Shouldn't have been fooled by Bamba decision

[CatBlue in LR]

I have a feeling things may be a little conservative in Austin, Texas too

Nope. It's the People's Republic of Austin. A socialist "paradise" island in the conservative Texas sea.

 

[caneintally]

Austin is one of my fav 2 cities I have ever been to but he is a basketball player and he didn't make a smart bball decision.

 

[kentucky_wildcat_#1]

Shaka may be a good dude and good friend, but to turn down Cal and Kentucky to play at Texas for that dude, some kids just don't get it. Bamba will be a really good player and help Texas win a few more games than last year, but even after adding Bamba, if you look at what they lost, i'm not sure they will be a NCAA type of team. Bamba knows his talent level and the fact his numbers are freakish will probably mean he's a top pick in next year's NBA draft no matter where he decided to play his freshman year, but to give up the chance of actually winning a national championship during his freshman season, i will never get. When you look at Kentucky's current roster and then look at theirs, no way in the world could you say with a straight face he would have a better shot at winning it all with the horns. If that part doesn't matter to the kid, i don't know what to say about his thoughts on basketball. We all know if Bamba decided on Kentucky he would have started here from day 1. The good news is, even with Bamba signing elsewhere, we still have a ton of talent in our frontcourt. We all looked at this kid's recruitment and thought for a long time he's a Cal type of recruit. Boy, we were all wrong! The funny thing is, Knox decides on Kentucky and all we ever heard on Knox was don't get your hopes up, the kid would never play at Kentucky. It just goes to show you no expert really knows much about college basketball recruiting. You just can't know. Some kids let out what they want to let slip through their recruiting circle, even if it's not even true. Good luck to Bamba. Without Bamba, trust me, Cal and Kentucky will do just fine and once the season is over, Cal and Kentucky will be fighting for a chance at the national championship, unlike Texas.

 

[Son_Of_Saul]

I said over a month ago that this recruitment was trending more and more towards being about his relationship with Shaka.
but don't kid yourself… The kid wants to win, and a big part of Shaka's sales pitch was him being the centerpiece of a class that changes the direction of Texas basketball.

I guess I fooled myself then, because Texas simply doesn’t have the overall talent to win at a high level.


I actually don’t think Bamba cares as much about competing for a title as you think he does.

 

[howercat]

excellent post, OP
very interesting observations

and, it's possible, maybe that he isn't an OAD? That he does want more of the education/non- basketball experience?
I'm interested in seeing how this develops. He seems like a good kid, very intelligent. Maybe it ISN'T all about basketball, for him.

All well and good, but would it be a good decision to take the slow train to the NBA, stick around a couple years..?..then he blows an acl, then he goes from a sure top 5 lottery pick, to who knows what...could cost him millions...but then again..maybe he doesn't need the $.

 

[wcc31]

I guess I fooled myself then, because Texas simply doesn’t have the overall talent to win at a high level.


I actually don’t think Bamba cares as much about competing for a title as you think he does.

Wants to win? lol Yep just like Simmons and Fultz.

 

[Bkocats]

All well and good, but would it be a good decision to take the slow train to the NBA, stick around a couple years..?..then he blows an acl, then he goes from a sure top 5 lottery pick, to who knows what...could cost him millions...but then again..maybe he doesn't need the $.

another good point

I just don't think it's as cut and dried as some seem to want to think

 

[Blue_2_the_bone]

I know the kid says he doesn't want to be stuck as a back to the basket center but the only thing ive seen him do facing to goal is catch a lob. Reminds me of Noel. Good defensively but raw offensively. Maybe he thought he would have more freedom at UT and wouldn't have to assume a role like Cal would assign him.

 

[AzubuikeandFitch]

No doubt he'll get better because Shaka will give him undivided attention. However, not winning or playing on the biggest stage will hinder his allure. I think Bamba believes he is better than he actually is. Shaka stroked his ego and Cal simply won't do that. Ultimately, Bamba will do well but it takes a surrounding cast to excel in college.
I question his intelligence because this was a business decision. Oh well, not for everyone. Glad we have the team we do.

 

[Montana81]

I think he'll be fine at Texas. They could end up winning more games than us next season. We have a young team and not a lot of balance.

I remember when we dogged Shabazz for going to UCLA and they ultimately had a better season than us.

 

[track42]

I think he'll be fine at Texas. They could end up winning more games than us next season. We have a young team and not a lot of balance.

I remember when we dogged Shabazz for going to UCLA and they ultimately had a better season than us.

 

[Cefiro]

Like Cal says....U.K. Isn't for everyone

 

[jrm693]

Great comments by OP, and I would add that a few weeks ago he had something about some being greedy, so I thought when he said it he had to be referring to UK if it was a basketball related comment, which I assumed it was. We will never know all of his thought process but it is apparent as many have said that winning a NC is not a priority and I believe he will be a top 5 pick if he went to Bellarmine.

 

[Blue Decade]

I haven't posted much about Bamba's decision. I thought for sure he would end up at Kentucky. He had a bunch of friends here, Cal has proven he developes bigs better than anyone in college right now, and he would know he would win here and compete for a national championship.

That last part is what got my attention yesterday. When talking about how he came to his decision I never heard him say anything about the possibility of winning a championship, trying to knock off Kansas as the Big XII champ, or how he wanted to try and become the #1 draft pick next year.

Everything was about his relationship with Shaka, the culture at Texas and their big alumni base, the broad range of views of the professors, oh, and the weather. This is not a basketball first recruit. Our basketball program is a basketball first program. Most of the recruits we get, basketball is their way out. It's their main avenue for future prosperity. For some it's their only avenue. That's not the case for Bamba. I think he probably saw Kentucky as the easy way out. He would have liked it here and been successful but he probably thought he wouldn't be challenged, not academically necessarily, but in a variety of ways. He knows he's going to make a lot of money starting next year so why not go some place where I can better broaden my horizons after basketball. I think that was the main thing he was basing his decision on, where can I help myself more for life after basketball that doesn't involve anything about basketball.

I'm not demeaning anything about the University of Kentucky, it's a fabulous institution, but it's not for everyone. Somebody from New York probably views UK as a little conservative and traditional. Well that doesn't sound like what Bamba was looking for.

I don't want to simplify this too much but Cal is great at helping kids and their families reach their dreams and he will continue to do so. I don't think Bamba needs his help or wanted the appearance of getting his help. Cal needs and wants recruits who love basketball and view that as their ticket to financial independence. I want recruits who want to play basketball first and foremost. Sure I want them to do well in school but primarily so they stay eligible to play basketball or football. That's not Bamba and I don't think he wanted to even give the impression that that is him, even a little bit.

Calipari is a great coach, but he doesn't recruit in a bubble. Kentucky isn't for everyone, and competition is intense out there. Calipari focuses on high school players who seem to fit at Kentucky. He develops relationships and recruits the best he can. Trae Young picked Oklahoma. Lonnie Walker picked Miami. Michael Porter picked Washington, then Missouri. Bamba picked Texas. Calipari offered scholarships to all of them, and they made decisions for their own reasons. The "why" part doesn't matter now. I like our team. We have an excellent point guard, better wings then we have had in years, and quality depth on our baseline. It's too bad Humphries left, but Wynyard, SKJ, Richards have higher ceilings than most fans realize. That's 15 fouls to give, and all 3 guys are more talent than most other teams' starters.

 

[rodserling]

I don't get the great concern here. Even though we're young, our inside game has great potential and depth too. Our size is going to be a huge asset next year. As many have said, Knox was the real get this year. This added real talent to our backcourt.
Our greatest challenge next year will be youth, not talent. Bamba would not have increased our experience level in any way. And would his talent REALLY made UK SIGNIFICANTLY better? I'm not so sure. So I'm happy with where we are and I don't think Cal is done either.
Bamba would have been a cherry on top of the cake. But our cake has some really good icing already. I'm not worried.

 

[spotter34]

Calipari is a great coach, but he doesn't recruit in a bubble. Kentucky isn't for everyone, and competition is intense out there. Calipari focuses on high school players who seem to fit at Kentucky. He develops relationships and recruits the best he can. Trae Young picked Oklahoma. Lonnie Walker picked Miami. Michael Porter picked Washington, then Missouri. Bamba picked Texas. Calipari offered scholarships to all of them, and they made decisions for their own reasons. The "why" part doesn't matter now. I like our team. We have an excellent point guard, better wings then we have had in years, and quality depth on our baseline. It's too bad Humphries left, but Wynyard, SKJ, Richards have higher ceilings than most fans realize. That's 15 fouls to give, and all 3 guys are more talent than most other teams' starters.

Good post. I wasn't complaining in my OP about not getting Bamba. Cal misses sometimes on guys he's really zeroed in on. I don't think he really zeroed in and put a lot of emphasis on Porter because it was pretty well known what was going on with him. But he's the #1 player in the class and he was interested in UK.

I love the team we have coming in next year. We have a lot of versatility at every spot. Outside shooting does appear to be our main weakness. We need a couple of guys (or three) to be above that 35% mark from three.