Cal

[UKWildcats1987]

I'm the farthest thing there is from a Cal defender. I would be fine if he left tomorrow. But, to all of the people saying Cal is too stubborn to change, I hope you're just referring to his offense and coaching philosophy. Because last summer we actually saw him go out and do exactly what a lot of us thought he needed to do. He hired several new assistants, he changed his recruiting philosophy a bit by going to the transfer portal and getting some experienced talent and a relied a little less on the on-and-done and he made an effort to create a little more up tempo team. He still has some warts and isn't perfect, but to say he's too stubborn to change about all things is just not accurate.

That's fair, but it was not enough. This season would have been fine if we had just beat a dang 15 seed and then beat Murray to at least make the Sweet 16. If we went there and lost a close one to Purdue people would freak out but it would be a sign of progress and people could say it was just a bad matchup. The season went from pretty good to crap in 6 days before UT tipped off and St. Peter's ended late Thursday night.

I mean we had people on here claiming this could be Cal's 3rd best team or whatever...pure nonsense, but now I view them 11th of 13 based on end of season results (no SEC title, no SEC Tourney title, worst NCAA loss in UK history). Life comes at you fast as the old commercial used to say.

 

[BigRedMachineBigBlueNation]

Wonderful post.

It’s kind of crazy. From 2009-15, I thought we had the smartest coach in all the land. He would always get the recruits. He would always put the best team on the floor. It felt like he always adapted his offense to fit their skillsets (LOL). He had learned his NCAA lessons and would stay away from the Josh Shelbys and DeAndre Aytons. We would bring in high character kids like Brandon Knight and MKG and KAT and Bam/Fox. The refs hated him, opposing fans hated him…and he thrived on it. We did too.

Now that we look back…Cal feels like college basketball’s version of 1990’s Jim Carrey. You knew who Jim was from In Living Color and then he runs off Ace Ventura, Dumb and Dumber and Batman. He becomes becomes a mega star. Then he follows it up with a lackluster 2000’s with movies like Bruce Almighty and Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind. Kind of faded away. This is what we’re seeing with Cal and it’s sad.

But I like Bruce Almighty and love Eternal Sunshine …😂

 

[Jazzycat]

Calipari made changes after the abhorrent 2021 9-16 year, so he is capable of learning and adjusting.

Now, he needs to go out and recruit players who can shoot consistently and play good defense. He should also hire a defensive specialist to come in and coach the guys on defense and/or an offensive mind who can teach effective plays to get guys open.

In game adjustments are still a problem, however, in his head scratching substitutions, in bounds plays and making free throw shooting a required part of individual workouts. If UK hit their usual percentage of free throws against St Peter’s, they win. Missing free throws down the stretch is remedied by daily repetition and good form - teachable elements.

Good coaching is preparation and those guys looked like “deer in the headlights” against a 15 seed. Maybe installing a total lockdown for both coaches and players and a return to an all business mindset ‘ala Joe Hall’ this team may have overcome a quick, well coached St Peter’s team.

UK peaked in January and after the Washington injury, was never the same AS A TEAM. That is a coaching issue that was mishandled by not addressing the drop off and motivating those players by rebuilding a team structured focus.

All could and should have been addressed by the coaches. Jm2cents

 

[LmdCat]

Everyone has made just points about Coach Cal, his personality, his coaching, but we truly are at a crossroads.
I see a stage in Coach Cal's career like Denny Crum, Bobby Knight and others like them, damn good coaches who refused to change with the game.
Coach Crum was slow to go with the 3 point shot, good players passed on UL; Coach Knight could not accept you could not treat players like he had always did.

First thing Coach Cal needs to do is get his fat ass in shape. He looks sloppy and overweight on the sidelines. UK is class, look and act like we are.
Stop letting players and their parents dictate their playing career; ala Sharpe.
Run a modern offense and develop your bench. Am I alone in thinking players see how they get stuck on the bench and stay there?

If your starters are not having a good game like the other night, you got to try something, anything.
I would hope Coach Cal would look into the mirror and come to face what needs to be done at UK to be a powerhouse again.
To have last season as the worst in UK history to follow it up with one of the biggest upsets in NCAA history and lose in the 1st round?
To live in Louisville and see the suck fest with Kenny Payne going on and then to lose like we did; it is gut wrenching for this UK fan.

As a coach of AAU ball several years ago, after every game we would ask the players these questions and as a coaching staff we listened:
1. What did we do in this game that we need to stop doing?
2. What didn't we do in this game we need to start doing?
3. What did we do in this game we need to keep doing?

This really sucks today for me. My plans on going to Indy are out the window, I have to attend a funeral for a nephew, I have to be around my ultra liberal woke lawyer sister who will not keep her mouth shut, my workers are all UL fans and you can imagine how this is going over, it is rainy, cold, and I do not drink. WTF?

This method: "

As a coach of AAU ball several years ago, after every game we would ask the players these questions and as a coaching staff we listened:
1. What did we do in this game that we need to stop doing?
2. What didn't we do in this game we need to start doing?
3. What did we do in this game we need to keep doing?"

would never work for Cal because to him it would be admitting that he isn't the great Oz with all the answers.

 

[Titpwhami2014]

But I like Bruce Almighty and love Eternal Sunshine …😂

Haha, I bet you also liked the Murray-Ulis team until IU and this team until St. Peter’s. 😁

 

[sam_o]

Today vs. 2019 is certainly a different view. I still maintain that if a coach wants to play the leverage game and flirt with leaving, let them. Excellent post by you and very insightful.

Agreed. UK should have let him go to UCLA if that is what he wanted. A lifetime contract at a program like ours is ludicrous.

 

[blackcat714]

The next time I see him walking his dogs I am going to slow down and tell him I saw a peacock up ahead and he should run. The other day I pulled over and exchanged pleasantries. No more.

Flip him the bird next time you see him walking his dog.

 

[TankedCat]

People say Cal changed after 2015.

To me the issue is Cal didn't change and that's been his downfall.

If anything crushed Cal, I don't think it was Wisconsin. I think it was Coach K.

He beat Cal as his own game and neutered his dominance. Not only did he get the 1,2,3 recruits in a single class - but then he beat UK with them.....badly.

Kentucky was ground zero for OADs and Duke not only took it away but it became a better Kentucky than Kentucky at it.

Once it was broken , Cal couldn't fix it and inexplicably, he doubled down on his philosophy even though his talent level wasn't anywhere near what he knew he needed to compete at the highest levels.

You can talk about his Malik Monk/Fox team or whatever as a debate point but there is no arguing there was steady measurable decline.

At what is maddening about it is that Cal would not address it, he talked as if it was intentional on his part with the "that's some parents son out there and I'll lose games if it means I help him reach his dreams" nonsense.

Whether he actually meant it or not at this point is irrelevant because he didn't have the ability to reverse the trend anyways.

Ironically, the thing he trumpeted as his biggest achievement, sending kids to the NBA is likely going to mean the end of the pinnacle of his coaching career if Sharp, Oscar and TyTy all go pro.

And the fallout will be ugly. Will he care? I honestly don't know at this point.

He acts like he is playing with house money to me, he'll ride as long as he can and when the time comes, he is set, he won't miss it, he won't look back and he's has a life after this based on that house money he has accumulated the last 7 years.

 

[UKortho]

Flip him the bird next time you see him walking his dog.

He walks them two dogs all the time. I am glad he does. The last time he was wearing a UK sock cap with a huge ball on the top (whatever that thing is called).

 

[UKWildcats1987]

People say Cal changed after 2015.

To me the issue is Cal didn't change and that's been his downfall.

If anything crushed Cal, I don't think it was Wisconsin. I think it was Coach K.

He beat Cal as his own game and neutered his dominance. Not only did he get the 1,2,3 recruits in a single class - but then he beat UK with them.....badly.

Kentucky was ground zero for OADs and Duke not only took it away but it became a better Kentucky than Kentucky at it.

Once it was broken , Cal couldn't fix it and inexplicably, he doubled down on his philosophy even though his talent level wasn't anywhere near what he knew he needed to compete at the highest levels.

You can talk about his Malik Monk/Fox team or whatever as a debate point but there is no arguing there was steady measurable decline.

At what is maddening about it is that Cal would not address it, he talked as if it was intentional on his part with the "that's some parents son out there and I'll lose games if it means I help him reach his dreams" nonsense.

Whether he actually meant it or not at this point is irrelevant because he didn't have the ability to reverse the trend anyways.

Ironically, the thing he trumpeted as his biggest achievement, sending kids to the NBA is likely going to mean the end of the pinnacle of his coaching career if Sharp, Oscar and TyTy all go pro.

And the fallout will be ugly. Will he care? I honestly don't know at this point.

He acts like he is playing with house money to me, he'll ride as long as he can and when the time comes, he is set, he won't miss it, he won't look back and he's has a life after this based on that house money he has accumulated the last 7 years.

And the worst part is K won zilch doing so.

 

[BigRedMachineBigBlueNation]

Haha, I bet you also liked the Murray-Ulis team until IU and this team until St. Peter’s. 😁

Liked Ulis and Murray as players. The 16 team was a mess from the start. I did like this team at certain points.

 

[TankedCat]

And the worst part is K won zilch doing so.

Well that's telling about the belief in OAD in itself.

Unlike Cal, I think Coach K went all in a couple of seasons and realized he was going nowhere with it. Now he is retiring.