USC basketball is ranked higher than UCLA in Pac-12 preseason poll for the first time since 2003-04

You won’t see any sort of “Fight for L.A.” marketing campaign around USC or UCLA in the coming months.

Both of their men’s basketball teams have much bigger aspirations than a city championship. USC was picked second in the Pac-12 Conference preseason media poll, trailing only Arizona and happily sitting one spot ahead of that blue-and-gold rival from across town.

“It’s always great to see USC above UCLA in anything, honestly,” Trojans senior guard Jordan McLaughlin said.

It is the highest standing for USC in the history of a preseason poll that goes back to the 1989-90 season. The Trojans, who return all five starters from the team that won a school-record 26 games, received one first-place vote compared with the Wildcats’ 22.

“It’s great acknowledgment,” McLaughlin said, “but we still have a lot of work to do on our part, going out in practice and competing, getting better every single day to be one of those top teams.”

USC has not been predicted to finish ahead of UCLA in the conference since 2003-04, when the Trojans were picked fifth and the Bruins sixth.

UCLA returns only one starter from the team that won 31 games last season and advanced to an NCAA tournament regional semifinal, but the Bruins restocked their roster with a seven-man recruiting class widely considered among the top five in the country. For the first time in recent history, winning the Pac-12 will likely necessitate beating their archrivals.

“They’re going to be a great team, we’re going to be a great team,” UCLA senior center Thomas Welsh said. “Without a doubt those two, if not three times we play will be battles because of the rivalry plus it’s two great teams in the Pac-12. So I think it’s a lot to look forward to.”

Welcome back

Welsh and teammate Aaron Holiday worked out for NBA teams to assess their draft stock and areas for improvement before returning to UCLA.

Welsh said he worked out for the Oklahoma City Thunder and was told to extend his shooting range to the three-point line and improve his quickness in defending perimeter ball screens.

Holiday said he worked out for five or six NBA teams. He said those teams “didn’t really tell me much,” but he’s developed his own self-improvement plan that involves increasing the consistency on his jump shot, lowering turnovers, getting more assists and playing defense at a high level.

USC forward Bennie Boatwright also decided to return rather than make himself available for the NBA draft. He said he was focused on improving “lateral quickness with guarding smaller guys and getting stronger to bang with big guys.”

He’s cool with it

One of UCLA’s so-called slow-footed white guys said he doesn’t hold a grudge about what some might consider a racist slight.

It came from LaVar Ball, the father of former Bruin Lonzo Ball and current UCLA freshman LiAngelo Ball, who said the Bruins didn’t fare better in the NCAA tournament last season because “you can’t win no championship with three white guys because the foot speed is too slow,” an obvious dig at T.J. Leaf, Gyorgy Goloman and Welsh.

Leaf was selected by the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the NBA draft, leaving Welsh and Goloman to deal with any lingering awkwardness. Welsh said he took no offense and moved on quickly.

“I mean, that’s just who LaVar is, his personality,” Welsh said of the comments. “I didn’t really take much from it. I mean, I know the work that I put in. It wasn’t anything too crazy.”

Welsh said LiAngelo Ball has proved just as likable as his older brother.

“He’s a really great teammate like Lonzo was,” Welsh said. “I mean, a super-great guy in the locker room, just a good person.”

ben.bolch@latimes.com

Twitter: @latbbolch