Let's talk starting lineups...

[brianpoe]

Totally disagree?

I said "I wouldn't be surprised." So, by totally disagreeing with me, are you saying that I would be surprised?

I said, "That uncertainty ..." So, by totally disagreeing with me, are you saying that there's certainty? But if there's certainty what does "most likely" mean?

Murray shot under 40% from 3 against HS competition. Muldur shot over 40% from 3 against older players. So, purely as a statistical matter I wouldn't be surprised to find Muldur getting more minutes. Experience matters and skill matters. Why wouldn't the combination matter? Murray's the most recent recruit, and we were all pleased to see his play at Nike, but not so much that I'd automatically dismiss someone who already has college achievement.

Muldur may seem like a recruiting afterthought, but isn't that also true of someone who wasn't secured until late in June?

I unequivocally disagree with this post.


Apologize for the absoluteness in my wording.

Timing has nothing to do with my assessment.

Comparing Juco players to top 10 high schoolers rarely works, and Mulder didn't even start half of his Juco games as a sophomore. I don't care what anyone says, if a guy is that good he starts, especially in his final season.

I love Mulder's shot and athleticism and do not want to dismiss him. But Murray is likely a top 10-15 NBA draft pick this coming year and Mulder will most likely graduate at UK.

I believe there will be a big difference in the two. Respect your opinion, hope they both turnout fantastic.

 

[.S&C.]

Chemistry is my only concern as long as Poythress is healthy.

The pieces should fit as long as Cal manages the egos like he always does.

They should complement each other:

G Ulis- pure pass first PG that can knock down the open jumper.
G Briscoe- aggressive driver who can get to the rim to score or find the open man, decent shooter.
G Murray- can score from anywhere on the floor and can also find the open man.
F Poythress- can rebound and will score most of his points off misses from guards.
F Labissiere- good shooter to spread the defense, doesn't have to be force fed the ball in the post.

On offense, we have guards that can all handle and pass. Our forwards (including Lee) will score off rebounds and lobs from the guards. Labissiere being able to step out and shoot the jumper will help spacing. Poythress needs to work on improving his jumper, but he should be able to shoot well enough to help with spacing as well.

On defense, Ulis and Briscoe are beasts. They should wreak havoc on opposing back courts. Poythress, of course, is an excellent defender. Labissiere is a good rim protector. So is Lee. Matthews is known as a good defender as well. The question mark is Murray. I am not sure about his defense. Haven't seen enough of him to tell for sure.

Should be fun to watch this team if they fit together right. I think Cal will have them synced up and on the same page by March.

I wouldn't be concerned with chemistry with a player like Ulis handling John Calipari's team. Murray is ahead of his time and it shows. He's going to be as cool as the other side of the pillow. POY is a team guy, so you don't have to worry about that. Skal is the furthest thing in the world from an issue. He's actually a really good kid and a team guy. Briscoe I'm not sure, as I haven't followed as closely.

But there should be zero chemistry issues or attitude issues on this team.

 

[.S&C.]

Lee will get serious minutes because we will get hammered on the boards

I don't think we get hammered on the boards. At least, we shouldn't get hammered on the boards.

 

[SilentsAreGolden]

Lee will get serious minutes because we will get hammered on the boards

Who would have thought you would be the one to find the negative? Oh yeah, everybody.

 

[UPSCat4080]

By a few years back do you mean last year?

Ha yeah! I for some reason was thinking with Julius, Willie, Young and the Twins. Did not even think for some reason with having Dakari, KAT and WCS all this past year...wow the Bahamas trip seems like forever ago.

 

[bucsrule8872]

What about scoring? We should be a pretty high scoring team. We should have five guys around double digits.

I'm going with:

Labissiere- 13-14ppg
Murray- 12-13ppg
Briscoe- 12-13ppg
Poythress- 9-10ppg
Ulis- 9-10ppg
Lee- 6-7ppg
Mulder- 4-5ppg
Matthews- 3-4ppg
Wynyard- 2-3ppg
Willis- 1-2ppg
Hawkins- 1-2ppg
Total- about 75-76ppg

 

[ia.ukfan]

I wouldn't be surprised if Muldur plays a lot more minutes than Murray due to a more reliable shot and a more mature feel for the game. My understanding is that the Murray we saw in the Nike game is not the Murray who usually shows up. Of course, if Murray has suddenly become that guy from the Nike game, then katy bar the door. The Murray in the Nike game was the best high school guard I've ever seen.

That uncertainty is why they play the games.

I also totally disagree. I wouldn't be surprised if Mulder gets less then 10 minutes a game. I would be shocked if he saw more then 20 though. Murray wasn't built on the Nike game, that was just his coming out party. He's a much better, more skilled player then Mulder.

 

[ganner918]

Mulder didn't even start half of his Juco games as a sophomore. I don't care what anyone says, if a guy is that good he starts, especially in his final season.

While I agree that it's ridiculous to think Mulder starts over Murray, I wouldn't trust those stats that say he only started half the games. If you're looking at the same stats page I found here, I believe their stats are incomplete. For instance, it only shows him as playing 124 minutes total all season. He averaged 15 points and 6 rebounds, and there are box scores that show him coming off the bench but scoring 26 points, for example. Either they're off on who started, or he came off the bench but still led his team in shot attempts and points scored while having the second most rebounds.

 

[Teachable Moe]

I also totally disagree. I wouldn't be surprised if Mulder gets less then 10 minutes a game. I would be shocked if he saw more then 20 though. Murray wasn't built on the Nike game, that was just his coming out party. He's a much better, more skilled player then Mulder.

You've seen Murray and Muldur extensively, have you? You can tell a one game fluke from a "coming out party"? You could make millions if you could do that regularly. I'd be delighted if the Nike Summit were the shape of things to come for Murray, but if it had been the norm for him he'd have been the consensus #1 player by a wide margin. A new Kobe. The next Jordan. That was one fantastic game. In a freshman year high school intramural game I scored a basket by throwing it over my head.while facing away from the basket. What a stud I'd be projected to be.

Seriously, to evaluate a player requires more than an exhibition game to go by.

 

[Teachable Moe]

The biggest adjustment will be style of play. UK goes from being the biggest team in the college game to maybe looking like a Mid-Major. (Height only!) ia.ukfan talked about a coming out party. I wish it would be that for Willis and Lee. Two juniors who have paid their dues.

 

[twocoach]

Hopefully it is the same all year, if for some reason it changes it won't be for the better IMO.

PG - Ulis
SG - Briscoe
SF - Murray
PF - Poythress
C - Skal

Lee
Hawkins
Matthews
Mulder
Willis

Wow, Kentucky only has four guys on their roster taller than 6'5"? That's quite a significant change from last season when they had four guys 6'10" or taller and 10 guys over 6'5". Crazy.

 

[.S&C.]

Wow, Kentucky only has four guys on their roster taller than 6'5"? That's quite a significant change from last season when they had four guys 6'10" or taller and 10 guys over 6'5". Crazy.

Yea maybe Kansas could keep it in within 25.

edit: Wanted to add, I think this team has something special to it that last years team didn't have. They might not be as dominant, but they don't have to be.

 

[UK_Johnny24]

Starters, and what I think each will average. I'm so jacked about next year!!!!!

Tyler Ulis - 13pts, 8asts, 2rbs,
Isaiah Briscoe - 13pts, 5asts, 4rbs
Jamal Murray - 16pts, 4rbs, 3asts
Alex Poythress - 8pts, 8rbs, 2blks
Skal Labissiere - 15pts, 9rbs, 3blks

Then off the bench.....

Mychal Mulder - 8pts, 3rbs, and over 40% from 3.
Charles Mathews - 5pts, 3rbs
Marcus Lee - 6pts, 6rbs, 2blks

Ulis will be one of the best point guards in the nation. He's an excellent leader on the court with great instincts. Great passer, great distributor, and is a very good shooter. Briscoe's in the mold of a Kyle Lowery or Derron Williams. Big strong, bully point guard. Excellent ball handler, great passer, can get by a defender and get into the lane at will. Also a pretty decent shooter. Jamal Murray is a pure scorer. combo guard who can handle the ball, good passer, and can score in every way imaginable. Alex Poythress will be a key to our success this season. He should thrive playing the 4 full time. He's a big strong, physical beast who's a really good defender and really good rebounder. He'll score a lot on lobs from penetration, and offensive rebounds. Skal is just unbelievable!!! He does it all. AD 2.0 is all you need to know. Mathews will come off the bench and be a great defender. He'll be a lot better than some expect. Mulder I don't know too much about, but from what I understand he's athletic, and can score. He should be a really good 3pt shooter off the bench from what I take. Then there's Marcus Lee. Lee should be big time this year. Look for him to really break out this year. He'll be a great rim protector, and score most his points off lobs and offensive rebounds. Yeah BBN its time to get jacked!!!!!

 

[UK_Johnny24]

Whoever said we'd get hammered on the boards made a pretty stupid comment. And trust me.....I know a thing or two about a stupid comment. Don't you remember how good of a rebounder Poy is? He'll average 8-10 a game. That dude gets rebounds most guys wouldn't even get close to pulling down. The we have Skal whose what? 6'11? He'll be a good rebounder obviously. Probably get 8 or so a game. So Lee will give us a good big off the bench but we'll be awesome on the boards starting Poy and Skal.

 

[bucsrule8872]

UK goes from being the biggest team in college to probably the quickest team in college.

Size matters, but speed kills.

 

[hangin#8]

Starters, and what I think each will average. I'm so jacked about next year!!!!!

Tyler Ulis - 13pts, 8asts, 2rbs,
Isaiah Briscoe - 13pts, 5asts, 4rbs
Jamal Murray - 16pts, 4rbs, 3asts
Alex Poythress - 8pts, 8rbs, 2blks
Skal Labissiere - 15pts, 9rbs, 3blks

Then off the bench.....

Mychal Mulder - 8pts, 3rbs, and over 40% from 3.
Charles Mathews - 5pts, 3rbs
Marcus Lee - 6pts, 6rbs, 2blks

Ulis will be one of the best point guards in the nation. He's an excellent leader on the court with great instincts. Great passer, great distributor, and is a very good shooter. Briscoe's in the mold of a Kyle Lowery or Derron Williams. Big strong, bully point guard. Excellent ball handler, great passer, can get by a defender and get into the lane at will. Also a pretty decent shooter. Jamal Murray is a pure scorer. combo guard who can handle the ball, good passer, and can score in every way imaginable. Alex Poythress will be a key to our success this season. He should thrive playing the 4 full time. He's a big strong, physical beast who's a really good defender and really good rebounder. He'll score a lot on lobs from penetration, and offensive rebounds. Skal is just unbelievable!!! He does it all. AD 2.0 is all you need to know. Mathews will come off the bench and be a great defender. He'll be a lot better than some expect. Mulder I don't know too much about, but from what I understand he's athletic, and can score. He should be a really good 3pt shooter off the bench from what I take. Then there's Marcus Lee. Lee should be big time this year. Look for him to really break out this year. He'll be a great rim protector, and score most his points off lobs and offensive rebounds. Yeah BBN its time to get jacked!!!!!

You realize you're predicting we average 84 a game, right? I think we'll be fluid offensively, but nobody averages 84 a game in today's game.

Also, I think our guards are great, but I don't think Ulis averages 8 assists a night. There are all star guards in the NBA that struggle to get that, and the NBA is more liberal in giving out assists anyway. I think it's tough to expect more than 5 or 6 assists out of anybody.

I think your lineup is correct, and I think the breakdown is pretty accurate as far as who will provide scoring (although I don't think Ulis scores quite as much as you do), but I think you're a little generous on stat projections. If you back those down a little, your season will be much more enjoyable I'm thinking. Expecting 85 a game could set you up for a long season...