NBA posters removed from practice gym
- Thread starter RunninRichie
- Start date
Sounds great to me, no more pushing UK as a NBA G league team, lets get back to playing to win
LOVE the concept.
praying it yields the intended results!
praying it yields the intended results!
That's good, sets their goals to winning championships not just using Kentucky as a pit stop to the league.
This coach understands the assignment.
The last one did to but he just didn't give a shit
I'm neutral. don't really care either way.
Pretty sure they did this a few months ago. I don’t hate it. Think you should celebrate the old guys, but Calipari should’ve reeled it in when he was here to be honest.
They should remove the NC floor from the locker room too. Act like you’ve been there.
They should remove the NC floor from the locker room too. Act like you’ve been there.
I could get behind removing the NC floor, but only because it's been 12 years. You win a natty and you get bragging rights. Just the way it is. That said (and to be fair), we burn couches and cars when we're "there," so... All things considered, a floor isn't the worst thing.
But, Cal got way too into churning out NBA talent while he was here. I don't think anyone disagrees with that. I'd like for us to pay homage to all the NBA talent we've put through, but to have it as a focal point during each and every practice? Nope.
Yeah, I don't really care either way about this.
Pope definitely is a master politician. He's just one that appeals to the fans while Cal tried his best to alienate them for whatever reason.
Let’s hope they quit putting up the nba players pics during pre game bball games.
Sharpe’s pic was an embarrassment and insult to fans. But there it was- every home game.
I like it, the players are recruited here to win championships, that’s the first priority and they know that coming in. Everything else will fall in to place if you are good enough, but while they are here it’s to focus on winning championships.
That’s how it is in every program in America but…… Arkansas now!….damn it feels good!
Calipari's contribution is the New Orleans final four floor in the locker room. That's the only thing I hope sticks around
At least until we win #9. Then, it's time to replace it.
I'm ambivalent.
I don't see the harm in having them or not having them.
Our NBA guys are still very much a part of the UK legacy, but I get the reasoning behind the move. Fresh start. Prioritize chasing titles. Program over the player. I get it.
I don't see the harm in having them or not having them.
Our NBA guys are still very much a part of the UK legacy, but I get the reasoning behind the move. Fresh start. Prioritize chasing titles. Program over the player. I get it.
According to some, top talent will immediately cease coming to UK because we don’t put the players first.
I like it, they can have the mural which is fine but during practice it should be all about winning. If the players want to get to the league after seeing the mural, get yo ass in the gym and make it happen! Win us some hardware in the meantime. That’s why you get paid here.
Agree. Pope is winning the fanbase over and making a definite break from the previous regime. Personally, I love lowering the NBA importance and putting Kentucky first. I think Pope is trying to be one of us in what he feels the real goal is. Wonder if all the video board stuff before games in Rupp showing all former UK players will be gone too?
I just really can’t stand Cal and love Pope. If cal wasn’t such an arrogant prick and put Ky first he would have had five titles regardless of his inability to coach. So glad Pope is here and to me there is a void between Billy G and Pope. That is how much I despise Cal and what he did here. And no lectures from you Cal nut huggers. A good coach would have won 4 titles at least with the talent we had. And yes, a good coach would have brought that talent here. Next step is to get rid of Stoops.
Eh, don't like this.
For starters, they ARE a part of UK history, and our current players, and the players we will recruit for the next 15 years, idolize these guys.
On top of that, how can you possibly try and recruit top25 Talent, players that want to go to the NBA (Guys that we know Pope is going after), and then make this pseudo anti-NBA statement? These top25 guys are looking to play in the NBA for 10-years and make $100mil and beyond, playing 1-2 years in college is a distant secondary goal. Coaches at these power programs don't have to cater to the NBA like Cal did, but you at least have to acknowledge what the real goal is for these recruits.
Not a good look IMO. There was absolutely no harm in leaving these posters up, no one was really going to notice and say "Hey I need to get to the NBA because look at John Wall on this poster!". But the act of taking them down actually DOES make a statement
i'll take this another step further. Imagine the outrage if Cal took down posters of Tubby and BCG players? This place would be LIVID. I know Pope means no ill will towards past players, but this was unnecessary, and only causes rifts to happen. No coach should be taking anything down of UK's past. And with all this, can you blame a guy like PJ for repping Cal/Akansas now?
For starters, they ARE a part of UK history, and our current players, and the players we will recruit for the next 15 years, idolize these guys.
On top of that, how can you possibly try and recruit top25 Talent, players that want to go to the NBA (Guys that we know Pope is going after), and then make this pseudo anti-NBA statement? These top25 guys are looking to play in the NBA for 10-years and make $100mil and beyond, playing 1-2 years in college is a distant secondary goal. Coaches at these power programs don't have to cater to the NBA like Cal did, but you at least have to acknowledge what the real goal is for these recruits.
Not a good look IMO. There was absolutely no harm in leaving these posters up, no one was really going to notice and say "Hey I need to get to the NBA because look at John Wall on this poster!". But the act of taking them down actually DOES make a statement
i'll take this another step further. Imagine the outrage if Cal took down posters of Tubby and BCG players? This place would be LIVID. I know Pope means no ill will towards past players, but this was unnecessary, and only causes rifts to happen. No coach should be taking anything down of UK's past. And with all this, can you blame a guy like PJ for repping Cal/Akansas now?
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I feel the same way. It just feels a bit unnecessary. Plus despite the negativity of the fanbase towards Cal, everyone still loves the players that have gone through this program in recent history. They are very much a part of this thing.
I get that the focus should be winning titles and not the NBA..............but you still need NBA level talent to win titles lol. I was always interested to see how Pope does with this.
We can't go from one extreme to another here.
Agreed. And it almost feels like he's playing into the fanbase a bit with this move, a fanbase that was rightfully frustrated with Cal. But the coach has to be above that stuff.
It's just silly. You know guys like SGA and Maxey are going to see this. You think they're going to be quick to come back and support Pope on some big recruiting weekend? Think they will come around as much knowing what Pope thinks of THEIR coach and system?
It’s not a front to the players of the past, but I think it was increasingly gimmicky and superficial. It’s a change in culture from being about “me” to being about “Kentucky.” That’s no different than Notre Dame, the Yankees or Manchester U.
Great players want to play for winning programs. All those guys contributed to that tradition, but we don’t need to lead with NBA posters. Of course that’s all part of Kentucky. But the goal is to win.
Calipari’s whole gimmick is that he puts players in the NBA, but we all knew the secret… it’s to push a brand that attracts NBA talent. It was never Calipari.
And we will continue to attract such players, but we aren’t just a place conducive to the NBA..it’s selling the brand short
Great players want to play for winning programs. All those guys contributed to that tradition, but we don’t need to lead with NBA posters. Of course that’s all part of Kentucky. But the goal is to win.
Calipari’s whole gimmick is that he puts players in the NBA, but we all knew the secret… it’s to push a brand that attracts NBA talent. It was never Calipari.
And we will continue to attract such players, but we aren’t just a place conducive to the NBA..it’s selling the brand short
Great.. a coach that means what he says. Cal said we only hang FF and Championship banners and proceeded to muck up everything, everywhere to augment HIS brand by hanging anything and everything that mattered to him. Finally, a coach focused on the program!
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So refreshing. So glad we didn’t hire Drew and that Oats and Pearl weren’t even on the radar.
College basketball can no longer be just "about the name on the front of the jersey". Any school that tries to do it this way will be dead in 10 years, maybe less.
Great players want to play for winning programs? Lol, explain Rutgers landing two top5 players. This isn't college football. The college programs NEED the players.. the players don't need Duke or UK.
You HAVE to cater to the player in college basketball, at least a bit. That's just the way basketball works. It's a player driven sport, not a team driven sport.
Hearing all snake oil bottles were removed as well.
In what world do you live in where that would ever happen regardless of whether some poster is taken down or not?
It was Cal's team and those are Cal's kids, not Kentucky's. You think Maxey is going to get on the horn with some junior in high school talking up Mark Pope and the '96 Cats? lol.
Gotta wipe the slate clean. It may look petty, but they gotta live and breathe it.
Non-sense. It is about Kentucky. And Kentucky is arguably the greatest tradition in college basketball. We don’t need gimmicks. Yea, you come here, of course you’re NBA caliber. Because it’s Kentucky.
It’s like if Ferrari put an unmovable bumper sticker with its price on every car. What for? It’s a ****ing Ferrari.
And what about our pros before Calipari? What about Prince, Rondo, Delk, Walker, Chapman, Issel and on and on and on and on.
And what about Travis Ford who never played pro ball but was hugely impactful? Gerald Fitch? What about Cameron Mills? Heshimi Evans?
I think it's at least a little egotistical to think Kentucky is a Ferrari at this point, or maybe at any point that wasn't 1950, 1998, or 2014. Ask the top150 recruits if they can tell you anything about UK's basketball history, as opposed to anything about UK's current NBA players.
But, we can see how this goes. I dont believe Pope will take this much further.. or at least I hope not. So it's probably not going to matter.
But this is 10,000% a statement move, and I don't really like that. I'd rather coaches just leave the past be.
Another page being turned by the new coach. A new era in UKBB.
It’s not adding up.
I 100% guarantee you that every UK target knows Kentucky has been cream of the crop of college basketball for a long time. Just like the players before them.
It is symbolic but important. The pics of the players on the walls were of them in nba uniforms, not in their UK uniforms. It gives the impression that what was most important IN that building was the NBA preparation, not the UK success. I'm sure Pope talks to the players and their families about their pro aspirations, but at the same time he is drilling into them the need to put the best versions of themselves on the floor for the benefit of THEIR current team.
It helps to be UK, sure. But ask Tubby and BCG about their recruiting. Again, it's not always about the name on front of the jersey, like some of you think it is. It's wild to see some of you still be bewildered when we don't land a recruit.
And I don't know how else to tell you this, but North-****ing-New Jersey just out recruited Kentucky and basically everyone else for 2024.
Jersey.
Jersey!
If that doesn't tell you how much this is a player driven league, then I don't know what else to tell you.
Look, I understand your argument. It’s that in 2024, players only care about their own interests and making it to the next level.
It’s true to a degree (also sells the kids short to a degree). Except what you’re missing is that nothing I am arguing for excludes the NBA. It’s that Kentucky is more than an NBA stepping stone. It’s NOT ONLY that BUT ALSO a lot of other positive things. Not just positive things, but excellent things.
Like character building, world class training, massive fan support, a huge alumni network, and ultimately about winning.
I'm fine with it. I do hope they keep them and use them somewhere else. They're still apart of our history.
It's good for a fresh start though.
It's good for a fresh start though.
Sure. And I absolutely agree with that.
But, you gotta lean into the NBA, at least a bit, if you want to recruit the Jasper Johnsons of the world.
And taking down posters of past Cal-era NBA players? I think it's counter-productive. But, that's just my opinion. I'm willing to see how this play out.
And say what you will, Cal never slandered the past two coaches that did next to nothing (I still feel that 98 title was just as much as Pitinos because Tubby did nothing but decline after that).. so it's at least a little interesting to see Pope take a bit of a shot at the past regime.. a regime that has quite a few banners in the rafters.. before ever coaching a single game. These statements better be backed with wins (such as talking about how our defense is just going to lock down opposing PGs)
I find this whole thing to be.. very.. peculiar? For lack of better word?
We will see, I'm probably wrong.
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