UCLA Hires Steve Alford As New Coach, Spurns Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

The UCLA Bruins have hired New Mexico coach Steve Alford to replace Ben Howland, ending a chaotic search process that at one point had interest from Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Alford will be announced as the Bruins’ new coach at a press event in Los Angeles on Tuesday. He replaces Howland, who was fired last week after the Bruins were upset by Minnesota in their first game of the NCAA Tournament. Howland had been with the team for 10 years.

“I have been so fortunate and blessed in my life, and an opportunity to lead the one of the greatest programs in college basketball history is once in a lifetime,” Alford said in a statement released by the school. “It is an honor to be the head coach at UCLA, yet it is also a responsibility to ensure that our former, current and future players and fans are proud to be Bruins. I am grateful to chancellor Gene Block and Dan Guerrero for this amazing opportunity and I can’t wait to get started.”

The search for a new coach at UCLA took many twists and turns this week, as the Bruins were reportedly pursuing VCU coach Shaka Smart and Butler’s Brad Stevens.

Even UCLA star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar wanted his name in the mix. Kareem told Fox Sports’ Jay Mohr: “I’ve been lobbying for the job and I want the job … Hopefully I’ll find out in short order what’s going on there.”

UCLA athletic director Dan Guerrero said Alford stood out because he plans an up-tempo style and could help draw student-athletes and put fans in the seats at the Pauley Pavilion.

“Steve is the perfect fit for UCLA,” Guerrero said. “He is part of the storied history of the game of college basketball and understands the tradition and uniqueness of UCLA. Yet he also connects with a new generation of players and brings an up-tempo and team-oriented brand of basketball to Westwood. We welcome Steve, his wife Tanya, and children Kory, Bryce and Kayla to the Bruin family and look forward to many years of success.”

Before being named UCLA’s new head coach, Steve Alford actually had something in common with Howland. His New Mexico Lobos were also upset in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, losing to No. 14 seed Harvard.