot; he’s taught us just about how the real world works and he’s definitely tough on us. There’s some days we walk into practice and he’s just on us the whole day, but if you really sit back and look at it from a different perspective, you could tell that he does care about us and that he’s looking out for our best interests.

“Even though it might not be a way that you might not understand right now, when we’re 28, we’re going to look back and be like, ‘Yeah, he was definitely trying to help us out and teach us for sure.'”

Dailey is in his second season, transferring after one year at Oklahoma State. He honed in on the fact that Cronin is not just teaching his players to win games and go to a Final Four. He is educating them on life itself and how to navigate it as a young man in a high-profile, high-pressure situation at UCLA.

“I feel like coach teaches a lot of lessons that don’t pertain to basketball too,” Dailey said. “A lot of life lessons, a lot of real-life situations. I know y’all so well, the media talks about how he coaches and everything, but I think that’s real.

“He’s just a real coach, a real person, and that’s really what you need to survive in this real world. He’s taught us a lot, taught us to save money, he taught us how to manage money, taught us how to be a good person as well through basketball.

“I think just the discipline side of it. He yells, but everything in the world is not going to be nice and pretty, so I think that’s making us tough for the real world.”

In the grand scheme of life, each of Cronin’s players has spent a small portion of their life as a member of his team. The future Hall-of-Fame head coach is well aware that the imprint he can leave on his players will build character and strength for the rest of life, long after basketball is over.

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