Drew Gooden's favorite NBA team?
"The Lakers, of course," says Gooden, Kansas University's 6-foot-10, 230-pound junior forward from Richmond, Calif.
His favorite football team?
"The Raiders."
His favorite college basketball team, aside from his beloved Kansas Jayhawks?
UCLA ... a school located 51/2 hours from Gooden's hometown in the Bay Area.
"When I was a kid, UCLA was the powerhouse of the Pac-10. They had all the televised games. It was a big-time thing to go to UCLA," Gooden said Thursday before boarding a plane for Los Angeles where his Jayhawks will meet UCLA in a 2:05 p.m. tip Saturday at Pauley Pavilion.
"UCLA recruited me. I had 'em on my list. Things didn't work out. I picked Kansas out of all my schools."
Yes indeed, Gooden, who has emerged early in his junior season as a candidate for national player of the year honors, chose KU over Cal-Berkeley, USC, UCLA, Michigan, Connecticut and others.
He still keeps tabs on the No. 11-ranked Bruins, who are coached by Steve Lavin, a man who recruited Gooden.
"We still to this day have a pretty decent relationship. I have a lot of respect for coach Lavin," Gooden said of the sixth-year UCLA coach. "A lot of people would just recruit you and kiss up to you to come to their school. Coach Lavin ... even though I didn't choose UCLA, still treats me with the same respect as when he was recruiting me. We could talk forever.
"I know some of their players. Ray Young (senior who is red-shirting) played in the same league and used to go at it all the time in high school. I hung out with a couple of their guys in Hawaii (at this year's Maui Invitational where both KU and UCLA went 2-1)."
Gooden has played in UCLA's Pauley Pavilion just once at the Dada Classic the spring of his senior year at El Cerrito High School. KU's Kirk Hinrich also played in that high school all-star game.
That contest attracted about 1,000 fans. This one will draw a full house of 12,800, including at least 30 of Gooden's relatives.
"I'm so excited for this game," Gooden's grandfather, Andrew, said Thursday from Richmond, Calif. "For us this is big-time. It doesn't get any better with Kansas coming in No. 1 and on a roll. Drew has so many relatives in L.A. he won't get to see them all. One of his relatives in L.A. said they were going to bring some banners, but being that we will be situated near some UCLA fans, they probably shouldn't be too big," Gooden Sr. laughed.
Drew is ready to hug a batch of family members this weekend.
"I think it'll psyche me up, get me a little more energized," Gooden said. "It's almost like a home game for me. It's like (Leavenworth freshman) Wayne Simien. He has a ball every time he gets to play in Allen Fieldhouse because this is his hometown. He's pumped up playing in front of his family every home game. Now I get to go home and play in front of my family and friends."
Gooden won't have a lot of free time in Los Angeles. KU today will practice in Pauley Pavilion. Immediately after, Drew will head to Fox Studios for tonight's appearance on Fox Sports Net's "The Best Damn Sports Show Period" before film sessions and preparation for UCLA.
He will get to enjoy what he misses most about the West coast, however.
"I miss California winters because it's really not a winter," Gooden said. "It's sunny and rains a little bit. You still have green grass and still have leaves on trees. Here it's totally opposite, gray with no leaves on the trees. The grass is gone. It's pretty nasty, but I've experienced three winters here. I'm used to it."
Heading back to L.A., Gooden says he's not concentrating on putting on a big show in front of West coast media who could support him for player of the year honors. He's more about "team."
"It feels good to finally start to hear that stuff about myself," said Gooden, who averages 20.6 points, 12.4 boards and 2.1 steals for the 13-1 Jayhawks. "But I like it more when they talk about us as a team. It seems in the past we got a lot of attention in the preseason then everybody forgot about us."
Comic Tom Arnold and former NBA player John Salley will like what they hear coming out of Gooden's mouth at Fox Sports.
He gives spirited interviews.
"I mean I don't know how the media takes me as being a cocky individual or what," Gooden said. "I don't think I am that cocky. I do have confidence. What I say is what I believe.
"When I told everybody before the season I think me and Nick (Collison) make up the best frontcourt in the country I really believe that. I think a lot of people are seeing that now. If it makes me sound cocky, I'm just telling the truth. When I say something I believe it deep inside."
He believes KU has a mighty strong team.
"I think we are a championship team. I think we can go all the way," he said. "The only thing now we just need to get smarter and play with a little more heart out there. The season is still young in my eyes. We can only get better in little aspects, get more mentally tough. We can play hard and not slack up."
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