That is exactly the good news that UK fans needed after last season. And it probably ensures that Oscar will go down as one of the most beloved players in recent UK history.
That is exactly the good news that UK fans needed after last season. And it probably ensures that Oscar will go down as one of the most beloved players in recent UK history.
Folks are now tweeting that Jay Wright will step down as the coach of Villanova. That would be a huge deal.
ReplyDeleteI'm not troubled that Shaedon Sharpe is turning pro. I can't imagine anyone seriously believed that he was going to play for UK unless he got a ruling from the NBA saying that he had to wait another year. I don't blame Calipari for keeping a door open in case that ruling came through, but it was never likely that Sharpe would play in Lexington.
ReplyDeleteMy guess is that there was never anything more than a 5 or 10 percent chance that the NBA would tell Sharpe he would have to wait another year before being drafted. But wasn't it worth taking that chance? It seems silly to think that we should have run him off because some folks were going to end up being disappointed.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I think Matt Jones should keep rooting for his new friends at U of L, and leave UK fans alone.
ReplyDeleteSahvir Wheeler is coming back. That's very exciting.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, UNC is bringing back four of its five starters. Remember this history:
ReplyDelete1981: UNC loses in the final
1982: UNC wins the title.
2008: UNC loses in the final four
2009: UNC wins the title
2016: UNC loses in the finals
2017: UNC wins the title
UNC will be very tough to beat next year.
Antonio Reeves, formerly of Illinois State, chooses Kentucky over Nebraska, Xavier, Oregon, and DePaul. Last year, he averaged 20.1 points per game while shooting 39 percent from three-point range, and was second-team All-Missouri Valley.
ReplyDeleteLast year, Illinois State went 5-13 in the MVC and 13-20 overall. Here are Reeves's shooting percentages:
ReplyDelete2-point shooting: 151-293 (51.5 percent)
3-point shooting: 70-182 (38.5 percent)
Free Throws: 111-136 (81.6 percent)
Here's what TyTy Washington did for UK:
2-point shooting: 116-234 (49.6 percent)
3-point shooting: 36-103 (35.0 percent)
Free throws: 48-64 (75.0 percent)
3-point shooting:
TyTy probably isn't a fair comparison. Here's what Davion Mintz did:
ReplyDelete2-point shooting: 42-97 (43.3 percent)
3-point shooting: 44-129 (34.1 percent)
Free Throws: 47-67 (70.1 percent)
If Reeves could shoot better from three-point range and from the line than Mintz, and otherwise play a similar game, he would be very valuable.
In his last season at Creighton, Mintz shot 34.1 percent from three-point range and 72.3 percent from the line. Those figures were very close to his UK numbers. So we will hope that Reeves's percentages track closely with his Illinois State numbers.
ReplyDeleteInterestingly, the Kentucky media -- including Matt Jones and the folks at KSR -- appear to have largely given up on Calipari. I'd be more concerned about this if I thought anyone in the Kentucky media -- including Matt Jones and the folks at KSR -- actually root for the Cats.
ReplyDeleteTo be fair, I don't think KSR wants UK to be terrible. I think their ideal season would be for the Cats to reach the Final Four, and then lose to U of L or Duke.
ReplyDeleteKeion Brooks has entered the transfer portal. Here are his numbers with Kentucky last year:
ReplyDelete132-253 from 2-point range (52.2 percent)
7-30 from 3-point range (23.3 percent)
72-92 from the line (78.3 percent)
I waited all season for Keion Brooks to become a dominant player, and it didn't really happen, and I don't know why.
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