BRIDGET O’BRIEN/Daily Bruin Senior Staff Coach
Gerald Madkins keeps his eye on the game earlier
this season. Madkins himself spent 1987-1992 as a player on the
Bruins.
By J.P. Hoornstra
Daily Bruin Contributor
Thwump! The machine below the self-rebounding hoop shot out
another basketball. Matt Barnes caught it at the top of the key and
misfired on a jump shot. The ball trickled downward. Thwump!
Another ball shot out. Barnes caught it, jumped and missed
again.
“That’s a new machine!” Gerald Madkins said.
“You’re gonna break it!”
As Barnes explained his predicament ““ his loose gym shorts
were falling, impeding his shot ““ Madkins may have been
reminded of the shoot-arounds he enjoyed 11 years ago on the Pauley
Pavilion floor.
Today, after a tour of duty in the NBA, Madkins has returned to
Westwood in a new role. He and former Pittsburgh assistant coach
Patrick Sandle join Steve Lavin on the sidelines as assistants in
2001-02.
Madkins’ roots at UCLA run deep. Coming to UCLA from
Merced High School, Madkins appeared in 123 games for the Bruins
from 1987 to 1992. To this day, he ranks fifth in career
three-point field goals (118), seventh in steals (146) and ninth in
assists (404) on the school’s all-time list.
As team captain his senior year, Madkins led UCLA to a Pac-10
title and the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament.
In the four postseason games, he averaged 16.3 points and 3.5
assists while shooting 56.3 percent from the field.
“The most important things that happened to me, in some
way, shape or form, have been related to UCLA,” Madkins said.
He met his future wife Julee as an undergraduate at UCLA; they now
have two children and still live in the Los Angeles area.
“The college experience was so valuable for me,” he
said, “I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
After graduating, he split six seasons between the NBA, CBA and
Europe. From 1993 to 1995, he manned the backcourt for the
Cleveland Cavaliers, and returned in 1997-98 for stints with Golden
State Warriors and Miami Heat.
Madkins has been to the next level and thinks this year’s
team could produce “four or five” NBA players.
“Probably the big fellow (Dan Gadzuric) “˜cause
he’s 7-foot-1 and runs like a gazelle; they like big kids up
there. Probably Jason (Kapono) will be the next one. I see Matt
Barnes having a future in the NBA “¦ (and) Dijon
Thompson.”
For now, Madkins is familiarizing himself with Division I
coaching. But he hopes that his strong desire to coach will allow
him to move up the ranks.
“The players keep me young,” he said.
“I’ve been exposed to a lot of great players, and I owe
it to the game to pass that along to other players.”
The other new face on the bench, Sandle, has accumulated a
wealth of coaching experience in a very short time. While Sandle
may be unfamiliar with the NBA experience, he brings a
teacher’s wisdom to the team.
Sandle has amassed 16 years of coaching experience, including
jobs with Salamonica (Spain), Fresno State, and most recently, at
Northern Arizona and Pittsburgh.
How does this Bruin squad match up to the previous teams
he’s coached?
“Talent-wise, skill level, this is one of the
higher-skilled teams that I’ve ever coached,” he said.
“When you coach guys that aren’t as skilled, they just
play a different way.
“We have a lot of shooters. Other guys grind it more, they
probably spend more time in the weight room, scoring inside in the
paint.”
For Sandle, who was born and raised in Los Angeles, coaching at
UCLA represents a homecoming as well as a job. In the end, it may
prove to be a valuable training ground for the future.
“I’m gonna be a head coach in Division I
basketball,” Sandle said with confidence. “But also, I
want to be an assistant coach in the NBA and just see what
it’s like.”
Madkins has been working primarily with the Bruin guards and
defense, as well as handling recruiting. Sandle assists in multiple
areas, “trying to make our team more complete.”
And so far both coaches seem to have jelled with this team.
“Coach Sandle is a pretty low-key coach and pretty
no-nonsense, he comes straight to the point,” guard Ray Young
said. “And coach Madkins, he’s had experience in the
NBA. We work out with him early in the morning, and he always has
little tricks that he learned from the NBA that help us.”
Lavin, now in his sixth year, brought on both Madkins and Sandle
to take the team to its second straight Sweet-16 appearance and the
national championship.
“They have a passion for the game,” he said.
“They’re extremely hard-working, loyal and talented
individuals. I wouldn’t be surprised if all of them are
Division I head coaches within the next five years.”