Dollar’s Future Is Bright : Economic Forecast? No, Bruin Basketball

Cameron Dollar is a supporting actor, a stunt man performing in the midst of future millionaires.

Hit the floor taking charges? Yes, Dollar does that. Bark at his teammates if they’re not hustling to his satisfaction? Sure. Play defense? That’s his signature.

Score points? Well, for now, the UCLA sophomore guard is leaving that for the leading men.

“I can’t stand a team where everybody thinks they’re the star,” Dollar says. “You’ve got to have some unsung guys if you want to be the best.

“Everybody can’t be the man on the cover of every magazine. You have to be able to accept and love your role.”

Like everything else, Dollar figured out his role long ago and is making do until next year--when he figures to assume Tyus Edney’s spot as UCLA’s bread-and-butter ballhandler.

Dollar, 6 feet 2, came to UCLA from Atlanta two years ago knowing full well that he would be nothing more than Edney’s backup for two years. Last year, Dollar emerged in the late season as a secure ballhandler, and ended up sixth in playing time.

This year, Dollar started the first seven games alongside Edney as a nod to his steadiness and his loud, aggressive leadership. But Dollar was supplanted by 6-9 freshman J.R. Henderson when it became obvious that he and Edney were too similar to be on the court for too long together.

So, even as some of his more noted second-year contemporaries--Brevin Knight of Stanford, Kenya Wilkins of Oregon and Donminic Ellison of Washington State--establish themselves as the next wave of dominant Pacific 10 Conference point guards, Dollar has bided his time . . . and played utility man as he waits.

“I look at them now,” he said, “and I think, ‘Man, I can’t wait until I can get out there and get in that group.’ Because everybody’s seen Brevin and Kenya, and even Donminic Ellison is doing real well. But nobody’s seen me.

“It’s been Tyus, and, ‘Cam, he does everything else. He might come in, play a little “D,” run the show, like a filler guy.’ It’s going to be good to get in that group.

“Thing is, Donminic, Brevin, Kenya, all those guys know I’m going to be in the group next year. Me and Brevin were talking before the game, and he knows I’m going to be in that group. It’s like nobody outside the circle really knows. But it’ll be fun, really fun.”

Last Thursday, during a Bruin fans’ worst nightmare--Edney missing an important game--Dollar was tossed into the breach when Edney was held out of the game at USC because of flu.

After a shaky, zero-assist first half, Dollar’s controlled play led UCLA to a tight, four-point victory at the Sports Arena, where the Bruins had lost in four of their five previous visits.

“I think it was something (Bruin fans) can look to as a blueprint,” Dollar says. “But I didn’t really show them what’s to come. When that chance comes again, I expect to play even better.”

Dollar is still going through a season-long scoring slump--he is averaging only 3.4 points, has a season-high of only 10 points, and is shooting a woeful 29.2% from the field.

But the UCLA coaching staff doesn’t appear bothered by his shooting problems. Dollar was a 46.8% shooter as a freshman.

“Cameron is one of the smartest basketball players and point guards that I’ve ever been around,” says Lorenzo Romar, a former NBA player. “And Cameron understands his role on our team and what’s going to make us as good a team as we can be.

“Having played point guard myself, you get so caught up in running the team and setting this guy, setting that guy up, so sometimes when it’s your time to shoot, it’s a little foreign to you.

“I think that’s something Cameron has to work through. And as time goes on I’m confident that he will.”

As the Bruin staff peers into March and beyond into next year when Dollar is the starting point guard, one quality stands out most about him: his personality.

“He has some things he needs to improve on--he needs to knock down a shot or two more for me, and he needs to play a little bit better under control,” Bruin Coach Jim Harrick says.

“But, I’ll tell you something, he gives us a dimension that we haven’t had since Gerald Madkins: a fiery, tough competitor who talks on defense.

“He gives you a dimension of things that don’t show up in the stats, that you can’t coach into an athlete. He’s a junkyard player. He’s tough, he’s hard-nosed. And let me tell you, the other guys have picked up on it. They enjoy playing with him.

“You enjoy playing with a guy who never shoots, always passes. And every time you lose your man, he’s in there taking a charge. Digging the ball out. Doing something to help his teammates.”

Dollar says he has been preparing for next year throughout this season, knowing that he, Charles O’Bannon, Henderson and Toby Bailey will make up the heart of the 1995-96 UCLA team.

“If you really want to be a leader next year, the time to get into the groove is this year,” Dollar says. “You just can’t turn it on next year and say, ‘All right, I’m leading the squad.’ It doesn’t work like that.

“In certain instances, I’ve been called upon to lead the team this year. Stanford game, Tyus gets in foul trouble, I have to step up for the call.”

Says Edney: “He’s definitely a leader on the floor. I think he’s going to step right in next year. He’s good at setting up guys. I don’t think he’s really thinking ‘shot’ right now. I think he’s going with his strength, that’s getting guys open shots.

“But he’s very capable of scoring. He has a good shot. That will just come.”

Dollar says he came to UCLA, in part, to play behind Edney and practice against him every day. If he could hold his own against Edney, he figured, he’d be ready his junior season.

“I think Tyus has helped more than he could ever know,” Dollar says. “When he picked me up my freshman year, I mean, there was no way I could get around him. I practiced against him every day. There’s times I can get around him now.”