As college sports continue to be pushed back because of the COVID-19 pandemic, professional leagues have restarted. Each Monday, Daily Bruin Sports will highlight a few standout alumni performances from the past week in ongoing leagues as we await the return of university athletics.
Reggie Cannon, U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team
Reggie Cannon, a defender for UCLA men’s soccer in 2016, contributed to the U.S. Men’s National Team’s 6-2 friendly win over Panama.
Playing all 90 minutes in the team’s second game since last February, Cannon chipped in a cross from the right flank, finding Sebastian Lletget in the 87th minute for the U.S.’s fifth goal.
The contest against Panama marked the 22-year-old right back’s 13th appearance for the USMNT, and the cross gave him his second assist in an international cap.
Cannon started five games for FC Dallas this season and recorded one assist before transferring in September for around $3 million. He now plays for Boavista Porto in the Portuguese Primeira Liga, where he has started all seven games for 15th-place Boavista.
Jayon Brown, Tennessee Titans, NFL
A former Bruin’s season was cut short by a season-ending injury this Sunday.
In the Tennessee Titans’ 30-24 overtime win over the Baltimore Ravens, linebacker Jayon Brown, who led UCLA in tackles in 2016 with 119, dislocated and fractured his elbow, which will cost him the rest of the season.
#Titans standout LB Jayon Brown, ruled out earlier today, suffered a dislocated and fractured elbow and is out for the season, source said. A tough one for that defense.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 22, 2020
A defensive staple at UCLA in 2016, Brown was one of the Titans’ most consistent defensive contributors, leading the Titans in total tackles as well as fumbles forced. His 45 solo tackles are tied for 31st most in the NFL.
Before leaving on the last drive of the first half with Tennessee trailing 14-10, Brown had recorded three tackles and one tackle for loss.
The Titans will now continue their pursuit of an American Football Conference playoff spot without their defensive leader, as they hold a 7-3 record and sit in second place in the AFC South with six regular season games to play.
Jrue Holiday, Milwaukee Bucks; Trevor Ariza, Oklahoma City Thunder; and Jaylen Hands, Detroit Pistons, NBA
At least three former Bruins will be making their mark in new cities in the upcoming NBA season.
Former UCLA guard Jrue Holiday will start his 12th NBA season in Milwaukee, playing for his third team since turning pro in 2009.
The 2008-2009 Pac-12 All-Freshman was traded by the New Orleans Pelicans to the Milwaukee Bucks as the centerpiece of an evolving four-team deal that also includes the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Denver Nuggets. He averaged 19.1 points per game last season for the Pelicans, marking the second-best scoring season of his NBA career.
Holiday spent one season with the Bruins in 2008-2009, where he started all 35 games and played an average of 27 minutes per game.
Forward Trevor Ariza will be joining the Thunder after a tumultuous trade season where he was traded three times within six days. He has played for nine NBA teams in his 16-year career since being drafted by the New York Knicks in 2004, most recently suiting up for the Portland Trail Blazers in 21 games in the 2019-2020 season. Ariza’s transfer to the Thunder marks the 10th of his career, setting an all-time NBA record for the most trades for a single player.
Trevor Ariza is the most-traded player in NBA history 🔄 pic.twitter.com/Z6HzgU9KtV
— Sporting News (@sportingnews) November 21, 2020
As a Bruin back in 2003-2004, Ariza was part of former men’s basketball coach Ben Howland’s first UCLA team. He averaged 31.6 minutes and 6.5 rebounds per game in 23 starts in his first and only season in blue and gold.
A more recent UCLA alumnus, Jaylen Hands, will play for the Detroit Pistons next year after being traded by the Brooklyn Nets.
The guard spent his first professional season with the Long Island Nets, the Nets’ G League affiliate, where he averaged 11.3 points, 2.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game in 40 appearances and 18 starts. He started all 33 games in his sophomore year as a Bruin in 2018-2019, pacing the Pac-12 with 6.1 assists per game.
