Jim Saia is a basketball coach, which means he is big on the balance theory. He prefers a college roster mix of youth with experience.
His prescribed diet: Three square meals a day and a starting lineup of seniors and underclassmen.
"I think this is going to be the first time since this staff has been together that we have both," said the UCLA assistant. "We've had a taste of each -- veteran teams with seniors and ones with all young players. Now, we'll have a combination.
|  | | Dan Gadzuric provides a solid presence in the middle at UCLA. |
"As a staff, I think we have proved ourselves every year to get better. No matter what the distractions have been, we've been able to improve. We're hoping there are no such distractions this year, because we could be as deep and talented as we have been."
Imagine that. For the first time since former coach Jim Harrick offered a version of new math on expense reports, the forecast in Westwood predicts no storm. Just calm.
And a very real chance at a deep NCAA Tournament run.
Stable has never seemed the operative word when describing head coach Steve Lavin's program, but this is the picture many paint heading into summer recruiting. The name Pitino might be a entree at the campus pasta bar, but it no longer represents a threat to Lavin's tenure. Heck, even former Dodgers general manager Kevin Malone seems to have lost all telephone numbers of prospective recruits.
Stable?
Lavin, about to enter his sixth season as head coach, is more than content with the recent support tossed his way from UCLA chancellor Albert Carnesale. Lavin and Athletic Director Peter Dalis (the same guy who telephoned Pasta Man during last season) could soon agree on a restructured contract for the coach, one with a higher buyout from the current $765,000.
"Just having talented players isn't enough." Lavin said. "It's the stability and continuity of your program, because of the development of our upperclassmen, that means so much. Stability and continuity are two critical factors."
It is so small, this difference between contending and pretending. Lavin says good balance is having enough tortoises and hares. The latter are those impact freshmen who keep a program near or at the top of an elite level. The former are those who have been through the grind for several years, who know about the ups and downs and wins and losses of college ball, who can pass down their wisdom and guidance to the hares.
Tortoises like wing Jason Kapono and center Dan Gadzuric.
The program that lost four players in four years to the NBA draft secured a probable Top 10 preseason ranking when the duo picked more class time over an early shot at prime time.
"You can't overstate how important it will be to have two all-conference players and potentially two All-Americans back on the roster," Saia said. "It means a player like (incoming freshman point guard) Cedric Bozeman can just play ball and run the system and not feel he has to carry the team on his back.
"I also think (Lavin) sets an example everyone should follow. He never cracks. He is always open to learning. No matter what has happened around him, he has just gone on and done his job. Being the head coach at UCLA is not easy."
No, but it appears more stable now.
Re-committed Beavers
Ritchie McKay looked at his first Oregon State roster last November and saw a Cadillac.
Six games into the season, he saw, well ...
"I don't want to be negative toward any specific car dealership, but let's just say we were missing a few parts and they all had to do with the engine," McKay said. "We were not as good as I originally thought. That's not to blame the kids. I'm ultimately responsible for the season we had. But six games into the season, we had to begin rebuilding that car piece by piece.
"I'm sorry if this offends anyone, but we don't have ready-made players at Oregon State. The key to our program is developing players over time. We are working this off-season on building a sound infrastructure. We have committed ourselves to developing kids with character and passion."
McKay's first season at OSU -- a 10-20 disaster that included more injuries than your average Euro soccer mob might inflict -- was his third head job in five years. It began with the team's best player (junior-college transfer Philip Ricci) injuring his knee before the first jump ball.
Things tumbled downhill from there. OSU began 4-2, lost at San Diego and then against UC Riverside and then at Denver. And then the car crashed.
Now, the Beavers will welcome a team in 2001-02 with essentially eight new players, counting those who sat out last year.
"We had to at one point sacrifice last season for the future," McKay said. "I hate to admit that, but it's the truth. That said, I'm very encouraged by the progress we are making physically and mentally this off-season. The entire team has re-committed itself."
Improving Down Under
The side-trips included a tour of the Old Melbourne Gaol (jail), snorkeling at the Great Barrier Reef and feeding kangaroos at Wildlife Park. In between, Arizona State coach Rob Evans is convinced his players became better on the court.
The Sun Devils, hopeful of shaking off last year's 13-16 disappointment, spent 11 days in Australia during May. They played five games. They won five. They traveled 13 players and took eight flights totaling 40 hours and 20 bus trips.
"When (the staff) came aboard in 1998, we started putting the trip together, knowing this would be the best year to do it," Evans said. "We had a few close games and different guys had to take big shots. You can't normally teach those things in May. We wore teams down with 10 guys, which speaks about our potential depth for next year."
The best sight: Justin Allen, who missed last season after being diagnosed with Hodgkin's Disease, made a team-high 11 three-pointers on the trip and averaged 8.3 points.
Compared to that, the Great Barrier Reef resembles your child's coral collection.
Ed Graney of the San Diego Union-Tribune is a regular contributor to ESPN.com. He can be reached at ed.graney@uniontrib.com.
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