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Cal says Ugo may start now….

Calipari just went with the steadiest 5 in the 2nd half. If you looked lost or bewildered you didn't play in the 2nd half. He wasn't punishing Z.
I didn’t see anything better from Bradshaw, though. I’d totally get it if all the guys ahead of him were playing well.
 
Never happen with CCC.

Well.. He benched Edwards (or hes playing bench minutes).. and Bradshaw and DJ are on their way.

DJ will be the tough one, if for nothing else, than his dad playing for Cal. Plus, you bench THREE top10 recruits? That is 100% going to be used against Cal and his model. He might HAVE to play DJ more just to keep his recruiting going.

And while I also like the lineup of Shep/Dilly/Reeves/Tre/Ugo.. that lineup now lacks the potential ceiling this team once had. Like Shep CAN run the point, and he will get batter.. but I ultimately think he has a limit to what he can do.. and better guards will make things tough for him.
 
Wagner doesn’t need to be benched and not played. He isn’t as bad as some let on. He needs to be part of the rotation.

Our guards are fine.

The problem is the 3 spot. We need Reeves there most of the game.

Sheppard, Wagner, and Dillingham at the 1 and 2 spots. Reeves at the 3.

That’s the formula for our backcourt.
 
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You hear Ugonna’s interview after the game? It was pretty good.
 
Wagner doesn’t need to be benched…
You are building a team, and there are 3 players left to choose from, and you only have 2 slots left, and your choices are, Wagner, Shep, and Dillingham, which 2 do you take?

No one is suggesting benching Wagner and not giving him sufficient minutes.
 
I hope Ugo isn’t forced to shoot another 3 for the rest of his career, but who else was surprised that the one he had to take actually hit the rim with some soft touch? 🤚🏼
Not surprised. Last year in warmups before K St game he was consistently hitting 16’ baseline jumpers with good form. It’s just 5’ more. Doesn’t mean I want him shooting them.
And I was at UK McCarty’s redshirt year. He would come shoot 3’s by himself at Seaton Center, and damn he was horrible at it. I was shocked how much he improved while there.
 
The one actual problem with Klutch that isn't a boogeyman is they can pull strings and arrange for teams to draft players they represent. So for example, they could basically guarantee Edwards he'll be draft even if it's second round if he goes pro.
No, they can't do that. If it's a choice between two players of roughly equal potential being the Klutch guy would give you an edge.

But they can't get me drafted.

And they can't get Edwards drafted.
 
What the damn hell? I know damn well Big Z should be starting and playing over Oyenso. Yenso cant shoot. Big z is a better rebounder and smarter shot blocker.
Good observation and this gets overlooked a lot when people talk about Ugo and his ability to block shots. Most shots I have seen him block end up getting blocked out of bounds so the other team retains possession. Z’s blocked shots have led to fast breaks for us going the other way.
 
If he starts he will have a very short leash. So far UGO seems to start out slow, meaning fumbling balls, bringing balls down to his waist and a step slow on defense. Cal is trying to motivate Bradshaw. I think it is time to go Wagner, Reeves, Sheppard, Adou and Mitchell (unless we are playing someone with a good to great big).
 
Well.. He benched Edwards (or hes playing bench minutes).. and Bradshaw and DJ are on their way.

DJ will be the tough one, if for nothing else, than his dad playing for Cal. Plus, you bench THREE top10 recruits? That is 100% going to be used against Cal and his model. He might HAVE to play DJ more just to keep his recruiting going.

And while I also like the lineup of Shep/Dilly/Reeves/Tre/Ugo.. that lineup now lacks the potential ceiling this team once had. Like Shep CAN run the point, and he will get batter.. but I ultimately think he has a limit to what he can do.. and better guards will make things tough for him.
DJ is good. We don’t lose to UNCW if he had played. He has the most dog in him on the team. Yes R&R are better shooters, but we need all 4 guards. Both games we played without 1 we struggled offensively.
 
DJ is good. We don’t lose to UNCW if he had played. He has the most dog in him on the team. Yes R&R are better shooters, but we need all 4 guards. Both games we played without 1 we struggled offensively.
DJ is good. DJ is also our freshman who is most prone to play like a freshman at times (of the guards). He will get better with each week
 
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He played 2 minutes, he didn’t have time to look lost. I think he did grab a couple boards in his 2 minutes. He got beat on the baseline by his man one time, got yanked and never played again. In 2 minutes you don’t have time to look lost.
Yeah, one mistake and he is out for good. Wonder why that doesnt apply to Edwards?? He looks lost the whole time he is on the floor, but definitely gets more than one chance. Same with Bradshaw.
 
He is just too slow that ark.player just side stepped him and dunked on him he might be able to play in a zone but doubt Cal will play one
I dont think it had anything to do with speed. He made a basic fundamental mistake of not sliding his foot to the baseline so the Ark player couldnt get around him without going out of bounds. He should know that from playing overseas, but he just didnt do it. But for heavens sake, pull him out and dont put him back in? But let Edwards take the ball and run down the court without dribbling, like they do in my 5 yr old grandson's league, and keep putting him back in the game.
 
Well.. He benched Edwards (or hes playing bench minutes).. and Bradshaw and DJ are on their way.

DJ will be the tough one, if for nothing else, than his dad playing for Cal. Plus, you bench THREE top10 recruits? That is 100% going to be used against Cal and his model. He might HAVE to play DJ more just to keep his recruiting going.

And while I also like the lineup of Shep/Dilly/Reeves/Tre/Ugo.. that lineup now lacks the potential ceiling this team once had. Like Shep CAN run the point, and he will get batter.. but I ultimately think he has a limit to what he can do.. and better guards will make things tough for him.
I get what you're saying, and I largely agree. What's strange is that you're mostly right, yet isn't Cal's model based on hard work and meritocracy, at least from a theoretic recruiting level?

"This isn't for everyone" and "I can't hide you" and "Kentucky is the biggest stage" all point to "We play the best guys here, ready or not." There's a contradictory element there that I've been noticing for years from Cal. He's all about meritocracy theoretically, and not letting anyone "hold the program hostage", but then we see situations like Livingston demanding time at the 3, Bradshaw and Edwards getting undue playing time, and Sharpe being able to sit on the sidelines like a pampered child.

I agree that Wagner needs to keep playing heavy minutes (hopefully off the ball), but I don't think Cal trimming Edwards and Bradshaw from the main rotation would necessarily hurt us so long as Sheppard, Dillingham, and Wagner keep doing their thing. We enough elite freshmen so that it won't really hurt if a few of them get buried in the avalanche of season momentum.
 
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I’d said before Z was the better option and is the most talented , but Ugo is that role player that will be steady and consistent in this roll and for this team that looks like it what’s needed the most. That is, making an impact and not needing the ball to do it since we have so many guys that need the ball.

Z and Wagner or Rob off the bench will be an added facet of our team. *Sheppard must start.
Bradshaw will make an impact off the bench as well.
 
No, they can't do that. If it's a choice between two players of roughly equal potential being the Klutch guy would give you an edge.

But they can't get me drafted.

And they can't get Edwards drafted.
They got Livingston drafted, yes his body was way more ready, but his skills lacked as well. Maybe his HS rank carries him, we all know executives have a hard time forgetting the rankings.
 
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I dont think it had anything to do with speed. He made a basic fundamental mistake of not sliding his foot to the baseline so the Ark player couldnt get around him without going out of bounds. He should know that from playing overseas, but he just didnt do it. But for heavens sake, pull him out and dont put him back in? But let Edwards take the ball and run down the court without dribbling, like they do in my 5 yr old grandson's league, and keep putting him back in the game.
Exactly, not a speed issue at all IMO. He just didn’t keep the seal.
 
You are building a team, and there are 3 players left to choose from, and you only have 2 slots left, and your choices are, Wagner, Shep, and Dillingham, which 2 do you take?

No one is suggesting benching Wagner and not giving him sufficient minutes.
Then what is the argument?

I’m playing all three 30 minutes a game.
 
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Never happen with CCC.
1/3 just happened with Edwards. Shocked me, but it happened (I hadn't had any bourbon yet so my memory is accurate).

Now if we can have Bradshaw off the bench.

I'm fine with DJ starting, for now. He has become too one-dimensional and is easy to plan to defend, so hopefully Welch gets him a little more going to his right and maybe a floater.
 
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