Just for fun: Cal's Cats versus Pitino's Cats

[MdWIldcat55]

Cal has now been at Kentucky roughly as long as Pitino, if you start the Pitino clock after the rebuild years of 1990 and 1991.

Whose Kentucky players would make up the better line-up? You have to consider their time at Kentucky only, so it's freshman Wall versus senior Delk, and so on. That makes it a bit closer call...

I'll go with these line-ups, which is a cheat in favor of Pitino by making Delk a PG, where he didn't perform well in 1996. Otherwise it isn't as close if you go with Ford or Epps or Turner and take out Anderson or Mercer:

Delk --------- Wall
Anderson --------- Knight/Bledsoe
Mercer ---------- Kidd-Gilchrist
Mashburn ---------- Cousins
Walker ----------- Davis

Pitino's team would have a total of 15 years of college experience, compared to five for Calipari's. And Mashburn would have been tough for any of Cal's Cats to guard. Still, it's hard to go against Wall, Davis and Cousins for pure talent. And Calipari always out-coached Pitino head-to-head, certainly since he got to Kentucky but I'd argue also in 1995-1996, when he was 1-1 and almost beat the Cats in the Final Four.

Also, if you add bench strength Calipari pulls away, with Jones, Noel, Towns, Patterson, Booker, Randle, Knight or Bledsoe and so on, versus Ford, Walter McCarty, Turner, Padgett, Sheppard.

 

[jrpross]

Funny, Pitino never had much of a center at UK. Yeah that is a killer matchup. Cal's cats definitely have the speed/athleticism advantage. Although none of the Pitini team were slouches. DA and Mercer were through the roof and Mash was right there. They have the shooters and the experience. It'd be a REALLY good matchup.

No matter who you put on the floor for Pitino's team, there's no answer for Boogie and AD would be blocking everything on the court. I'd take the Cal team in 3/5 games.

 

[MWes11]

Team Cal.

 

[WeWant9]

It'd be one hell of a matchup. I think Cals team would pull away due to their front court presence. But Pitinos team would have the outside shooters to keep it interesting.

 

[Smashcat]

I'd like to see the 1996 and 2012 teams play a best 3 of 5.

 

[Orange Soda King]

Hmm... As an assembled college unit at their respective abilities in college, I'd take Pitino's '96 team.

But take the best of Pitino's players and the best of Cal's players and make a 13-man roster... It's hard to top Cal. Mainly due to the star power of Davis, Wall, and Cousins, but also the depth off the bench. Mashburn and Walker are also studs, though.

Wall
Knight
MKG
Davis
Cousins

Bledsoe
Lamb
Liggins
Miller
Jones
Noel
Towns
WCS

Maybe you can put other names on this list instead of those I gave.