By: Kyle Tucker/The Athletic
Cason's High School Coach - Lawson:
Ask anyone who has ever coached Wallace whether Kentucky ought to now effectively give him the ball and get out of the way, and they’ll all couch their response in the usual well, I’m a little biased way. But none can contain their opinion: Yes, the Wildcats should. That doesn’t necessarily mean demoting senior point guard Sahvir Wheeler, who is well on his way to leading the SEC in assists for a third straight season. It just means that when Kentucky badly needs a bucket, Wallace is probably that guy. It means that, for a team that has looked offensively challenged at times against top competition and is still struggling to define its identity, John Calipari could do a lot worse than handing Wallace the keys and letting him dictate who these Cats become.
Yes, Oscar Tshiebwe is the reigning national player of the year, a reliable double-double machine inside, but it’s no secret that guard play wins in March. See the 30-point, 16-rebound Tshiebwe performance in a first-round loss to Saint Peter’s last season. Kentucky’s leading man needs a co-star on the perimeter, and Wallace offers the best hope of giving him one.
“Every time that he’s aggressive and making plays, they’re better,” Lawson says. “You kind of know what you’re going to get with Oscar. You kind of know that your shooters are a little hit-or-miss, not as consistent as you’d like. But Cason is the guy who can take it to the next level, and he’s got even more than what we’ve seen. I think he’s really been trying to feel it out on offense while he’s killing it on defense and making a name for himself that way, but there’s so much more he can give them. If they ask him to, he can average 20 a game. So yeah, I think Kentucky’s ceiling is Cason.”
In his first college game, Wallace filled in for an injured Wheeler and flirted with a triple-double: 15 points, nine assists, eight rebounds. In his first high-level college game, against Michigan State in the Champions Classic, he tied a school record for steals (eight) to go with 14 points, five rebounds and five assists. He had 14 points on just nine shots and swiped four more steals at Gonzaga.
Can Cason Wallace lead Kentucky’s way forward? - The Athletic
Cason's High School Coach - Lawson:
Ask anyone who has ever coached Wallace whether Kentucky ought to now effectively give him the ball and get out of the way, and they’ll all couch their response in the usual well, I’m a little biased way. But none can contain their opinion: Yes, the Wildcats should. That doesn’t necessarily mean demoting senior point guard Sahvir Wheeler, who is well on his way to leading the SEC in assists for a third straight season. It just means that when Kentucky badly needs a bucket, Wallace is probably that guy. It means that, for a team that has looked offensively challenged at times against top competition and is still struggling to define its identity, John Calipari could do a lot worse than handing Wallace the keys and letting him dictate who these Cats become.
Yes, Oscar Tshiebwe is the reigning national player of the year, a reliable double-double machine inside, but it’s no secret that guard play wins in March. See the 30-point, 16-rebound Tshiebwe performance in a first-round loss to Saint Peter’s last season. Kentucky’s leading man needs a co-star on the perimeter, and Wallace offers the best hope of giving him one.
“Every time that he’s aggressive and making plays, they’re better,” Lawson says. “You kind of know what you’re going to get with Oscar. You kind of know that your shooters are a little hit-or-miss, not as consistent as you’d like. But Cason is the guy who can take it to the next level, and he’s got even more than what we’ve seen. I think he’s really been trying to feel it out on offense while he’s killing it on defense and making a name for himself that way, but there’s so much more he can give them. If they ask him to, he can average 20 a game. So yeah, I think Kentucky’s ceiling is Cason.”
In his first college game, Wallace filled in for an injured Wheeler and flirted with a triple-double: 15 points, nine assists, eight rebounds. In his first high-level college game, against Michigan State in the Champions Classic, he tied a school record for steals (eight) to go with 14 points, five rebounds and five assists. He had 14 points on just nine shots and swiped four more steals at Gonzaga.
Can Cason Wallace lead Kentucky’s way forward? - The Athletic