If we get Mullins he will be best player in our class just like Reed was
Kid is really good
Kid is really good
Braylon Mullins
- Thread starter WhiskeyCityCat
- Start date
I really think that trying to compare players in the past with anyone on a Pope team is almost impossible. This is a team that their whole offensive makeup is based on the ability to shot the 3. No question that most freshman lack experience to be penciled in as a contributor but in the case of Perry and Noah their ability to shoot the 3 will change the equation. Chandler being not a typical freshman in age, he just might play to his age, freshman or not.
Nah he can't play point he lacks fluidity and sharpness with his handles. He seems to have decent vision but he won't be able to develop into a point guard. He doesn't have that ball handling ability. You can tell he hates having a guy get into his space.
That's fair... I hadn't watched enough of him, so as I said above, I wasn't sure if he was more wing SG/SF vs potentially a longer, lanky PG like SGA.
I gotcha. Yeah of course that's just my opinion but I would say in the mold of a 2/3 for sure. I personally don't think he will contribute much this year but in the future he could.
Wayne Turner came to UK as a scorer and thzn became a great PG. Only time will tell
I think this is right at this time. I think he’s a 2 who will get you some assists on drive draw dish, but not really built to run a team.
Already been answered above, but since you asked me, I will answer.
Chandler is a wing. He will play the 2 and/or 3 spot.
He has reportedly grown to 6’6, so size is not an issue.
Perry is the guy in this Freshman class that needs to develop into a PG. He’s maybe 6’2 and although he can flat out shoot it, he probably needs to develop more into a PG if he wants to make it to the league.
That would be a really really great first class for Pope. We honestly could not ask for more unless we pulled a rabbit out of hat and got a Peterson or something.
And it’s very realistic. Moreno is already on board. We have a really great shot at getting Johnson next week. It looks like Mullins is likely either IU or UK. We seem to be the favorite or at least one of the favorites to land Yessoufou.
But Turner always was a good 2pt. scorer, right? Not a volume scorer at UK, but reliable short-to-mid range. That funky shot just wasn't made for 3pt. shooting, but I always was kind of amazed at how well it seemed to work at 10-15 feet.
I hear you Moreno. I'd LOVE to see Pope land this kid over Uconn, and home state IU. Would be a HUGE get and a PERFECT fit for his system.
If Pope runs them hard all game and presses like old school RP teams, there are plenty of minutes.
Me too but after listening his dad’s interview it doesn’t doesnt sound very promising.
Not every kid is gonna be like Reed because they play a similar game. It’s time to recognize how elite Reed actually was. He’s the 3rd overall pick who would have went number 1 had the lottery fallen differently. He absolutely looked the part in the summer league too, now it’s too be determined how his pro career turns out but the kid can flat ball and is great at everything except defense which will be masked better in the pro game.
Yes Turner was a solid mid range shooter. His main strength was getting to the basket though.
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Between the lines reasoning is that he doesn't want to play with Jasper Johnson.
On where both players are coming out of HS, I'd take Mullins so I'm in the camp that really is high on him. He's taller/more athletic and does everything Sheppard does. Reed was fantastic and always was high on his game so not a shot at him at all, just that I'd have made Mullins the #1 priority at the wing spot for this class. Kentucky decided Jasper Johnson is better and paid significantly to get him. We'll now see if that was a good investment or not. The comparison will be how Mullins/Johnson do in CBB.
Yes. It's not a coincidence they went full staff to visit Acaden Lewis the other day.
I'll add that I think everyone has slept on UConn's chances here from Day 1. They made him a top priority and everyone blew off the fact he took his OV immediately out there and how Hurley and company have recruited him. It's funny how many CBB media people act like UConn is some flash in pan program and never mention them as legit threats for top guys. Kentucky had a great chance if Johnson went elsewhere which was my personal preference but what I think doesn't matter. So just going to see how the rest of the class ends up. Loved them landing Moreno, would've let Jasper go elsewhere. Hope that Jasper ends up making UK look great for paying what they did to land him, as with any investment, if it pays off, worth the price.
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Mullins or any other SG in the 25 class should be more concerned about playing with Collin Chandler and not Jasper Johnson.....
Collin Chandler should be your starting SG in the 25-26 season and I can see him easily being a lottery/first round pick. Then you have Oweh likely back as your starting SF..... Go after Acaden Lewis as your backup PG while getting a transfer PG to start.
Then go after Cenac/Bundalo/Ament, etc to play PF as you will lose Carr and Almonor.
Imagine the outcry from the fanbase if we had failed to land Johnson though. Particularly if Mullins then also decided to go elsewhere. In a way the UK staff’s hands were a bit tied. I don’t think that’s the same as deciding Johnson was better, necessarily.
You don't make roster decisions based on fan's feelings. That should never factor in and if it does, you won't last long in any job.
Nothing was tied-you can choose who you think is the best player. Now they obviously felt Jasper Johnson was and hopefully that ends up being the case. They grossly overpaid for him based on how poorly he played this past AAU season but they feel they can coach that out of him. Hope they are right.
Players see an instate guy who is a shot jacker get paid a lot of $, they are not going to be as enticed to join the program. Move him to the PG spot-they've seen the guy who is a get mine type over moving the ball. If he's a wing-he leans towards ball dominant, degree of difficulty shots. It's not about fear/concern with anyone-it's about business/common sense. If Johnson was from anywhere but KY, this would have been a no brain decision for the program in who you pursue. Johnson's playing style is going to have to drastically change and adapt to blend with the rest of the program once he gets to Lexington as well. The guy he's shown to be the past 8 months isn't worth the price or commitment IMO. Now others feel differently and that's why we're all here-to talk basketball. Doesn't make me right/you or others wrong. I hope this works itself out but I'm not a risk taker on big investments and in NIL era, when people pay to get someone on a roster, they will make sure that guy is playing no matter what. It's why it's as tough as ever to be a HC in this era.
Love Chandler and looking forward to seeing him on the court. Think he's the most gifted guy on the roster in terms of all around skill/athleticism, etc...I don't see Acaden Lewis being recruited to be a backup PG. That guy has too many options to be sold on coming to UK like that and think the staff likely isn't even mentioning that with him.
Ament will be recruited as a wing player. He's not a PF. Other schools are recruiting as such and that won't land him. Cenac/Bundalo-yes but Ament no.
Good point. Also with Pope being a Kentucky guy, it makes sense for him to lock up the state.
Good luck finding 18 year olds with that mindset.
How much did they pay for Johnson, Ralph? IMO Pope wanted to land the instate kids his first year and set the tone.
Quick question for you: was it UK’s choice? In other words was Mullins ready to commit when Johnson was ready to commit? If so, then I understand where you are coming from. But if Johnson was ready to commit and Mullins wasn’t ready and still looking at UConn and/or IU, then I think it’s probably a good move to go ahead and take Johnson. The old adage “a bird in the hand…” seems to apply if Mullins was still considering those other schools.
Mullins: “Everybody is worried about the Jasper (Johnson) thing. We haven’t totally cut them off. We have told some people it will be interesting. It is going to be hard. We want to see if him and Braylon can play together. I still think Braylon wants to go there and visit. I just don’t know where everybody stands. Can Jasper and Braylon play together? I don’t know.”
Mullins: “I don’t know exactly what they’ve got in store for him(Johnson). Is he a ball dominant guy? Does he play off the ball? I don’t know. I guess it just depends on how Pope wants to run the offense, and how they put Braylon in it. Like I said, I don’t think it’s out. Everybody thinks it is. We’ve said a couple of things. I’ve said a couple of things. I’m just not sure that they can play together. I don’t know. People take that and say, ‘Kentucky is out. They can’t play together.’”
May not be over but I think the Johnson commitment hurt us .
I would rather have Mullins than Jasper also, and I’ve known Dennis (Jaspers father) my whole life. That said, if either one of them wanted to commit, I wouldn’t ask them to wait.
Obviously it was their choice no matter how it was shaped. Like I said, hope it works out and they were correct. Mullins had set up OV's everywhere--he visited UConn on Aug 1st weekend. Now it seems he'll be deciding rather soon and may not take all of them but UK may have also felt that they could get both (hope that somehow happens too but not likely as Mullins camp seems to be seeing Johnson as not ideal to play alongside) and things have changed.
Everyone comparing Jasper and Mullins act like Mullins was ready to commit, but he hasn't even scheduled a commitment date so if we didn't take Jasper's commitment and then still missed on Mullins we would be in a much worse situation.
If I felt the players were similar, agree. This case, I'd don't agree. That said, Johnson is going to be a Cat and hope this works out.
Now add that many other guys Kentucky is recruiting don't really like how Jasper plays. That also should factor in. I'm not asking people to agree with me, and I hope this staff gets a version of Johnson that makes the investment worthwhile. There are several angles to discuss when taking a commitment and Pope felt this was the way to go. How it ends up will play on the court and hope it's a home run.
Best thing about it is the player gets to prove everyone right/wrong depending on their take of his talent.
agree, I think Pope really had no choice but to go full steam ahead on Johnson, with him being a Ky kid. Pope had to prove that he could land the in state kids as many were wondering about his recruiting ability. If his had been year 3 or 4, then maybe he could have waited for Mullins. From what I have seen, Mullins is silky smooth, with good range and is a basketball player. I too would have preferred him, but then again, I would like to win the lottery too.
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