Funny you should mention, I just made a new poll just to see where we all are at.
Optimism for next season
- Thread starter WV Wildcat
- Start date
This is what we need in my book too. When we lost Robic at full capacity things went downhill. Cal needs that type dude in the huddle helping guide the ship.
I guess I’m the only other fan besides you that’s also optimistic about next season. It’s great to have proven players coming back and not have to depend on replacing 90% of your scoring and rebounding. It’s a shame that our pessimistic fan base can’t see it that way too.
i think we have plenty of talent.
but we still got a coach who refuses to run an inbounds play or change defenses among other things.
so it is hard for me to get exited
but we still got a coach who refuses to run an inbounds play or change defenses among other things.
so it is hard for me to get exited
The Sharpe situation really put a wrench in roster building for next year so I'm feeling more lenient on next year's performance too. Sux.
A Final Four run would alleviate the bad taste in my mouth from the last 2 years of mediocracy for sure.
I agree with OP, we need to start being positive about next year, we can’t change history. Eyes forward, Go Cats!
But depth does matter. Look no further than 21/22. We had "good" depth, but not all that well developed and it bit us.
Thank God Kellen and Davion stepped up when Tyty and Wheeler went down, or they would have lost 2 or 3 more games. That’s one or two seed lines right there.
22/23 needs more depth, because we seem to be snake bit whenit comes to injuries.
Not arguing your point
I mean, watching fame film will show you that
One can still hope for a miracle though…and although some refuse to see or acknowledge it, Calipari IS on the hot seat from the fan perspective
I think there should be plenty of optimism for next year. We have a top 5 team imo(plenty of others disagree I’m sure) and have the returning NPOY.
Right now we have 3 starters put in the starting lineup in Sharpie. A Bob Cousy finalist, a lottery talent and player(not some project), and the returning NPOY. That threesome alone will provide national relevance and a floor for success.
Here are questions that I think need answered to take the team to the next level and move optimism to excitement:
Can Fredrick stay healthy? His floor spacing and experience are extremely valuable if so.
Can Toppin and/or Collins make significant jumps?
Who is Chris Livingston? The former top 5 prospect or the guy people think is Alex Poythress 2.0?
Is there one more addition after tomorrow?
In the transfer portal era it will be hard to have dominant teams that are head and shoulders better than everyone else. Top 20 programs that have recruiting misses or unexpected draft entrants can just replace with plug and play talent from the portal. Before the transfer portal I think there were more glaring weaknesses on paper of teams ranked say 10-30.
Right now we have 3 starters put in the starting lineup in Sharpie. A Bob Cousy finalist, a lottery talent and player(not some project), and the returning NPOY. That threesome alone will provide national relevance and a floor for success.
Here are questions that I think need answered to take the team to the next level and move optimism to excitement:
Can Fredrick stay healthy? His floor spacing and experience are extremely valuable if so.
Can Toppin and/or Collins make significant jumps?
Who is Chris Livingston? The former top 5 prospect or the guy people think is Alex Poythress 2.0?
Is there one more addition after tomorrow?
In the transfer portal era it will be hard to have dominant teams that are head and shoulders better than everyone else. Top 20 programs that have recruiting misses or unexpected draft entrants can just replace with plug and play talent from the portal. Before the transfer portal I think there were more glaring weaknesses on paper of teams ranked say 10-30.
Overplaying Wheeler is a big concern.You have to play him with many shooters or it's just 4 on 5.
Were you asking for Cal to change when he made 4 final fours and 1 championship
Yeah, because top 15 in the nation in scoring and offensive efficiency ain’t enough 🙄
Wasn't enough to beat St Peters...you guys can keep banging that drum....but after beating KU, all that disappeared
Saw Robic last night at UK graduation ceremonies. Bring him back!!!!
Still not enough pieces around him imo....if Wheeler gets most of mi utes at PG, that is not a title team.
Wallace has looked very good when I saw him play. He has played like a legit top 3-5 player.
We'll be at least as good as last season record wise, even if we only add Thiero. But, I think we'll add a couple more guys to the roster in the next 2-3 months. If injuries don't derail next season like it did this past season, we'll make a deep run. Oscar and the returning guys I'm sure are extra motivated, and chomping at the bit to avenge the first round exit to Saint Peters!
I’m pretty much in the same boat. I like the roster on paper as long as we add a few more bodies. I’m skeptical of Cal. There were a lot of bad signs down the stretch of last season that it’s just going to continue being more of the same. Good but not great.
Did you complain about the inbounds play and our defense in 2012?
Personally, I think Cal is done after Thiero announces, unless someone unexpected decides for us like Sharpe or Miller or Baldwin.
G Wheeler/Thiero
G Wallace/Fredrick
F Livingston/Reeves
F Toppin/Collins
F Tshiebwe/Ware
Ware plays sparingly as Tshiebwe’s backup and Thiero is basically a practice player.
Hopefully we stay healthy.
G Wheeler/Thiero
G Wallace/Fredrick
F Livingston/Reeves
F Toppin/Collins
F Tshiebwe/Ware
Ware plays sparingly as Tshiebwe’s backup and Thiero is basically a practice player.
Hopefully we stay healthy.
And of course having three of your starters injured could have some effect on how your team plays also.
Apparently UK won the NC eight times after I was born, and the Hagan, Ramsey, Tsioropoulos (SP) team didn't have a close game, including beating the NC, but the NCAA decided that fifth year seniors couldn't play in the tournament, so we didn't play without our three All Americans..
Don't you know we are UK, we should win it every year regardless of how much the other programs cheat? How do you think Duke, Kansas, and UNC would have done if the NCAA wasn't totally inept? Our ADs number one job when he came in was to not let UK go on probation again, at a time when the NCAA became totally inept. Look at who just won the final four, and look at who three of the finalists were. And we beat the two finalists handily before injuries crippled us.
Apparently UK won the NC eight times after I was born, and the Hagan, Ramsey, Tsioropoulos (SP) team didn't have a close game, including beating the NC, but the NCAA decided that fifth year seniors couldn't play in the tournament, so we didn't play without our three All Americans..
The biggest problem we will have next year, WV, is that Calipari will still be the head coach.
Biggest problem we will have next year is fans like you.
When we struggled to score, our defense also struggled. In the games where we scored the ball efficiently, our defense was a monster.
I think it has to do with player mindsets. It’s tough to dig in when everything else is a struggle.
I'm not so sure about that. Honestly, I'm not sure he's going to be one of the top 7 players. Who's minutes will he take?
Yeah, there is no NBA lockout that is going to give Cal the help he needs to overcome his coaching deficiencies. We saw in 2012 what it takes for Cal to win, this team isn't near 2012 good.
If cal can lose to the teams he has lost to in the NCAAT, with the stacked teams he has had, there's no way he's going very far with this one.
Wow, that's the sweet 16 with a POY center and a top 3 team. Your standards for a 9 million dollar a year coach, are really low.
The money is irrelevant, it's not my pocket book and our athletic department doesn't take any University monies.
And it's not that they are low it's that even elite 8s are hard to get to even with good teams.
Just this year Gonzaga and Arizona failed to make the elite 8 and Auburn didn't getout of the second round.
I'm just realistic and appreciate being in the hunt, this year we had a fun team and a historically great player. I enjoyed the season tremendously. Losing to St Pete sucked but UK has avoided the early upset that nearly every other blue blood has had. You play long enough and you're gonna hit that buzz saw eventually.
Basing on a single game is utterly STUPID!!
Also we mainly lost that game because we let a mediocre mid-major score 80 on us.
Lastly, 40% of our starters were playing at less than 90% (but still should have won)
if you win you can run any offense you want.
when you go 9=16 then get bounced in the 1st round your gonna get criticism.
i mean this is uk we cant hide you, its not for everybody
plus that was 10 years ago. you think we might need to put a wrinkle or something in after 10 years
As long as UK has some upperclassmen for 3 pt. shooting and to provide more stability and dependability to the offense, and isn’t relying on more than one (or two, at the most) freshmen to start and provide the bulk of the offense, I will generally be pretty optimistic. I liked the make-up of the team last season. Wish Grady had been significantly more aggressive hunting his shot and driving – which I think was the biggest missing element with the team – and Washington had continued on the path he was on before the injuries. The fact that team lost to St. Peters doesn’t change the fact that team had the type of balance (still would also have liked to have had just a little better shooting from someone else besides Grady) and good college players I think you need. 5-star freshmen with high upside and lottery NBA draft projection don’t do it for me. I want guys that are the better players right now, not in 2-3 years; and very few 5-star freshmen are going to be among the better college players I don’t care where they end up being drafted. I think to have the best chance to win a championship freshmen need to be complimentary pieces, not expected to carry a team offensively.
I’ve got optimism about next season too. And I also have concerns about Fredrick. But my first concern about him is not about whether he can stay healthy – although that’s a concern – but instead whether he will actually be “healthy.” Getting pretty good functioning back in his leg is one thing, being able to compete athletically on the same level is another.
And whether Chris Livingston is a former (or current) top 5 prospect isn’t particularly important to me. I don’t think Livingston being anything other than a complimentary piece is needed (or should be expected from a freshman regardless of ranking) next season. I actually like Reeves better at SF, with Livingston backing him up and also playing some small ball 4.
I think we will be better next year as I don't think Cal and the staff are through recruiting for this coming year. I think someone will pull out of the NBA draft and UK will have another player or two. With Cal and the staff not going after any other transfers maybe they know something and keeping it close to the vest. We will just have to wait and see.
Hopefully Wheeler takes up a Sophomore Briscoe role. Just get the offense flowing towards the direction of the scorers
Yep....absolutely none of it was Cal's fault or the fact UK barely got Vandy in the SECT.
The offense was not good the lsst month of the season. Just keep believing in whatever Cal sells you. He loves fans like you.
Btw, St Peters was THE most important game of the season.
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