Brandon Chauca will not play for Cal next season, Kameron Rooks transfers to SDSU

The California Golden Bears lose another member of last year’s basketball team, as Brandon Chauca will not be playing with the team next season. It’s unclear what Chauca will do—transfer immediately or wait a year, graduate from UC Berkeley, then transfer—but his days of playing for the Bears appear to be at an end.

Chauca was not a big part of Cal last season. I don’t believe he logged a single minute of play. He played quite a bit as a freshman and saw some action as a sophomore in the NCAA Tournament game against Hawaii when two rotation starters got injured. But it appeared as if Cal had moved on from Chauca as a potential option—Cal’s net rating with Chauca on the floor trended the wrong way.

Cal center Kameron Rooks announced his intention to transfer earlier this offseason, and he’s found a new home in San Diego State. Rooks is a good replacement for Skylar Spencer at center, and could come in handy for what is always one of the deepest programs on the West Coast.

If you’re keeping track, here’s the journey of our Cal basketball squad from last season.

• Ivan Rabb: Declared early for the NBA Draft
• Charlie Moore: Transferred to Kansas
• Jabari Bird: Graduated
• Kameron Rooks: Transferred to San Diego State
• Grant Mullins: Graduated
• Sam Singer: Graduated
• Stephen Domingo: Graduated
• Roger Moute a Bidias: Graduated

Our remaining rotation players from 2016-17 are center Kingsley Okoroh, guard Don Coleman, and forward Roman Davis (along with walk-ons like Nick Hamilton and Cole Welle). Joining those three will be power forward Marcus Lee (eligible now after transferring from Kentucky) and a host of freshmen.