This post was updated Oct. 6 at 11:30 p.m.

When the Bruins began practicing Tuesday morning, every player went through two full drills following stretches without even dribbling a basketball.

On their third drill and first simulated run, not a single shot was taken – with players focused on their defensive movement and footwork to contest heavy ball movement, and coaches halting play if someone was not in the right spot at the right time.

Even when the Bruins started to simulate a full-court scenario, shots were few and far between, with Mick Cronin only allowing attempts following precise execution of the desired play.

It is that heavy emphasis on defense that has hallmarked UCLA men’s basketball under the eight-year head honcho. Cronin’s defensive approach has never been shy, heavily prioritizing shutting down easy lanes and aggressively closing out on jumpers.

So when a player buys into that culture, he is almost more than guaranteed to be trusted with ample minutes.

And at the core of the Bruins heading into 2026-27 is senior center Xavier Booker.

Returning to Westwood for his second season, Booker showed flashes as a strong big man who can bottle up the paint with his 6-foot-11 frame. The former Michigan State Spartan led the Bruins with 1.2 blocks per game in 20.1 minutes a night.

“In the NCAA tournament, he was arguably our best player,” Cronin said. “He hadn’t played extended minutes like that at the college level – it was new for him. He got better at it as the year went on.”

In UCLA’s first-round match of the 2026 March Madness tournament, Booker posted four blocks against UCF. In games where he played 20-plus minutes, the Indianapolis local averaged 1.83 stuffs per match.

Booker – who said he watches Anthony Davis and Chris Bosh in film – is now projected to be the Bruins’ full-time starting center, using his length and athleticism to continue deterring opponents at the rim. However, his biggest question is whether or not he can play a full season with “maximum sustained minutes,” after having been mostly a reserve across his first two collegiate seasons in East Lansing, Michigan.

“I see myself as a rim protector,” Booker said. “I showed moments of that last year, being able to defend at a high level, but I just got to be consistent with that. … Just blocking my shots, being there for my teammates.”

Surrounding Booker is a plethora of new faces: four transfers and four freshmen, all of whom, besides sophomore guard Jaylen Petty, are at least 6-foot-6 and bring a raw blend of athleticism, length and defensive tenacity to terrorize the perimeter.

Headlining the new batch of Bruins is freshman guard/forward Nikola Kusturica, who comes to Los Angeles after competing for FC Barcelona with Spain. This past summer, he competed with the Serbian national team at the FIBA U17 World Cup, leading the squad to a silver medal finish and claiming the Best Defensive Player award after pacing his team with 16 steals and 12 blocks.

The projected 2028 NBA lottery pick brings lateral agility and a high motor, making him a staunch defensive wing who can switch into multiple positions and close out from all areas of the floor.

With half of the new Bruins hailing from Europe, many have drawn comparisons to UCLA’s 2023-24 roster, which had five Europeans – all but one of whom were freshmen. However, Cronin said that this current iteration is more experienced, more athletic and simply better than the squad three years ago.

While Kusturica is still a teenager, he is simply one of the best young talents Cronin has coached in his time in Westwood. And joining the freshman class is a handful of other international talents poised to make early impacts.

“He is a ferocious player of toughness,” Cronin said of sophomore forward/center Filip Jović – an Auburn transfer. “He is not the typical European guy. He’s not the tallest, but as I was complaining, I wanted a tough guy from Europe – he’s that guy.”

While playing time may be limited for a team with several key returners, the rookie class also features 6-foot-8 guard/forward Joe Philon III, whom Cronin described as a pogo stick that believes every shot is a pass to him.

The Montverde Academy product compared himself to Jaden McDaniels when asked who his NBA comparison was.

“Just really playing a lot of defense, getting after it defensively at multiple positions, running the floor, getting easy baskets on the cuts and things of that nature – just anything to help my team win,” Philon said about what he plans to do this season.

The Bruins will have their first real opportunity to display that coverage Nov. 2 against Arizona in Las Vegas.