UCLA is being spared a complete makeover of its basketball roster for next season after forward Kris Wilkes announced Tuesday that he would come back for his sophomore season instead of entering the NBA draft.
Wilkes' return gives the Bruins a proven scorer and playmaker while considerably brightening their outlook for next season considering they could have as many as eight freshmen. Had Wilkes departed, UCLA would have had to replace its entire starting lineup and top three scorers.
Wilkes was the team's second-leading scorer (13.7 points per game) and rebounder (4.9 per game) last season while showing admirable consistency as a freshman, scoring in double figures in 26 of 33 games.