Kentucky opened basketball practice up to a select few media outlets this afternoon. It's rare UK allows media at practice, so this was a good opportunity to see the 2016-2017 Kentucky team as the season is just around the corner.
Here are eight takeaways from UK's practice on Tuesday afternoon.
1. Competitive, again: This may be the most obvious point I make and the least newsworthy, but I'm confident Kentucky will be a Final Four contender, yet again. In full disclosure, I wasn't so sure that would be the case until today. I was worried that the freshmen would take too long to catch on and even when they did the Cats wouldn't have enough scoring. I'll obviously have to see some more of Kentucky, especially against decent competition, but for now I'm not nearly as concerned.
I'll talk more about it later but this Kentucky team will beat opponents in a variety of ways, and their practices will simulate basically everything other teams can throw at them. They will be well versed and well prepared. Defensively, they're just going to humiliate some teams.
It's going to be another fun season.
2. Monk: I thought about starting here but he was the best player in today's practice and after watching him for over twos hours, I'm thinking he will be UK's best player. I'm hesitant to say most important player, but he will be the Cats' most talented. I think he was always in the conversation for that accolade, along with Bam and De'Aaron Fox, but his ability to score from anywhere is what sets him apart in my opinion.
I was VERY impressed with his three-point shooting today. I have seen him in AAU games hit four consecutive threes while pulling up from deep, but I've also seen him go incredibly cold and miss nearly 10 threes in a row. Today he was incredibly consistent and still had the quick release that made him so dangerous in high school. I'm sure there will be games he will be off, but Monk's ability to hit from deep will be huge. He has as quick of a release as Jamal Murray and is as versatile as a shooter as Murray. What I mean by that is that he can catch and shoot, create himself and pull up from anywhere. He won't hit as many threes or shoot as high of a percentage, but he can make over-pursuing defenders pay in a worse way than Murray ever could. He's much more athletic and a nice finisher around the rim. All these things were on display on Tuesday.
3. Willis: I mentioned Monk was on today but he wasn't alone. Derek Willis we already knew about and he even seemed more confident today than at any point last year. Between those two I think there's enough three-point shooting where it won't be an issue for the Cats.
Both can shoot from anywhere and have blazing fast releases, especially Willis. There was a few times when I thought Willis would surely have his three swatted. The Cats are incredibly long and fast at closing, so it seemed foolish for Willis to attempt threes a few times. Every time he was able to get the shot off and he may have only missed the three one of those times. He's a great shooter, he's not afraid of having a hand in his face, but he's also smart.
A few times he made the smart play and pump-faked, put it on the floor for a wide open 12-15 footer. He knocked those down most of the time, too.
Defensively Willis didn't knock it out of the park but he also wasn't a liability. He did a great job against SKJ or Gabriel, and did solid when matched up with Bam. What was really fun was seeing Willis at the perimeter with Bam or SKJ guarding him. He had them on skates as they were over-playing his shooting ability and Willis could go right around them if he wanted. Those were in one-on-one and two-on-two drills.
4. Three-point shooting: As I mentioned, I don't think it will be an issue. Monk and Willis looked fantastic, but they weren't alone. Mulder and Hawkins were also draining threes, both in stand-alone shooting drills and in scrimmages. Calipari was probably second best behind Willis, although I don't expect him to get a ton of playing time.
Fox and Briscoe were fine in stand-alone shooting drills, Briscoe more than Fox. In scrimmages Fox was the better shooter, as Briscoe struggled in live action, but neither were overly impressive. But even with those two being inconsistent and low percentage, I think there's enough around them where it won't be an issue. Teams will still zone Kentucky but there's enough perimeter shooting where the inside should still open up a bit.
5. Speaking of inside: That would probably be my biggest concern after watching the practice today- interior scoring. In four-on-four or five-on-five drills I can count on one hand how many post-move buckets I saw. There were very few times Bam, SKJ or Gabriel were fed on the block, made a pretty post move and finished. It seemed like throwing it into the block was not allowed with how little we saw.
Of course, Humphries and Wynyard were out with minor injuries today (both are day-to-day) and those two should be able to score on the block at a decent clip, but I would think Bam certainly would and even SKJ. If they can, I didn't see enough of it.
UK will have to be able to throw it in to a big and let him work to help balance the offense. It almost seemed as if guards scored as much inside as the bigs, and while I think UK has shifty and crafty guards that are exceptional at scoring inside, that shouldn't be the case on any elite team.
UK's bigs did score inside on Tuesday, but it was off offensive rebounds or passes by the guards, not a guard standing at the perimeter and feeding a big and letting him go to work. Hopefully Humphries will help that and it was just an off day for the Cats in that department.
6. Bam: Even with a lack of scoring inside I was impressed with Bam. He's just a monster and looks like he's 29 years old. He was a rebounding machine and unless he switched on to someone or was coming off a screen I don't know if an opposing player scored on him in four-on-four or five-on-five drills. He's going to be an elite defender on the block and after he forces difficult shots he will get the rebound.
I said last spring I thought he would break UK's single season double-double record and I'm sticking with that bold prediction. He will have a ton of second chance points thanks to his rebounding. They did do a drill where you caught the ball high off the class, brought it down, had two trainers hit you with body bags and had to go back up with it. He did miss a few of those easy layups because of the contact, but I don't think that will be a major concern. He will need to clean it up but missing a layup at this stage shouldn't be a reoccurring issue.
7. Briscoe and Fox: It was fun to see these two go against one another. Briscoe certainly won today's match-up but that shouldn't come as a surprise. He's the more experienced guard and knows what Calipari is looking for at this stage. But both bring out the best/worst in the other and that was a treat to see.
Fox couldn't defend Briscoe. He just couldn't. Briscoe was too big and powerful and there has been some concern about Fox guarding stronger guards. I think those concerns are legit after seeing today, but the good news is he won't have to guard those players. Briscoe can. Briscoe was able to push Fox around and get where he wanted on the court. Eventually Briscoe's legs became tired late in the practice and Fox had some success defensively, but when Briscoe wasn't fatigued he was a great offensive guard.
On the flip side, Fox was awfully fast for Briscoe. I think Briscoe did a better job guarding Fox than Fox did Briscoe, but that doesn't mean Fox didn't have some great offensive plays.
Whenever a screen was set on Briscoe, he was toast. He would play under the screen, which was smart because Fox isn't a great shooter, but even playing under put him a step or two behind and that's all Fox will need this season. If he gets a step or two on a defender he's taking it to the rim and he's getting fouled or he's scoring. It was fun watching these two players go at it and both provide something different.
8. SKJ and Gabriel: I was impressed with SKJ. He has put on so much good muscle and isn't the scrawny lanky kid from last season. He's strong, physical, good rebounder and nice shot-blocker. He's going to get a good chunk of minutes this season and that's something I didn't previously think until today. He's so active defensively and his length was bothering every player he matched up against.
Gabriel had a really rough day. I loved his energy and how active he was, two things that stood out about him in high school, but he hasn't put on the same weight that SKJ has and was pretty bad offensively. I've seen Gabriel hit three-pointers, 12-15 footers and score on the block but he was just missing everything this afternoon. UK really wants him to be able to hit at the elbow, and ran several plays for him where he would be open at that spot, and today those shots just weren't falling.
I'm sure he'll have better days but I believe SKJ will get more of his minutes than I previously figured.
It should be a fun season and I'm happy to be talking basketball again!
Here are eight takeaways from UK's practice on Tuesday afternoon.
1. Competitive, again: This may be the most obvious point I make and the least newsworthy, but I'm confident Kentucky will be a Final Four contender, yet again. In full disclosure, I wasn't so sure that would be the case until today. I was worried that the freshmen would take too long to catch on and even when they did the Cats wouldn't have enough scoring. I'll obviously have to see some more of Kentucky, especially against decent competition, but for now I'm not nearly as concerned.
I'll talk more about it later but this Kentucky team will beat opponents in a variety of ways, and their practices will simulate basically everything other teams can throw at them. They will be well versed and well prepared. Defensively, they're just going to humiliate some teams.
It's going to be another fun season.
2. Monk: I thought about starting here but he was the best player in today's practice and after watching him for over twos hours, I'm thinking he will be UK's best player. I'm hesitant to say most important player, but he will be the Cats' most talented. I think he was always in the conversation for that accolade, along with Bam and De'Aaron Fox, but his ability to score from anywhere is what sets him apart in my opinion.
I was VERY impressed with his three-point shooting today. I have seen him in AAU games hit four consecutive threes while pulling up from deep, but I've also seen him go incredibly cold and miss nearly 10 threes in a row. Today he was incredibly consistent and still had the quick release that made him so dangerous in high school. I'm sure there will be games he will be off, but Monk's ability to hit from deep will be huge. He has as quick of a release as Jamal Murray and is as versatile as a shooter as Murray. What I mean by that is that he can catch and shoot, create himself and pull up from anywhere. He won't hit as many threes or shoot as high of a percentage, but he can make over-pursuing defenders pay in a worse way than Murray ever could. He's much more athletic and a nice finisher around the rim. All these things were on display on Tuesday.
3. Willis: I mentioned Monk was on today but he wasn't alone. Derek Willis we already knew about and he even seemed more confident today than at any point last year. Between those two I think there's enough three-point shooting where it won't be an issue for the Cats.
Both can shoot from anywhere and have blazing fast releases, especially Willis. There was a few times when I thought Willis would surely have his three swatted. The Cats are incredibly long and fast at closing, so it seemed foolish for Willis to attempt threes a few times. Every time he was able to get the shot off and he may have only missed the three one of those times. He's a great shooter, he's not afraid of having a hand in his face, but he's also smart.
A few times he made the smart play and pump-faked, put it on the floor for a wide open 12-15 footer. He knocked those down most of the time, too.
Defensively Willis didn't knock it out of the park but he also wasn't a liability. He did a great job against SKJ or Gabriel, and did solid when matched up with Bam. What was really fun was seeing Willis at the perimeter with Bam or SKJ guarding him. He had them on skates as they were over-playing his shooting ability and Willis could go right around them if he wanted. Those were in one-on-one and two-on-two drills.
4. Three-point shooting: As I mentioned, I don't think it will be an issue. Monk and Willis looked fantastic, but they weren't alone. Mulder and Hawkins were also draining threes, both in stand-alone shooting drills and in scrimmages. Calipari was probably second best behind Willis, although I don't expect him to get a ton of playing time.
Fox and Briscoe were fine in stand-alone shooting drills, Briscoe more than Fox. In scrimmages Fox was the better shooter, as Briscoe struggled in live action, but neither were overly impressive. But even with those two being inconsistent and low percentage, I think there's enough around them where it won't be an issue. Teams will still zone Kentucky but there's enough perimeter shooting where the inside should still open up a bit.
5. Speaking of inside: That would probably be my biggest concern after watching the practice today- interior scoring. In four-on-four or five-on-five drills I can count on one hand how many post-move buckets I saw. There were very few times Bam, SKJ or Gabriel were fed on the block, made a pretty post move and finished. It seemed like throwing it into the block was not allowed with how little we saw.
Of course, Humphries and Wynyard were out with minor injuries today (both are day-to-day) and those two should be able to score on the block at a decent clip, but I would think Bam certainly would and even SKJ. If they can, I didn't see enough of it.
UK will have to be able to throw it in to a big and let him work to help balance the offense. It almost seemed as if guards scored as much inside as the bigs, and while I think UK has shifty and crafty guards that are exceptional at scoring inside, that shouldn't be the case on any elite team.
UK's bigs did score inside on Tuesday, but it was off offensive rebounds or passes by the guards, not a guard standing at the perimeter and feeding a big and letting him go to work. Hopefully Humphries will help that and it was just an off day for the Cats in that department.
6. Bam: Even with a lack of scoring inside I was impressed with Bam. He's just a monster and looks like he's 29 years old. He was a rebounding machine and unless he switched on to someone or was coming off a screen I don't know if an opposing player scored on him in four-on-four or five-on-five drills. He's going to be an elite defender on the block and after he forces difficult shots he will get the rebound.
I said last spring I thought he would break UK's single season double-double record and I'm sticking with that bold prediction. He will have a ton of second chance points thanks to his rebounding. They did do a drill where you caught the ball high off the class, brought it down, had two trainers hit you with body bags and had to go back up with it. He did miss a few of those easy layups because of the contact, but I don't think that will be a major concern. He will need to clean it up but missing a layup at this stage shouldn't be a reoccurring issue.
7. Briscoe and Fox: It was fun to see these two go against one another. Briscoe certainly won today's match-up but that shouldn't come as a surprise. He's the more experienced guard and knows what Calipari is looking for at this stage. But both bring out the best/worst in the other and that was a treat to see.
Fox couldn't defend Briscoe. He just couldn't. Briscoe was too big and powerful and there has been some concern about Fox guarding stronger guards. I think those concerns are legit after seeing today, but the good news is he won't have to guard those players. Briscoe can. Briscoe was able to push Fox around and get where he wanted on the court. Eventually Briscoe's legs became tired late in the practice and Fox had some success defensively, but when Briscoe wasn't fatigued he was a great offensive guard.
On the flip side, Fox was awfully fast for Briscoe. I think Briscoe did a better job guarding Fox than Fox did Briscoe, but that doesn't mean Fox didn't have some great offensive plays.
Whenever a screen was set on Briscoe, he was toast. He would play under the screen, which was smart because Fox isn't a great shooter, but even playing under put him a step or two behind and that's all Fox will need this season. If he gets a step or two on a defender he's taking it to the rim and he's getting fouled or he's scoring. It was fun watching these two players go at it and both provide something different.
8. SKJ and Gabriel: I was impressed with SKJ. He has put on so much good muscle and isn't the scrawny lanky kid from last season. He's strong, physical, good rebounder and nice shot-blocker. He's going to get a good chunk of minutes this season and that's something I didn't previously think until today. He's so active defensively and his length was bothering every player he matched up against.
Gabriel had a really rough day. I loved his energy and how active he was, two things that stood out about him in high school, but he hasn't put on the same weight that SKJ has and was pretty bad offensively. I've seen Gabriel hit three-pointers, 12-15 footers and score on the block but he was just missing everything this afternoon. UK really wants him to be able to hit at the elbow, and ran several plays for him where he would be open at that spot, and today those shots just weren't falling.
I'm sure he'll have better days but I believe SKJ will get more of his minutes than I previously figured.
It should be a fun season and I'm happy to be talking basketball again!
