Gadzuric Decides to Stay at UCLA

UCLA center Dan Gadzuric announced Tuesday he plans to stay for his senior season, instead of declaring for the NBA draft a year early.

“Pretty much the deciding factor was I wanted to concentrate on college and not the workouts and stuff like that,” he said. “Prove to myself that I could be a top prospect for the NBA.”

His decision does not come as a surprise. The day after UCLA lost to Duke in the NCAA tournament, he said the odds of his staying in school were “better than 50-50.”

His initial leanings were reinforced when Bruin coaches took him to the office of agent Arn Tellem. His mock draft projected the 6-foot-11 Gadzuric being selected between the 20th and 29th picks. The top 10 selections are paid significantly more.

“We educated him that we thought it was best that he come back,” said assistant coach Jim Saia, who recruited Gadzuric and knows him as well as anyone in the program. “He knows he’s a big part of the puzzle for us next year.”

Gadzuric, 23, grew up in Holland and started playing basketball in his early teens. He was the Bruins’ third-leading scorer (11.7) in the 2000-01 season, and led the team in rebounding (8.6), field-goal percentage (53.4%) and blocked shots (1.9). He finished the season with four double-doubles in five games.

It’s unclear whether Gadzuric’s choice to stay will affect Jason Kapono, who also is considering leaving early for the pros.

A source close to Kapono said the sophomore forward has decided to stay in school, although Kapono’s father, Joe, said his son is continuing to weigh his options. Kapono currently is enrolled as a full-time UCLA student.

The Bruins, who today are expecting a signed letter of intent from recruit Andre Patterson, also could be getting some help from a potential transfer. Dalron Johnson, a 6-9 sophomore forward from Nevada Las Vegas, is considering transferring to UCLA.

Johnson, who grew up in Los Angeles. and was a standout at Verbum Dei, averaged 12.3 points and 7.6 rebounds for the Rebels last season. A year earlier, he was named co-freshman of the year for the Mountain West Conference.

If he transferred to UCLA, he would be required to sit out a season. He would join the team as a walk-on, then would get a scholarship for the 2002-03 season.