Maybe it's the sheer soccer talent on show in the city of Los Angeles.
The LA Galaxy and Chivas USA came away as two of the big winners from Tuesday's 2012 Supplemental Draft, with more than a few California-based players taken. And that's based on the scouting reports MLSsoccer.com has collected from interviews with college coaches from around the country.
Find out how your team fared — on paper, at least — in the final draft of the month of January. Team-by-team draft ratings follow below:
CHICAGO FIRE: #9 MF/FW Evans Frimpong (Delaware), #15 GK Carl Woszczynski (UAB), #47 MF Tony Walls (UW-Green Bay), #66 DF Justin Chavez (Tulsa)
Chicago came away with their No. 1 priority: a winger in Ghanaian Evans Frimpong, who will settle right in with compatriots Patrick Nyarko and Dominic Oduro. Also added depth at center back (Chavez) and fresh legs at holding mid (Walls) to fill in for Pável Pardo and Logan Pause when necessary. RATING: 7
CHIVAS USA: #5 DF R.J. Allen (Monmouth), #24 GK Brian Rowe (UCLA), #28 DF Daniel Steres (San Diego State), #30 DF Fabian Kling (Fort Lewis), #37 DF/MF Kevin Venegas (Cal State Fullerton)
Robin Fraser improved his center back depth with a player they compare to Jimmy Conrad (Steres) and a 6-foot-3 defender who was the Division II Player of the Year (Kling). Venegas and Allen will bolster that right flank and Brian Rowe can follow in the footsteps of Dan Kennedy.RATING: 8
COLORADO RAPIDS: #52 MF Kohei Yamada (TheSpa Kusatsu), #71 GK Joel Helmick (Longwood)
A team desperate for more ideas and creativity in midfield get the playmaking Yamada, one of the stars of the Combine. Helmick projects as the No. 3 ‘keeper and won’t impact the club in his first year. RATING: 6
COLUMBUS CREW: #10 MF Kirk Urso (North Carolina), #29 DF Jamie Finch (Washington), #48 FW Darren Amoo (Liberty), #67 FW Andrew Bulls (UMBC)
They add depth at holding mid in Urso, another left back in the under-the-radar Finch and two forwards to test in a growing corps of frontrunners. Solid pickups for a team that will have several new faces for camp.RATING: 6.5
D.C. UNITED: #26 MF Lance Rozeboom (New Mexico), #45 DF Charles Rodriguez (UNC Charlotte), #64 MF Matthew Kuhn (Drake)
Three above-average college players who were leaders for their respective teams and will add to Ben Olsen’s locker room culture. Rodriguez will be especially useful with his ability to play left back and center back. RATING: 5.5
FC DALLAS: #11 DF Alex Lee (Maryland), #49 FW Walter Hines (St. John’s), #68 DF Ian Kalis (SMU)
There may be questions about Kalis’ pace and the size of both Hines and Lee, but the latter two will add speed and quickness off the bench for a team that lost a bunch of both this offseason. Lee and Kalis are versatile enough to play on either flank if necessary.RATING: 5.5
HOUSTON DYNAMO: #7 FW Brian Ownby (Virginia), #12 FW Karo Okiomah (High Point), #18 MF Eder Arreola (UCLA), #56 MF/FW Philip Aseweh (Liberty), #75 MF Daniel Roberts (UNC Wilmington)
Five picks that all have potential but an equal number of question marks. Ownby, Okiomah and Arreola came in highly touted but were not able to impact their matches at the Combine. Aseweh is a skillful player but Dominic Kinnear will have to figure out a position for him. Roberts could be the find of the draft if he can stay away from the injuries which have plagued him throughout his college career. RATING: 5
LA GALAXY: #19 DF/FW Bryan Gaul (Bradley), #38 MF Rafael Garcia (Cal State Northridge), #57 FW Yuri Gorentzvaig (SC Corinthians), #62 FW Steven Posa (San Diego), #76 DF Justin Davies (San Diego State)
The already mighty Galaxy add a left-footed defender with size (Gaul), a sturdy and tidy holding midfielder (Garcia), a hard-working forward in Posa and a player considered even a better athlete than Marvell Wynne (Davies). Gorentzvaig, who had an unspectacular Combine, is the only questionable selection – but it’s hard to question Bruce Arena.RATING: 7.5
MONTREAL IMPACT: #1 MF Evan James (UNC Charlotte), #20 DF/FW Aron Schoenfeld (East Tennessee State), #39 FW Steven Miller (Colgate), #58 FW Carl Haworth (Niagara)
Not a bad haul for Marsch, who landed two Canadian attackers, including James, a former Canadian national teamer and a standout at the Combine. Miller is said to be a smart forward and good finisher, while Schoenfeld is a hard worker, who scouts consider strong in the air and one of the underrated players in college soccer – a Sasha Victorine type.RATING: 6.5
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION: #3 MF/FW Dwayne Smith (Bethel Univ.), #22 MF/FW Alec Purdie (Indiana), #41 DF Kevin Garcia (Villanova), #60 FW Michael Roach (St. Louis)
The Jamaican Smith is arguably the most intriguing selection by any team in the Supplemental Draft at No. 3. Purdie is an aggressive, attack-minded winger who will fit into the new attitude in New England. Garcia is a well-rounded fullback and Roach is center forward who scouts say uses his smarts to overcome his lack of mobility. No slam dunks but a lot of intrigue.RATING: 5.5
NEW YORK RED BULLS: #31 DF Mike Volk (Virginia), #50 MF Christian Barreiro (Penn), #69 MF/FW Nate Polak (Hastings College)
NYRB had their work cut out of them with picks deep in the Supplemental Draft. It will be tough to see Volk passing Stephen Keel on the depth chart. Barreiro – a member of the Sons of Ben, the Philadelphia Union supporters group – was underwhelming at the Combine in a playmaker’s role and NAIA midfielder Polak will be a long shot to make it. Probably the best they could do with the available picks. RATING: 5
PHILADELPHIA UNION: #13 DF Tom Brandt (Penn), #32 MF Kritian Witkowski (Marist), #51 FW/MF Antoine Hoppenot (Princeton), #70 MF Brandon Zimmerman (Santa Clara)
Brandt projects to be depth at center back but the highlight is Witkowski, who is a tricky, very technical winger and a former Polish U-18 national teamer. Union boss Peter Nowak will know him well. Hoppenot and Zimmerman are the honest, hard-working type, who will have enough to do to hang on during preseason.RATING: 5.5
PORTLAND TIMBERS: #8 DF Ryan Kowaluk (Portland), #27 MF Miguel Ibarra (UC Irvine), #46 GK Doug Herrick (St. Mary’s), #65 DF Logan McDaniel (Loyola)
The Timbers add another central defender – critical with the David Horst injury – a serviceable winger in Ibarra, a third-string goalkeeper and an attacking left back who can also play at left midfield. Decent pickups.RATING: 6
REAL SALT LAKE: #6 DF/MF Andy Rose – traded to Seattle (UCLA), #17 FW Emiliano Bonfigli (Manta FC), #36 FW Oliver Kupe (Northwestern), #55 MF Benjamín Ubierna (San Martín), #74 PASSES
With green cards on the horizon, RSL can take a chance on international players that other teams could not. Bonfigli and Ubierna were quiet in Florida but they may blossom once integrated. Kupe could be the most intriguing pickup. He has all the physical tools but will be a project up top. Leone Cruz, whose rights were acquired in the Rose trade, is no sure thing to make the RSL squad after failing to stick with Seattle last year.RATING: 5.5
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES: #25 FW Cesar Diaz Pizarro (UC Riverside), #44 DF David Tiemstra (Ohio State), #63 James Kiffe (UC Santa Barbara), #73 Tyler Krumpe (Loyola)
Diaz Pizarro has good size although he’s not overly dynamic. Kiffe is a solid left back who was better when attacking than defending at the Combine. Krumpe is fast and athletic but his soccer skills are questioned by scouts, who instead drool over the aerial ability of Tiemstra – a good bet to be the most impactful player of the lot.RATING: 5.5
SEATTLE SOUNDERS: #33 DF Tim Pontius (UCSB), #34 MF Jason Banton (Leicester City), #53 FW Abdul Aman (Washington), #72 DF Wes Feighner (Cal Poly) – NOTE: DF/MF Andy Rose acquired in trade with Real Salt Lake
The most important acquisition could turn out to be Banton, who has the speed and ability to replicate the production of the injured Steve Zakuani on the left. Pontius, Feighner and local Seattle product Aman are less known and will have their hands full just to make the roster. RATING: 6.5
SPORTING KANSAS CITY: #16 DF Shawn Singh (UCLA), #35 MF Pablo Punyed (St. John’s), #43 DF Stefan Antonijevic (Valparaiso), #54 Kyle Miller (Rockhurst)
Singh was solid but not a spectacular left back during the Combine. Could be steady enough to stick. Miller is a local midfielder who knows Sporting and is being given a shot to fight for a spot. Punyed and Antonijevic are the tantalizing pickups. Punyed is a smart, crafty midfielder who makes up for his lack of athleticism with a great left foot. Antonijevic is a 6-foot-6, left-footed center back who has great feet.RATING: 6
TORONTO FC: #4 MF Michael Green (New Mexico), #14 DF Nick Blake (UConn), #23 Mykell Bates (Santa Clara), #42 Arthur Ivo (SMU), #61 DF/MF Michael Mazzulo (Columbia)
Green and Ivo are technically sharp players who should fit neatly into TFC’s style. Nick Blake and Mykell Bates are good insurance should Richard Eckersley’s deal fall through. Blake may also be tried as an alternative at forward. Mazzulo is called an overachiever by college coaches and plays a simple game.RATING: 7
VANCOUVER WHITECAPS: #2 DF Gienir García - traded to Montreal (Cruz Azul Hidalgo), #21 DF Greg Klazura (Notre Dame), #40 GK Andrew Fontein UC Irvine), #59 DF Mark Fetrow (Penn State)
García was traded for the discovery rights to Etienne Barbara, who hails from the great nation of Malta and is a proven goal scorer with 20 goals for the Carolina Railhawks last season. Scouts expected the two-footed fullback Klazura to get an invite to the Combine. Fontein and Fetrow, a central defender who coaches say lacks for pace, will have an uphill climb to survive camp.RATING: 6.5
