With the news that Donovan Dent recently transferred to LSU, I took a closer look at last season's stats and the structure of Mick Cronin's style to see just how important he was to this UCLA team.
Donovan Dent was an enormous addition last season. Coming to Westwood as the reigning Mountain West Player of the Year after averaging 20.4 points and 6.4 assists at New Mexico, he saw his numbers take a slight dip at UCLA.
He ultimately averaged 13.3 points and 7.6 assists for the Bruins last season and was an integral part of the team, playing just over 34 minutes a night. With the ball always in Dent's hands, it allowed him to be one of the best facilitators in the country, as his 7.6 assists per game suggest.
UCLA's offense relied heavily on his ability to create for others, but with the roster that Mick Cronin has built for the 2026-27 season, the Bruins may actually be better equipped to replace what Dent provided than many fans realize.
UCLA Isn't Looking for a New Donovan Dent
Dent was not the leading scorer for this Bruins team last season, but he played a major role in helping everyone around him score. Replacing Dent's 7.6 assists per game is no easy task, and UCLA will indeed struggle to find someone to match that loss.
But that may not be what Mick Cronin needs this season. Instead of finding one player to fill Dent's shoes, the Bruins have the ability to distribute those same responsibilities over multiple players.
Trent Perry will now assume the role of point guard and main facilitator of this offense, and we've seen flashes of him performing in that sort of role at a high level. With Dent off the floor in the Big Ten Semifinal game against Purdue, Perry recorded 15 points and nine assists.
If he can continue to build off of those types of performances, UCLA basketball could be in good hands at the point guard position.
Jaylen Petty Changes the Equation
The Texas Tech transfer Jaylen Petty gives Cronin yet another resourceful guard capable of creating offense and scoring from multiple spots on the floor. Petty averaged 9.9 points per game as a freshman with the Red Raiders and shot 37% from behind the arc. Now, his role at UCLA will be much larger than it was at Texas Tech.
Instead of having one facilitator like Dent put pressure on the defense, UCLA can now have two players capable of dealing damage, making the Bruins much harder to match up against.
Overall, the Bruins can replace Dent's impact by spreading responsibility throughout the roster, and that could make UCLA's offense much harder to plan for.
Dent was an excellent player and Bruin, and losing him shouldn't necessarily be viewed as a positive, but rather as manageable.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/ucla as Why Losing Donovan Dent May Not Hurt UCLA Basketball.
