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Jones update

Pope took Garrison because he didn't want to wait on Osobor so I don't see the difference.
The difference In what exactly? Oh Nevermind I see it now yeah I honestly don’t either, I was just saying options. I fully expect them to wait out Robinson decision
 
Robinson being your best player isn't good by Kentucky standards. He is probably gonna go undrafted this year, or late 2nd round at best. That being your best player at Kentucky is a problem. Thankfully we don't have to worry about so much youth anymore. That said, you're not competing for titles with Robinson being your best player, regardless.

Then again, some UK fans have reserved to the fact that next year is a rebuild year anyway. If that's how they feel, cool, I just disagree. Thought we could load up in the portal this year and compete now. We still may. Current roster has 0 stars though.
Calipari is the one who needs 5* to effectively compete. Pope is building a TEAM. I just hope they can mesh.
 
The reporting shows we panicked with both the PG’s. After the Roach/Baylor situation we panicked with Butler and went “all-in” on someone legitimately not ranked in the Top 150 portal players. With Kriisa we panicked after Smith had the transcript issue and locked him up. The faith these coaches have in “the offensive system” is something to behold. Butler can drive a little….but Kentucky is going to have a roster of guards where none of them can consistently dribble penetrate for kick-outs against SEC level defense. Seemingly the entire team is catch-and-shoot specialists but anytime the question of how those guys are going to get open shots arises the answer is always “the system.” I’m with you….right now I don’t think we have a Top 25 roster talent wise. And even with Robinson I think it’s borderline.
WRONG. Pope has been high on Kiirsa all along. Don't have guards who can dribble penetrate for kick outs ? Have you even watched Kiirsa ? The guys is very crafty with the ball. Excellent at pick and roll, pick and pop, and driving the lane. He has played on very good teams and on a big time college basketball stage.
 
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I like Krisa as a work plug off the bench more . Butler to me can set tones for games with defense and improved offense
Maybe he can, but he is not a scoring, good assist PG. that is not his strength, he needs to be off ball, he is a intangibles player. Does not do any one thing great, but does a lot of things well. Kiirsa is a PG, he may need to tone his game down a tad, play a little more under control, but he is excellent is running a team, getting everyone involved, and he can shoot. Exactly what you want out of your PG, he does. I stand by it, PG - Kiirsa / 2G - Butler. Book mark this thread, and if we do not sign any players better at those spots, that is your starting back court. It is not all flashy or name game for some of our fans, but it will be very good.
 
Both of those guys STARTED and performed on very high level teams (Kiirsa on #1 and #2 seed Arizona teams) ( Butler on SD State team that made the championship game.) Big stage guys who have done it and performed, and they are not good enough to start for this UK team ? BS.
 
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Not gonna play 13 guys. Hard to convince someone to transfer to be the 11th through 13th men that rarely play. If at all.

Maybe some low ranked 3 star freshmen might. Idk if there are any unsigned KY or regional guys we could try there.
This plus you end up with a possible have to recruit over multi year player holding a scholarship that you won't be able to use for more talent when you have a whole year to recruit the following year.
 
The reporting shows we panicked with both the PG’s. After the Roach/Baylor situation we panicked with Butler and went “all-in” on someone legitimately not ranked in the Top 150 portal players. With Kriisa we panicked after Smith had the transcript issue and locked him up. The faith these coaches have in “the offensive system” is something to behold. Butler can drive a little….but Kentucky is going to have a roster of guards where none of them can consistently dribble penetrate for kick-outs against SEC level defense. Seemingly the entire team is catch-and-shoot specialists but anytime the question of how those guys are going to get open shots arises the answer is always “the system.” I’m with you….right now I don’t think we have a Top 25 roster talent wise. And even with Robinson I think it’s borderline.
Pope's offense passes people open. There isn't much dribble penetration. The forwards drive baseline when that is given to them. From what I saw of BYU's forwards last year, none of them were wizards with the dribble so the offense doesn't need Jason Kidds. The guards weren't exactly mistake-proof.

I'm amazed and frustrated by the deluge of responses on this board by people who haven't taken the time to watch BYU's games last season. Aren't people interested? Pope doesn't much run an offense that uses a Dillingham kind of player. Maybe he would if he had one, but players are expected to see what the defense gives up and take advantage of that. The patterns they run makes the defense respond. As a result the players Pope wants are alert, smart passers. There's no stat on alertness so I suspect that lots of what Pope values is falling through the cracks of criteria people use to gauge a player's worth.

When people say we need x or we need y, being familiar with Pope's teams might modify that. You can't judge a player's fitness for this offense without watching it in action. And you can't generalize from other teams because Pope's offense is unique. If you can post here, you can watch Youtube and see for yourself.
 
The reporting shows we panicked with both the PG’s. After the Roach/Baylor situation we panicked with Butler and went “all-in” on someone legitimately not ranked in the Top 150 portal players. With Kriisa we panicked after Smith had the transcript issue and locked him up. The faith these coaches have in “the offensive system” is something to behold. Butler can drive a little….but Kentucky is going to have a roster of guards where none of them can consistently dribble penetrate for kick-outs against SEC level defense. Seemingly the entire team is catch-and-shoot specialists but anytime the question of how those guys are going to get open shots arises the answer is always “the system.” I’m with you….right now I don’t think we have a Top 25 roster talent wise. And even with Robinson I think it’s borderline.
Have you watched even a second of BYU’s offense last year? Being able to beat your man 1vs1 is CALs offense, popes system is based of movement and scheming guys open. What you just described is the dribble drive, that’s cal, that’s what we all wanted to get away from. We are away from it and people are still upset and saying the roster isn’t top 25 when they haven’t
even practiced yet or completed the roster. We don’t have a top 25 roster talent wise? Okay that’s what everybody was mad about, Kentucky had all the talent in the world and they couldn’t win anything with it. Now they have a team like the majority of college basketball and a coach who is gonna actually run stuff and people are upset. I just don’t get it, he hasn’t even coached a game yet and your already making serious judgments
 
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Too many ppl are underestimating the roster for sure.

The “how are the catch and shoot guys going to get open” fear mongering is a product of the mindset that the only way to “create” open shots is off ball screens and dribble penetration with kickouts and swing passes. Ppl think that bc it’s what we’ve watched the last 15 years, but it’s also the majority of what 85%+ of teams in colllege and NBA run now.

Pope has shown that he wants a ton of off ball movement, staggered screens, zoom, multiple ppl moving off ball simultaneously, minimum ball sticking. Princeton style; similar to the Bellarmine “no dribbles” system but not as extreme/strict bc you have higher quality athletes.

Ppl are too stuck on watching a lot of 1v1 2v2 basketball that the game has mutated into…it’s actually a lot harder to defend chasing a team around the floor for 40 minutes…it just fell out of fashion bc the NBA is all about promoting “stars” bc it sells tickets and merchandise and the ball screen 1v1 game showcases those guys. So as the ppl who played on those systems become coaches…thats what they know and teach. The off ball non-stop motion and screening away takes a higher sustained effort level, higher capacity for understanding multiple concepts, more coaching/good students of the game….but extremely effective when done right. Now-a-days we’d refer to it as the “European game”…reality it’s just a loss version of basketball in the states as we overemphasized showcasing individual talent and de-emphasized high level quick ball movement to move the defense, not just to pass to an open player.
Watching NBA "star" basketball can corrupt the concept of team basketball. Pope's system doesn't utilize "hotdog" star basketball.
 
Have you watched even a second of BYU’s offense last year? Being able to beat your man 1vs1 is CALs offense, popes system is based of movement and scheming guys open. What you just described is the dribble drive, that’s cal, that’s what we all wanted to get away from. We are away from it and people are still upset and saying the roster isn’t top 25 when they have even practiced yet or completed the roster. We don’t have a top 25 roster talent wise? Okay that’s what everybody was mad about, Kentucky had all the talent in the world and they couldn’t win anything with it. Now they have a team like the majority of college basketball and a coach who is gonna actually run stuff and people are upset. I just don’t get it, he hasn’t even coached a game yet and your already making serious judgments
You still need very good players no matter the offense.
 
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Watching NBA "star" basketball can corrupt the concept of team basketball. Pope's system doesn't utilize "hotdog" star basketball.
Yep. It’s just a flashback to a more pure form of team basketball and not “power basketball”

Traditional American ball and European ball is more similar to Soccer, Hockey, Lacrosse on hardwood. It’s all about spacing and simultaneous movement, crisp passes hitting cutters etc. aka “The Beautiful Game”

The European game is still physical inside. That’s a misconception. It’s just that scoring opportunities are more often created via off ball finesse spacing, fluidity and motion instead of individual explosiveness. Little more art to the game instead of raw power
 
I wish some of us could get over having a PG who can get to the rim. The PG in Pope’s offense will be a facilitator more than a scorer.

I also think we should get over star rankings and be more concerned with fit. Pope is going to get guys who git his system. Cal stockpiled players based on recruiting rankings and worried about fit later. That’s why we often looked like ass until late January a lot of years.
 
Pope's offense passes people open. There isn't much dribble penetration. The forwards drive baseline when that is given to them. From what I saw of BYU's forwards last year, none of them were wizards with the dribble so the offense doesn't need Jason Kidds. The guards weren't exactly mistake-proof.

I'm amazed and frustrated by the deluge of responses on this board by people who haven't taken the time to watch BYU's games last season. Aren't people interested? Pope doesn't much run an offense that uses a Dillingham kind of player. Maybe he would if he had one, but players are expected to see what the defense gives up and take advantage of that. The patterns they run makes the defense respond. As a result the players Pope wants are alert, smart passers. There's no stat on alertness so I suspect that lots of what Pope values is falling through the cracks of criteria people use to gauge a player's worth.

When people say we need x or we need y, being familiar with Pope's teams might modify that. You can't judge a player's fitness for this offense without watching it in action. And you can't generalize from other teams because Pope's offense is unique. If you can post here, you can watch Youtube and see for yourself.
Appreciate the post, but Pope might not even play the same as last year. He's still developing as a coach and there's a good chance his system changes significantly.
 
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If we go into next season with Jaxon Robinson being our best player, I don't like our chances at competing for a SEC title, much less NCAA title. He should have been our 3rd best player, assuming we get em. And settling for the 2 PG's we landed is a bit mind boggling to me. We had all summer.
I said this before but I feel like we have 6-7 guys on the roster who would be like the 3rd or 4th best player on a final four team. Very solid throughout but nobody that really strikes fear into an opponent.

Of course you could say that about the 1998 championship team too….
 
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Thanks, guy who joined 7 minutes ago.
ALL of these TROLL-CUCKS (who just recently joined) really clog up these message boards with their effin nonsense just to try and stir 💩💩💩 up need to be in a 2-week probationary timeout before they're allowed to post!!!!
It's such a freaking waste of time to have to skim by these newbie @zzhole trolls to read pertinent messages!!!!

If there is a STUPID, idiotic reply/ response, from he/she who joined recently, IGNORE!!!!! Life is too short to interact with these keyboard queens!!!
 
Appreciate the post, but Pope might not even play the same as last year. He's still developing as a coach and there's a good chance his system changes significantly.
There is more than a good chance, it is almost a certainty that it will change. However, most, if not all the principals will be the same. Many people want to look at his offense from last year, and think that is exactly how he is going to do it at UK. Well, they averaged as many 3pt attempts as 2 pt attempts last year, but all his previous seasons were around 33-35% of shots were 3s. Pope may be the smartest coach we have ever had, in terms of just intelligence, and he will figure out the strengths of his best players, and design an offense around getting his best players in the best situations to maximize that. I would venture to bet we will be pretty high nationally in 3pt attempts, as a couple of his best players that is a strength of theirs, but I bet we aren't anywhere near being #1 in that category. We will see, but it is the very reason that I think it is a terrible take to put any kind of judgement on what this team can be, both good and bad.
 
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If we go into next season with Jaxon Robinson being our best player, I don't like our chances at competing for a SEC title, much less NCAA title. He should have been our 3rd best player, assuming we get em. And settling for the 2 PG's we landed is a bit mind boggling to me. We had all summer.
Ok, but when Cal left, thank god, who thought we had any chance at all of having a team that could contend? ZERO returning players and just about all the top recruits already committed. Without the portal, we would be lucky to get enough to play. Pope has done an amazing job, and if we can't get a game-changing go-to guy, then it is what it is. We should still have a really good team that is fun to watch.
 
Name One college team or any team in sports that every player on the roster is very good??
I was talking more about the go to guy to get a bucket when things go wrong. Robinson would be that guy but right now I don't see that guy.
 
I think Cal's grand plan for last year was that RIVALS #2 Bradshaw, #3 Edwards and #6 Wagner were going to be the anchor keys, that his team was going to be built around.
But due to LOTS of injuries, poor acclimation, poor play, etc. to the college game they struggled and Cal realized there were weaknesses on that team, hence picking up Z and Mitchell and a larger than expected roll (and individual success for Reed and Rob).

I believe Cal knew Reeves would be a very important piece, that Dillingham would play 15-20 minutes per game and that Sheppard would mature and gain experience throughout the season, to be a multi-year player.

For the most part Reeves/ Sheppard/ Dillingham (offense only/ his overall defense was horrible) carried that team, with very limited and or below expectational play from his main 5-star recruits, 21-feet of "suck" or from the other rotational players.........

Pope's 1st year team who are effectively a "Frankenstein-Junkyard" group of PIECES chosen and placed together by Pope and staff for hopefully a more positive end of season result That the fans can be proud of. It may not end up with the most highly "evaluated talent" on paper, but I think they will not be timid versus anybody, will be tough on D, will run a designed offense, will bring a VAST amount of experience to the team and the roster will have more men who can buy alcohol than the teenagers UK fans have grown accustomed to!!!
 
I was talking more about the go to guy to get a bucket when things go wrong. Robinson would be that guy but right now I don't see that guy.
I see Robinson as a guy who can, without remorse get into space and put up a needed three from anywhere. I do not see Robinson (from any videos) being a player who can will his way to the basket for an And-1. His body and his handles (from what I see) are not built for that.

Butler (from what I saw) has the handles and the frame, to get to the rim or to create mismatches for easy baskets.

And Kriisa, seems to have great handles, crafty experience and range to make space and get a shot. His overall game reminds me of Tyler Herro.......

And Oweh, who is limited shooting from deep, has a repertoire of moves, along with an athletic body frame to get into the lane for easy buckets.
 
Concerned the Osobor scenario will be regrettable when we look back on things later. Tough sitiation needing to lock down roster spots and not necessarily having the breathing room to put one player on hold waiting on another decision. Osobor was an intriguing player… hopefully we aren’t watching him blow up at another program this year.


It's on Osobor. He knew we wanted him almost immediately after Pope was hired and was slow to get to campus. While here, Garrison catches wind and gets a "shit or get off the pot" mentality and jumps on the opportunity.

For years we've wanted to go back to not being lead on by a recruit. Offer a spot to several talented guys and the first to commit gets the spot, as it should be. This is what happend (to my knowledge) and its on Osobor at that point, not us.
 
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