De’End Parker decommits, now UCLA bound

De’End Parker, a junior college guard, has changed his commitment from California to UCLA. Parker had just committed to the Bears last week.

You can find out the type of player Parker was in a post I made last week here. While the news is saddening, it does not have a huge effect on the Bears future plans. Parker seemed to fit in as a rotation player, albeit not a hugely important one. His decommitment just means that Emerson Murray and Jeff Powers need to step up their games next year. As for his now vacant scholarship, it will probably be left empty unless a player (like Jorge!) comes along late in the recruiting period.

As for UCLA, they pick up a solid guard who can slide in right away and make an immediate impact. With Tyler Honeycutt potentially leaving for the NBA, UCLA needs insurance. They got that. Parker provides the kind of defensive length and toughness that Ben Howland covets.

This is very disappointing news for the basketball program, although it is not crippling for our future hopes. It’s saddening that it comes to a conference rival and that it happens so soon after his commitment, but Cal should be fine. Go Bears!