I read some here already suggesting a National Championship caliber team. Could be. But, who is our elite distributer that knows how to hold his dribble, get to the rim, or make great assists and also guarding or shutting down the opposing guard?
Don't we still need an elite experienced point guard?
- Thread starter uk78
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Where have you been? We got a very good guard from Pittsburgh.
We can always have another experienced PG who is team player and cardinal slayer… 15 scholarships available, get onboard and get your ring!
We need a solid guy who can provide minutes off the bench. Don't need a starter. Need like a Ravi Moss type.....
Yes, you probably don’t want to recruit over Lowe, at least not until April 23rd - that’s a sure fire way to have him re-enter the portal.
I think (and I've seen others say the same) whether Wilkerson commits to UK or not, I think Jasper Johnson backs up both PG and SG positions.
That allows JJ to get plenty of minutes, and it allows him to develop his game at PG, which would increase both his draft stock and longevity for an NBA career.
That allows JJ to get plenty of minutes, and it allows him to develop his game at PG, which would increase both his draft stock and longevity for an NBA career.
Who shot only 26 percent on threes and averaged three turnovers per game.
Can’t say I’m wholly convinced that Lowe is the answer to all our point needs. Especially since Lewis bailed and thus we no longer have a true backup point. We’re just one injury away from being stuck in the same “no point” predicament that plagued the worst part of last season.
This is the answer. I’m not sure why so many ppl are still stuck on “we need a backup PG”
Whoever we add at the 2 is going to be a combo guard that has ball handling skills and can play PG if necessary. We have Lowe. Johnson will back up the 1 and 2 for 20+ min a game.
If there is any backcourt foul trouble then you have Chandler and lastly Perry to steal minutes until you can get Wilkerson/Lowe/Jasper back in the game. Kam/Oweh can also slide to the 2 if backcourt foul trouble was severe enough and you only had 1 of the Wilkerson/Lowe/JJ available
On an absolutely awful team where he was forcing and trying to do everything
We will pass your concerns from looking at a stat sheet along to mark pope. He probably wasnt aware.
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With the style of offense Pope runs, you really don't need multiple point guards, you just need ball handlers, because the offense is run from the top with one of the bigs.
To me, you need guards that can shoot, defend, cut to the basket and get their own off the bounce.
I know CMP will run different offenses when his best passing big (Amari Williams) is getting a blow, but in half court sets, he mainly uses the bigs to run the offense from the top of the key.
We have Johnson, Chandler and Perry backing up Lowe and Oweh and Wilkerson (if we get him), are more than adequate at handling the ball.
To me, you need guards that can shoot, defend, cut to the basket and get their own off the bounce.
I know CMP will run different offenses when his best passing big (Amari Williams) is getting a blow, but in half court sets, he mainly uses the bigs to run the offense from the top of the key.
We have Johnson, Chandler and Perry backing up Lowe and Oweh and Wilkerson (if we get him), are more than adequate at handling the ball.
That is a very good and true statement. It's dog eat dog and you can recruit a player and have 2 bail on you.
You can look at Ament, AR says they made a very generous offer and still have some to add to that but he's waiting on player movement before committing.
Lowe had to do everything for his team’s abysmal offense himself, and that included a lot of desperation chucks as the shot clock was winding down. I wouldn’t put a ton of stock into those shooting splits. If Lowe makes a similar shooting improvement as Butler did from his last year at SDSU to his one year at UK, we have nothing to worry about. Guy was an all conference player as a sophomore on a team where he was the only option.
I think Chandler is going to play point more than people expect
Yep. When you have a 30% usage rate, your stats can be pretty bad on a bad team.
I have not seen an actual breakdown of Lowe's shot chart statistics. It may be the case that his shooting percentage off the bounce (creating his own shot) is different than spot up opportunities with his feet set. From the limited film I have seen, Lowe had to dribble his way open a lot in the offense Pitt ran. Pope evaluates players with that sort of emphasis on the analytics.
Yup in this era of basketball a guy like Jasper Johnson can get away with being the backup . I guess it would be good to get one more ball handler just in case of an injury though .
Haven’t you heard? It’s Braden Smith
We don’t have room for another guard. If we get Wilkerson, we are done with contributing players, IMHO.
We may add another developmental player or two, but once we add Wilkerson (or some other portal wing), we are done adding rotation guys.
We will have 13 scholarship players.
If you start looking at the roster, and start to do the math, you understand why Lewis left. There’s just no room left.
Pope is going to have to really work to keep his rotation manageable. With this team, we are going to be looking at the box score and saying, “I can’t believe so and so only played 8 or 9 minutes.”
We may add another developmental player or two, but once we add Wilkerson (or some other portal wing), we are done adding rotation guys.
We will have 13 scholarship players.
If you start looking at the roster, and start to do the math, you understand why Lewis left. There’s just no room left.
Pope is going to have to really work to keep his rotation manageable. With this team, we are going to be looking at the box score and saying, “I can’t believe so and so only played 8 or 9 minutes.”
I think you also have to consider both seasons for Lowe...
His freshman year, he shot 35% from 3pt range.
Also, in both seasons, he shot over 85% from the FT line (he was over 88% in 2024-2025). So, clearly he has a good shot when his feet are set.
Another concern I have about JJ running PG is also defensively. I love the kid, but he is thin and haven't been too amazed by his defense. Can he guard other collegiate PG's and keep them from in front so they don't get into the lane to facilitate and create for others?
I get your point however Jasper was 3rd ranked PG. he can handle it
I believe Lowe has all the tools to play with anybody from the PG spot. But I also understand he has to show it consistently and be more efficient and productive - and I'd like to see more defensive intensity. Still, I'm with you, as everybody who watched last season should be, that Lowe can't be the only PG.
Lewis was my favorite PG from the top ranked high school PGs I watched. Obviously, I don’t know anything about them beyond what I read (stats and others’ analysis) and from watching a few games and some video. But the fact he was likely going to be a multi-year PG and spend the 1st season developing without always having to be the guy, I felt was really a big advantage for him and UK. So, I’m disappointed he decommitted and not going to try to rationalize away his departure by claiming Lewis and the role he was going to play is not really that important. I think it definitely was.
Nevertheless, I think Jasper Johnson is a better ball-handler from the perspective of being “shifty” than anybody we had last season other than I guess Butler. Kriisa was fast with the ball – Perry is pretty fast with the ball also – but Krissa wasn’t shifty with his dribble (and Perry even less so). I actually think being shifty is a huge asset skill wise and more important to ball-handling than speed. So, from just a ball-handling perspective I’m ok with Jasper as a 2nd unit PG (and I realize there’s a lot more to being a productive PG than that).
Now, I’ll listen to anybody that has watched Johnson a lot and wants to dispute that and tell me his ball-handling is not very good and/or he can’t handle being pressured. In fact, I’d love to hear what others think of his ball-handling. But personally, I feel ok with Jasper as a 2nd unit PG.
I didn’t see the type ball handling from Chandler needed to run point for an elite team, which Pope is trying to assemble.
Lowe will be awesome here. Very knowledgeable basketball guys think he is legit and just needs a better supporting cast.
I also believe Johnson can handle the 2nd unit PG role. But I do so based on what I've seen (which admittedly could end up being wrong). When talking about recruiting service rankings we can't forget those are largely projections about where they think the player could end up as a Pro.
Wayne Turner wasn’t a good 3 point shooter either.
Perry and Chandler will be much more prepared in the upcoming season.
From what I have seen on video since his UK commitment, Lowe can stay in front of a frightened squirrel. He is an absolute jet, with speed and quickness akin to Dwight Anderson in UK lore.
That’s what I said my preference was a few days ago. Couldn’t agree more! I really think that’s the best play. If can’t land Wilkerson (or another knock down wing), then I think you go looking for a true backup PG.
Lowe I'm sure is a good PG but he does not shoot the 3 well, other teams will leave him open hoping he will shoot the 3, and I know we have Perry and Chandler but neither are true PGs.
Personally I'd like to get a true backup PG besides Chandler and Jasper. It could be a very low rated guy that has a little potential and is willing to come off the bench but having that would make me feel better.
It’s not the scholarships, it’s the minutes on the court. You can sign 15, but it’s pretty much impossible to play 15 and have any continuity.
He’s lightning quick. Would think that would help him recover if someone gets by him.
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