Cal basketball must maintain their 2017-18 roster through the coaching change

The California Golden Bears need to find a new head coach, and they need to find one in a hurry. There are multiple situations that need to be resolved.

Marcus Lee. For now Lee remains in the fold, and seems committed to the Bears at least for next season.

Lee has one year of eligibility he can use with Cal. It’s imperative for Cal to keep Lee as they likely transition power forward from the Ivan Rabb era. The Bears only have Roman Davis at power forward for next season otherwise, and he’s bit of a project.

Charlie Moore. Moore was a late-minute signing by Cuonzo Martin, and the two share a pretty close relationship. Remember Moore originally committed to Memphis before their head coach left, so he fell into Cal’s laps.

It’s imperative for Cal to keep Moore in the fold. Cal is losing Sam Singer and has only Don Coleman (who is not an ideal point) and Brandon Chauca (who I don’t believe played this season) left off the bench, and none of Cal’s new recruits are point guards. 4

The recruiting class. Cal’s recruiting class is ranked somewhere in the top 25 to 35, and is crucial to preventing a full rebuild for the Bears next season. Cal currently has three signees: Jemarl Baker, Juhwan Harris-Dyson and Trevin Knell. They also have two commits: Justice Sueing and Grant Anticevich. You’d have to guess all these Bears are at risk of potential defection.

Don’t expect the letter of intents for the first three to mean much at this point (especially Knell’s, who will likely take a few years on his Mormon mission). If any of the signees aren’t fans of the new coaching staff, Cal will almost certainly let them out of their letters of intent. It’s imperative that Cal’s new coach can sell the recruits on ta similar vision.

Ivan Rabb. I’d guess Rabb is gone and his announcement on his future will likely come in the next few days, but if there is any tentativeness about his decision, the right coach might perhaps sway him back. This is a loaded NBA draft, and it’s quite possible Rabb’s draft stock improves in 2018 when things appear to be a little less crowded.

However, these hopes are at best remote. Expect Rabb to declare this week or next.