Ivan Rabb to Return to California: Latest Comments and Reaction

California Golden Bears freshman forward Ivan Rabb has decided to forgo the NBA draft and return for his sophomore season. Head coach Cuonzo Martin announced the decision Sunday, per Ryan Gorcey of Scout.com:

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Ivan is an (sic) tremendous person and student-athlete to have on our team. He and his family have put a lot of thought into making a decision that was right for him. He is a talented basketball player with a very bright future, and we are excited to have Ivan continue as a member of our Cal basketball program.

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Rabb was excellent for the Golden Bears in his first season with the program, averaging 12.5 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in 28.7 minutes per game. He led the team in both rebounds and blocks, though he was fourth on the talented squad in points per game.

His decision to stay in school means the Bears will have one of their talented freshmen from 2015-16 on the team next year, though standout guard Jaylen Brown has declared for the draft.

While Brown is a potential top-five pick, it was harder to determine where Rabb might have gone in this year's draft.

“He’s got a really high ceiling, but I could also see him being an Ed Davis-type player at the next level,” a Western Conference scout told Connor Letourneau of the San Francisco Chronicle. “Like Jaylen, Ivan could probably use another year refining his game.”

Rabb will need to add some muscle to his 220-pound frame to compete with the NBA's bigger bodies in the paint, and he'll need to improve his defense as well.

His upside alone may have been enough to make him a lottery pick. Nonetheless, another year at school will help Rabb, who will have a chance to go from being a fringe lottery pick to a top-10 lock if he can improve his game.

And Cal will have most of its talented core intact next year, led by Rabb, Jordan Mathews and Jabari Bird.
 

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