Okay, you're biggest fear going into 2016. Let's hear it.

[EvilMD]

In 2011, my biggest fear was that without Kanter we'd lose all our big games in December.
In 2012, my biggest fear was not really a fear...just wondered if Teague was good enough to lead us to the title.
In 2013, my biggest fear was....I didn't have one....felt like we had a free season to enjoy while the pressure was all on IU and U of L for once.
In 2014, my biggest fear was the Harrisons and Young not coming to Lexington that summer, and wondering if there was issues with them.
In 2015, my biggest fear was that we had too many talented bigs and too many players period who all deserved more minutes than they were going to get.

This year, my biggest fear is....can Murray and Briscoe get along? Briscoe's comments about him not giving a (insert word here) about Murray coming on board or not are a red flag. Hopefully the two of them and Ulis can work it all out and not come out looking like Archie and Ryan out there. Methinks that won't happen because of Ulis.

 

[StubbornPenny]

Injury. I'm not worried about anything else. We have the talent. Cals teams haven't been drama heavy.

 

[stuway]

Can AP get to 100% and stay there?? Really my only concern.

 

[BlueRunner11]

Alex, Frontcourt Depth, possibly Rebounding

 

[5iveStarRecruit]

Rebounding + rim protection mainly.

Skal will do his job in the paint, but can Lee sharpen his IQ & parlay his athletic gifts into interior D + can Poy have his motor fired up consistently & play bigger than his size down low.

 

[BostonCat2001]

ulis not being as good as so many expect which causes fans to blame andrew harrison

 

[KyFord]

No fear, bring on the new season.

 

[brianpoe]

Rebounding + rim protection mainly.

Skal will do his job in the paint, but can Lee sharpen his IQ & parlay his athletic gifts into interior D + can Poy have his motor fired up consistently & play bigger than his size down low.

No worries my friend.

ulismyman has assured me that Marcus Lee has reached Wilt Chamberlain status.

 

[UKWildcats#8]

Staying healthy/avoiding front court foul trouble.

UK needs Skal to stay on the floor much like Duke needed Okafor to do so last year. Now am I advocating Skal be a pathetic lump of coal on D like Okafor? No, but we need him in the game.

 

[stoneycat_20]

Maybe perimeter defense (Murray and Briscoe) and then rebounding

 

[gossie21]

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned concerns over Skal's eligibility.

If I were to state a specific concern going into the season it would be getting Poythress back 100%. I'm sure he will be okay by the time the SEC rolls around, so maybe it's not much of a concern.

 

[wcc31]

1. Briscoe's game and personality fitting in on the perimeter with Ulis and Murray. I think they'll work fine, but Briscoe's the only one I'm worried about.

2. Depth at the 5. Hope Skal is more Davis than Towns when it comes to fouling. I think Lee/Poythress is a solid combination, though, if need be.

3. Outside shooting. Shouldn't be an issue, but hoping Mulder is as good as shooter as advertised; Willis steps up; Briscoe is at least a threat; and Poythress gives us something.

 

[Blueaz]

I have a lot of courses this fall and winter, so I may have to DVR more games than I wish.

 

[brianpoe]

I have a lot of courses this fall and winter, so I may have to DVR more games than I wish.

You may have to get your priorities straightened out...

 

[GYERater]

Poor coaching

 

[CatEye2010]

Poor coaching

Poor posting ^^^

 

[ia.ukfan]

I don't have many, and this really doesn't constitute a "big" fear, but I'll say that we have a great year earn a 1 seed and lose in heartbreaking fashion in the final four once again. And really thats getting nit picky, having your team earn a one seed and advance to a final four is a blessing. That doesn't happen often, especially at other schools. But man I just wanted #9 so bad last year and want it just as bad again with the team we have. And I am a firm believer that the closer you get to winning it the more it hurts to lose.

 

[UK_Johnny24]

I didn't have a single fear last year. I felt like we'd win every game we played. I always had a feelling we'd win each game you know. Didn't worry at all. And I thought for sure we'd win it all. That's one reason why it still hurts because we had one of the best teams ever and it was ours to win. Hate thinking about it. But my biggest fear is somebody getting injured or something most years.

 

[UK_Johnny24]

Sometimes I worry about Poy and how he'll play and if he'll be that same explosive athlete he was. If he is, and if he plays like we think he will at the 4. Then its on. If he's a beast and puts up say 10pts, 9rbs to go along with elite defense, then we may be talking about that one thing again. Y'all know what I mean. I don't wanna say it because it may get some people going. It involves winning 40games though lol.

 

[kybassfan]

Poor coaching

3 . . . . . 2 . . . . . 1 . . . . .

If I were an Indiana fan, I'd be worried about poor coaching too.

 

[kybassfan]

My biggest concerns don't vary much from year to year.

Injuries are always the biggest concern. We've lost too many opportunities to injury.

The learning curve for our incoming players. Those are tough shoes to fill.

New one this year is Poythress. The ACL is a tough injury, even today. Hopefully he returns to form quickly.

 

[WeWant9]

IU finally fires Crean

 

[UKCats2000]

1. Skal injury
2. Skal foul trouble (more likely in SEC play d/t horrid officiating)

 

[W_Heisenberg]

We lose every game

 

[Kycatspaws]

The injury bug. A key player going down can derail a season.

 

[ia.ukfan]

I'll add poor officiating costing us a game in the tournament

 

[KyFord]

I'll add poor officiating costing us a game in the tournament

Our guys just have to remember that opposing teams will not have a shot clock.

 

[bucsrule8872]

Injury. Always. Every season.

 

[ulismyman]

Chemistry...that's usually always my fear.

 

[lacocat]

We go 38-0 but lose in the Final 4 and Duke wins it all, not much can top that disappointing end to a otherwise historically great season. This almost feels like a playing with house money going in, nothing to lose kind of season for me in that regards. Last year I expected them to win it all, trying to keep my expectations in check this year and just enjoy the season.

 

[Dakota25]

Poythress has mentioned on coach cal.com a while ago that he expects to be healthy well before the season starts. Also skal is eligible and would play if we had a game tonight. The only thing that can happen to skal is the NCAA comes in and does something but I would think they would have said something by now if there was anything wrong.
My main concern is an injury, but avoiding injuries is a concern for every team. Foul trouble is a concern as well especially for the front court. A poor draw in the tournament is a concern every year and it happens more often than not.

 

[EvilMD]

I'm not worried about Alex. He won't play the same way he used to, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Alex threw his body around a lot. He'll be more careful this year and play smarter.

 

[harlanhomeboy]

Given that injuries cost us the title the last two years, I'm going with health. Cauley-Stein in 2014 and Poythress in 2015.

 

[UKWildcats#8]

Given that injuries cost us the title the last two years, I'm going with health. Cauley-Stein in 2014 and Poythress in 2015.

As God awful as WCS was against Wisconsin in the Final Four this year it amazes me that fans act like it is a 100% given we win it all with him in 2014. Hell, we may not have even won the UL game with him playing, or maybe we lose to Michigan OR WISCONSIN in the Final four with him out there. You just don't know that. Now Poythress I will buy much more so, although UK lost the Wisconsin game due to poor offense...not their defense. I'm not sure how much Poy would have changed that aspect, but I do feel the platoon system would have been able to been utilized all season with Poy and UK would have been able to wear down Wisconsin earlier on and pulled away to win and won the title against Duke.

 

[Federal Cat]

Injury seems to be the biggest thing to worry about, other than that I'm gonna try not to stress out this year Got enough grey hair last year

 

[caneintally]

nothing is a concern except injury , especially in the front court.

 

[BigBlueFanGA]

Every year I worry about chemstry with so many freshmen each year. This year I'll add getting a healthy Alex back on the floor.

 

[CUT-NETS]

Getting to the end (final four) and being tight in a big game

 

[W2R]

Getting to the end (final four) and being tight in a big game

Drink some miralax......

 

[Teachable Moe]

I fear an Earth/giant asteroid collision.
I fear we're never going to run out of comic book movies. (They'll just write more!)
I fear low fat cheese.
I fear that the internet is spreading English slang.
I fear that one day I'll wake up and learn that Taylor Swift has written a song about a funny looking old man. And every one will look at me.