Coach Rejects Report Hinting at UCLA Offer

Speculation on Don MacLean’s college choice has drawn Simi Valley Coach Bob Hawking into the guessing game.

MacLean, a 6-10 center, has narrowed his choices to Kentucky, Pittsburgh, Nevada Las Vegas, Georgia Tech and UCLA. He opted to bypass the early signing period before his senior season and said he will not make a decision until the end of the season.

So where does Hawking fit in? Perhaps at UCLA, where a recent account offered a scenario of Hawking accepting an assistant coaching position from UCLA Coach Walt Hazzard, with MacLean in tow.

“Did they tell you how much I’d be making or where my parking space would be?” Hawking asked sarcastically. “I don’t know where those rumors start, but we can end it right here in the San Fernando Valley section of The Times.

“Walt Hazzard wouldn’t know me if we bumped into each other in the street.”

Monday’s edition of the Orange County Register implied otherwise.

Hazzard, asked by columnist Mark Whicker whether UCLA was interested in a MacLean-Hawking package, said: “It’s not under consideration.”

A possibility?

“I’m not saying it’s not a possibility,” Hazzard said.