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Like I thought, Oscar let some of the acclaim from last season go to his head

He is missing some short shots he never missed last year, he will improve. His effort is getting better, his defense is what it is at this point
 
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So, trying to cut through the jargon that's apparently unique to this board ... is the suggestion that Oscar and Wheeler don't get along?
 
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Couldn’t have anything to do with his injury either. Nah🙄.

And I believe Oscar has called himself out a couple of times as well.

Given the choice between Oscar and Cal? I’m taking Oscar.
 
He almost always played at 110 percent last year. Been more like 90 percent this season. I have a feeling he’ll pick it up.😉

In Oscar's defense, it is human nature for that kind of success to go to your head. In fact, I'd say it takes a very rare person to be able to have that kind of success and STILL work as hard going forward. It is human nature to coast when you reach the top of that hill. I do not hold it against him, but I would hold him accountable for making a change once it's been pointed out.
 
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Not true. It’s Wah Wah Jones.
Word goin’ around Oscar and Basil Hayden were beefin’. Big O was attempting to get an NIL deal with a brand of Bourbon and Basil put Oscar in his place by whipping out a bottle of 100 proof bearing his name. Oscar backed down.
 
LMFAO, Oscar is not the problem. Without him, we'd be screwed.

Even if he was only playing at 70%, he’s still better than most everybody else in college ball.

College is a guards game and we have an issue there, if that gets solved, Oscar will eat well.
 
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This isn't new from Oscar tho.
I feel like year 1 UK Oscar was basically year 1 WVU Oscar.
And now year 2 UK Oscar is basically year 2 WVU Oscar.

I mean that being said, he's still very good. When I think of issues on this team, he doesn't pop into my head.

It's just there was this perception back at WVU he wasn't trying hard and then you hear the comments leaking out now about needing to be in the gym more and it's not really at all that surprising.
 
LMFAO, Oscar is not the problem. Without him, we'd be screwed.

Even if he was only playing at 70%, he’s still better than most everybody else in college ball.

College is a guards game and we have an issue there, if that gets solved, Oscar will eat well.
What problem? Calipari challenged Oscar to work harder. So what? Isn't that what a coach is supposed to do?

Oscar has taken a step back this year in comparison to last year. Maybe it's injury...maybe it's work ethic...who knows. I agree with you that Oscar at 70% is better than most in college ball. But why not challenge him to get better?
 
There was a game early this year where Oscar ran down the floor flexing, and completely missed defense on the other end of the court. It stood out because I don't think i saw that from him last year...so yes, I do think (as is completely natural), that last year's awards went a bit to the ego. Yes, he is also still better than most anyone in his position - even this year.

I do wonder if this is more the Oscar that was at WVU.....
 
There was a game early this year where Oscar ran down the floor flexing, and completely missed defense on the other end of the court. It stood out because I don't think i saw that from him last year...so yes, I do think (as is completely natural), that last year's awards went a bit to the ego. Yes, he is also still better than most anyone in his position - even this year.

I do wonder if this is more the Oscar that was at WVU.....
He’s averaging 16 and 13. His best year at WVU was 11 and 9.
 
There was a game early this year where Oscar ran down the floor flexing, and completely missed defense on the other end of the court. It stood out because I don't think i saw that from him last year...so yes, I do think (as is completely natural), that last year's awards went a bit to the ego. Yes, he is also still better than most anyone in his position - even this year.

I do wonder if this is more the Oscar that was at WVU.....

It definitely is.

My wife is a WVU fan so I've seen all their games. When Oscar left WVU, there was the feeling he wasn't trying as hard as he was in the past. People thought that was because he was unhappy there and with the coaching staff which might have been true. But the other reason might be that sometimes he's just a person that will slack off and not work as hard.
 
He’s averaging 16 and 13. His best year at WVU was 11 and 9.

I think this isn't really about his numbers tho. His numbers are the reason why he isn't an issue on this team and our best player.

But I think that's different than saying a person isn't giving the same level of effort on a everyday basis that they have given in the past.

If a coach says player X needs to be in the gym more often, than player X needs to be in the gym more often.
 
What problem? Calipari challenged Oscar to work harder. So what? Isn't that what a coach is supposed to do?
On its own you are correct. Don't you think it is weird how much he has made digs at Oscar since he made the comment about Cal chilling out? And why does he always laud and not publicly challenge Wheeler when he has killed us late in games several times?

Cal is petulant and plays favorites and that is why really good players transfer.
 
Watching the games I don’t see an effort issue . As far as his defense he’s just limited there . I don’t think it is an effort issue . He also has surgery right before the season people seem to have forgotten that . Lord knows has he chose to sit out at the beginning of the year the drama queens of this board would accuse him of protecting a draft stock
 
I recall at the end uf the USCjr game thinking that Oscar looked looked like the only player who was trying.
 
Has there ever been a player to with NPOY in consecutive seasons? If we didn’t have that to compare him to, and just looked at his production this season alone, we wouldn’t have one bad thing to say about him.
 
So is Oscar going to be better off personally in the long term for coming back this year or not? Or did he take a quick NIL money grab at the sacrifice of a longer and more successful (and ultimately more lucrative) pro career?
 
Oscar hasn't been as good but I actually think it's because he's trying to do too much because the team around him isn't as good as last season.
 
What problem? Calipari challenged Oscar to work harder. So what? Isn't that what a coach is supposed to do?

Oscar has taken a step back this year in comparison to last year. Maybe it's injury...maybe it's work ethic...who knows. I agree with you that Oscar at 70% is better than most in college ball. But why not challenge him to get better?
I wasn't referring to what Cal said, I was referring to some of the comments in this thread.
 
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On its own you are correct. Don't you think it is weird how much he has made digs at Oscar since he made the comment about Cal chilling out? And why does he always laud and not publicly challenge Wheeler when he has killed us late in games several times?

Cal is petulant and plays favorites and that is why really good players transfer.
Fans don't really need to dig very deep to find fault with Calipari's coaching. Oscar deserves to be called out in this instance. He has taken a step back and has been very vocal about a) coach needs to change and b) players need to "fight harder". Well, in my opinion, so does Oscar. And a significant part of a coach's job is to challenge players to get better, and Oscar is not beyond reproach.
 
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