UCLA sophomores David Singleton and Jules Bernard participated in a Zoom chat with UCLA radio play-by-play broadcaster Josh Lewin on Thursday night. The virtual chat lasted for approximately 30 minutes and was available to UCLA season-ticket holders and donors.

Below is a transcript of the Q-and-A session, moderated by Josh Lewin.

Q: The last time that we saw you guys, we thought you’d be taking the court against Stanford or Cal, and it turned out it would be Cal. The tournament was setting up with what could have been a favorable draw in Las Vegas. Were you guys of that same mindset, that things were looking up for the Bruins?

Jules Bernard: “Yeah, I think we were definitely heading in the right direction with how the latter half of our season was going. We were super excited. Even after that tough loss [at USC], we were coming into the Pac-12 Tournament with a lot of confidence. We had a high seed with that second seed. We were ready to play. But unfortunately, we couldn’t.”

Q: David, I would imagine that you were, in particular, looking forward to getting on the floor in that tournament, because the last time you’d been in the Pac-12 Tournament, you had to limp off the floor. You had your foot stepped on in a crazy play, as the seconds ticked away against Stanford. The next thing you know, we’re wondering if we’ll see you on the court again. Can you talk about how you worked yourself back from that injury and your thoughts on your season?

David Singleton: “It was definitely heartbreaking. That was my first time being at the Pac-12 Tournament, and I was injured. It was a similar injury to one I’d had in high school, so I knew I’d bounce back. I knew what I was going through. I had an excellent staff right behind me. It was a little difficult, going through a new coaching staff and Everything like that. But as the summer and the fall progressed, I started to get my confidence back. During the season and especially during conference play, our coach really looked at me as a guy they could depend upon. I made my way into the starting lineup. That really gave me confidence. I started to feel a lot more confident about my game.”

Q: Mick Cronin had just been named Pac-12 Coach of the Year just before we all got introduced to COVID-19. He took a team that was picked to finish eighth out of 12, and you guys were in position to win the conference. You finished second out of 12. But after starting 8-9, you guys finished the year 19-12. I would think, and Jules let’s start with you, from that 8-9 beginning to being 19-12 and people across the country are paying attention to UCLA, how fun was that?

Jules Bernard: “It was a lot of fun, the whole process, from the beginning to the end. I think that there was a beauty in the struggle, and we went through that struggle early on. We played Arizona at Arizona in that environment, and it was amazing. I think that was a sold-out crowd and it was loud. And we just did our job. We had a great game. That helped propel us in conference play. To see the journey from where we were in the beginning to where we were in the end, it was very fun. It was fun to be a part of, and hopefully next year we can carry that momentum.”

Q: Between both your team and your opponents, during the past year, both teams combined for just under 3,400 field goal attempts. Looking back on those numbers, I found it interesting that you really can point to one or two or three shots in an entire season where your team can be lauded as successful or unsuccessful with one shot either rolling in or bouncing out. That’s crazy to think about, isn’t it?

David Singleton: “Well yeah, it’s definitely crazy, but it’s part of the game. Every possession counts—every possession matters, especially as you get closer to the postseason. You’ll have better and more equipped teams, with their scouting, so it comes down to the wire. It can come down to one bucket or one-stop. I remember how Jules dove on the ball at the end of the game at Washington after Jake had a barrage of threes. That’s part of the game. That is why we developed a culture where every possession counts on offense and defense.”

Q: You flashback to how this team had opened Pac-12 play at 1-3. How gratifying was it – and what can you share with us – to see your team get on track down the stretch and, you talked about it, making every possession count. What was it that clicked?

David Singleton: “One of the things that happened, and Jules can back me up on this, our coach made us take our [UCLA] jerseys off. That really set the tone for our season. He felt like we were not worthy to wear the four letters across our chest. And quite frankly, I agreed with him. We didn’t deserve to wear those jerseys. We just wore blue and white. It put a chip on our shoulder. He was hard on us, but it was tough love that helped propel us to going into the later part of the season.”

Q: Jules, what are you most looking forward to, with all of the players you guys expect to have back – and then a couple of new guys joining the mix, too? Do you feel like this team could really try and just pick up from where you’d left off?

Jules Bernard: “Yeah, I do. We have a lot of talented players. I think that, more importantly, we have experience under our belt. We have a lot of experienced players. And even our younger guys got a lot of experience this year. We’re taking in these two newer players, adding them to the talent that we have now. We will have a lot of pieces, a lot of weapons. It’s just a matter of continuing to work hard. We need to take our experiences, to take what we learned last year, through that coaching change and how we have adapted to the new coaching style and take all of that into the next season and see how it goes.”

Q: David, for you, Coach Cronin liked to say that in his estimation, you’re an “old soul,” and he means that as a compliment. That you’re one of these guys that just wants to do Everything right all the time, you’ll dig deep and find a way. Where do you believe that element came from?

David Singleton: “Well, it always went back to my father. He always told me that you’ve got to get the job done, whether that is with teammates or by yourself. Obviously, basketball is a team sport, so we need the team to be able to win together. That drive, that element, it really came from my dad. He tells me every day that I’ve got to push harder, to never be satisfied. He has told me, real basketball players not only get themselves better, but they also get their teammates better.”

Q: Jules, talk about your role last season. You really came on strong in situations like that first half at Utah, and in other instances, you were really relied upon for your defense. Did you like that, where you really had to be ready at all times, so to speak, where you’d come in and help change things?

Jules Bernard: “I feel like I pride myself on always being someone who plays hard all the time and being ready for my opportunity no matter what. So yeah, just the way I had been taught. Going back to my freshman year in high school, I did not play as much as I did my sophomore year. For me, my first experience with real basketball, they had told me to stay ready and to make the most of my minutes. Throughout my career, I have carried that and have prided myself on staying ready and playing hard all the time. It showed this year. Sometimes, you know, they needed me more than other games. But I just had to stay ready and prove what I could do.”

Q: I bring this up because it was such an unusual moment for a basketball player. Your team was preparing to walk into the gym at Oregon, and you had just found out that morning that Kobe Bryant had passed away. Certainly, a tough time for everyone. It just seemed like everybody was really in a fog, trying to make sense of the news. Not to make us sad by going back to that day, but how meaningful was that experience?

David Singleton: “It was a very sad day for us. Especially for Jules and me, since we both grew up in L.A. Kobe was an icon, a hero, just a great guy. He was one of those guys who, when he retired, he was supposed to own a team and grow his legacy. He was supposed to be here with us longer. It was a sad day. We weren’t really ready to play after we had heard that news, but that’s no excuse. You’ve got to go out there and get the job done. But it really made us said.”

Q: And Jules, was Kobe one of those guys you had really looked up to growing up?

Jules Bernard: “Kobe was my idol. There are always conversations about Jordan, Kobe, and LeBron. And for me, I loved Kobe so much. I always took his side. I looked up to him. I’d wear his shoes. I wore his number when I was in the junior YMCA. So, I loved Kobe a lot. That was a tough day. It was definitely sad. But we had to play on. It was tough because we’re playing a game that wasn’t really on our mind. We had been dreading the loss of a hero and his daughter. It was very tough to do. But we had to move forward. As we’d passed on the days since his death, it has kind of been beautiful how people have realized his greatness both on the court and as a father off the court. You can get a sense of his legacy in what he’d done through his 40-plus years of life.”

Q: When you guys are watching basketball, whether it’s the NBA or the college game, who are some of the guys who you will really pay attention to and watch? David, let’s start with you.

David Singleton: “In terms of the NBA, I am trying to watch Klay Thompson for the consistency on his 3-pointer. I’m trying to watch Damian Lillard and Kyrie Irving to extend my game. They’ve got some skills that they’re really good at. In terms of watching players, I’ll watch them. I’ve also been watching the Bulls’ documentary, and with Michael Jordan [The Last Dance], really re-watching footage of him. I’m watching footage of Kobe Bryant and all of the greats, trying to work on some new moves, techniques before our season.”

Q: Go-to players, how about with you, Jules?

Jules Bernard: “For me, I’m a fan of basketball. I’ll watch everyone. I’ll watch all types of highlights, tapes, from high school days or college or NBA. I just love watching highlights like that. But in terms of players now in the NBA, James Harden, he is one of those players where he isn’t the fastest player or the most athletic player, but he’s efficient. I’m trying to see what he does on the court to manipulate his defenders. It’s interesting to watch and study.”

Q: You guys have mentioned that you’ve watched the documentary about Michael Jordan. I know you guys were not old enough to watch him in the mid-90s, but how much have you learned about his legacy, and how deep of a dive did you do, trying to learn and catch up?

David Singleton: “The only things that I’ve learned are some of the information that was revealed in the documentary. But I’ve got so many tapes from his six championship seasons, so it’s been more of a review until we got the behind the scenes – the general manager, the coaching, those are really the only parts that feel new to me. It’s new footage that I had never seen before. But other than that, I’ve seen it all.”

Q: Now some of that stuff is crazy, with Scottie Pippen staying on the bench and the 1980s NBA was just different, a very different league than you see now. Jules, what did you think?

Jules Bernard: “Yeah, I agree. Especially like, I never even knew that story about Scottie sitting out of that game. That was pretty crazy. It’s interesting to see. I don’t know how someone can do that. But to put yourself in his shoes in that situation, it was an interesting dynamic. But even with Dennis Rodman taking a break for 48 hours, there are a lot of interesting behind-the-scenes scenes with this documentary that are very fun to watch. It’s a very enjoyable documentary.”

Q: Looking back to our time in Las Vegas, when you guys had loaded up the bus to go back home in March, it felt a little surreal. You guys were ready to make a run deep into March Madness, and we weren’t sure if there’d even be March Madness. Tell us what it was like, Jules, to be leaving Las Vegas and wondering what would be next?

Jules Bernard: “It was very weird. Even then, we still didn’t know what was going on and how long this thing might last. You know, we tried to keep an optimistic point of view on it, to think that we’d still have March Madness. But then as the hours went on, we just realized that the chances of it happening were very slim. It was very disappointing. As more news came out about people catching this [virus], it was very difficult. We knew that the basketball season would come to an end. It was tough news. I think that we took a good measure because safety is very important. It’s tough, but we had to do it. Both with the NCAA and the NBA, they took measures that were necessary.”

Q: And David, you look at your team’s seniors – with Prince Ali and Alex Olesinski – they’d been around for a long time and had given their heart to the program. To think that’s how it would end for their collegiate careers – did that kind of resonate with you?

David Singleton: “Yeah, I mean, it didn’t seem fair that their senior season ended the way it did. It sucks to say that their last game at UCLA was a loss against USC, especially in the middle of a run. That just sucks, overall, by itself. And then the fact that that was their last game. We had been making a run, getting ready for the Pac-12 Tournament, and we didn’t get a chance to play their last games. I’m grateful that they got to play their final game in Pauley Pavilion.”

Q: Talk to us about what this whole experience the last couple of months have been like for you. Do you feel like you’ve grown in any way? Have you learned Italian? Have you perfected a skill? Is there anything positive that you can talk about from the last couple of months?

David Singleton: “I really took this time to perfect my mechanics on my basketball game. I’ve been outside dribbling, working on my handles and my moves. I have taken this time to make sure that my left leg is really ready for the season. It did take a lot of games for my leg, for me to get confidence in my leg. I’m taking my time to make sure that my leg is ready. I’m just trying to get ready in every way that I can.”

Q: Jules, how have you attacked it?

Jules Bernard: “With an optimistic view. We have a great staff who have created workouts for us, nutrition plans for us to follow during this quarantine. So it is just a matter of staying the course. I have been trying to work out on my body as much as I can, given that it has to be bodyweight since I don’t have access to the weights that we usually have in the weight room. I’ve been doing the workouts that our Coach Wes [Long] sends us. And then, finding any way to just play basketball – dribbling outside, finding an empty gym or something, just trying to find a way to play basketball, somehow. And then just going on runs, just to stay in shape. We don’t have practices to keep us in shape, so we have to find ways to stay in shape. Another important thing is to spend time with my family. During our basketball season, basketball is like all year-round. So I have never had this much time to just spend it with my family. It’s been pretty nice.”

Q: Jules, I know that your mom has been a freelance makeup artist in Los Angeles and out in Hollywood. Now with Everything shut down, has she been able to keep working?

Jules Bernard: “Everything is shut down, but she’s finding a way. Even though she is freelance, she has her own clients and is taking advantage of virtual lessons and stuff like that. She has been finding a way.”

Q: I heard that she’d done some work on the show Shark Tank. Would we have seen some of her work on that show?

Jules Bernard: “Yeah, I support my mother, and I’ve seen shows on TV and live, as well, just to see her in action is very inspiring. She is one of the hardest working people I know. She goes at it for sometimes 16 hours in a day. It is just inspiring to see her come back home and then go back to work the next day. I support her as much as I can and watch all of her work. I enjoy Shark Tank, as well.”

Q: Speaking of TV, what are you guys watching beside the documentary on the Chicago Bulls?

David Singleton: “Yeah, I’ve been binge-watching Ozarks. I’m trying to binge-watch as many shows as I can because this is probably the most time I’ll get to do that in my life. I’m watching Ozarks, I’ve been watching Criminal Minds, and I’m just freelancing on Netflix right now.”

Q: Jules, have you been joining him, or are you watching some other shows?

Jules Bernard: “I’ll watch shows in my own room. I’ll watch pretty much whatever I can. I don’t like shows too much because they can take a long time to get through. I like movies more. But now that I’ve got a little more time, I’m watching as many shows as I can, while I can. I’m trying to diversify as best as I can, watching shows that I probably wouldn’t normally watch. Money Heist was a great show.”

Q: In terms of a basic feeling about this program right now, and where this team is headed, what are your expectations for this team moving forward as things get closer to what we’d call near-normal?

David Singleton: “I expect the [newcomers] to learn from us and our transfer Johnny Juzang, who I have played against in high school. He’s a great player. Then with Jaylen Clark, I’ve watched some film on him. I feel like we should have everybody’s heart and soul on the court. Everyone is going to keep everyone accountable. I feel like we’ll go as hard as we can and try and dominate next season.”

Jules Bernard: “I’m excited. I feel like we have a lot of great players. I know both the guys coming in – Jaylen Clark and Johnny Juzang. They’re from the same AAU club that I had played on. I know their talents. I know that they’re very talented. Our job as players who’ve already been here is to help guide them. We will all play hard. That is the expectation that our coach has for us. That’s the expectation that we all have for us, as a program. We will give our heart and soul, like David said, and to try and do what we are supposed to do with what we have. With the experience that we have, we should do pretty well next season.”