let's take off our Blue Shaded glasses a moment. We are playing 5 players but only the 3 guards would be starters on most of UK's previous teams. Marcus,Alex, and Skal would be reserves in the past. They would be mop up players. Having a good game here or there,but not go to guys. You throw Willis in there as well. The sad truth is that our opponents know this to.
The truth hurts
- Thread starter etowncatfan
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I agree OP. We have a front line of role players playing a starter role.
Who is wearing the blue shades? There is no doubt UK is lacking underneath the basket. Lee is an effective player if he compliments a star player- but he isn't the star player. Skal was suppose to be that player and he isn't. Maybe he will one day but it appears it won't be this year. Poy? We just have to accept he is frustratingly inconsistent. It also seems no one except Ulis and maybe Murray have the killer instinct. All that is a recipe for a short stay in the NCAA tournament.
Yes and my view is give Skal more minutes now; give him the minutes and experience since we're not winning the title this year riding just Poy and Lee! Wow, who would've thought Poy would be this vanilla after what he looked like in the Bahamas at beginning of last season! His attempts around the basket last night were just weak and inexplicable?
Agree,Lee and Poythress are doing just about what they can do,Skal is a whole other matter,he is just not what the experts thought he would be. It is very possible he never will be ,anyone that thinks he is a first round draft choice this year probably doesn't need to apply for a GM job anytime soon.
Willis is living his dream, he is getting minutes and contributing to this team,the fact that he can do that means we are a fringe top 25 team.
Cal talks about defense but the truth is we don't play well enough offensively to beat people, depending on who is in the game we are playing 3 on 5 on the offensive end. Briscoe is our best threat in the paint, but he is a 6'2" guard that can't shoot from 15 feet out.
Mulder or Humphries would help our offense, lets face it they couldn't be worse than Skal, Lee and Briscoe at times.
I wonder what Cal will do going forward, will he try some new people in new roles or will he continue what he has been doing. Maybe Ulis and Murray at the guards and a more traditional front court. I think it is possible that Cal could lose this team at a point as we finish out the season,(don't think it will happen) they could go in the tank.
We have had a bunch of bad losses this year and it appears there are more to come, getting to 20 wins is in question.
Willis is living his dream, he is getting minutes and contributing to this team,the fact that he can do that means we are a fringe top 25 team.
Cal talks about defense but the truth is we don't play well enough offensively to beat people, depending on who is in the game we are playing 3 on 5 on the offensive end. Briscoe is our best threat in the paint, but he is a 6'2" guard that can't shoot from 15 feet out.
Mulder or Humphries would help our offense, lets face it they couldn't be worse than Skal, Lee and Briscoe at times.
I wonder what Cal will do going forward, will he try some new people in new roles or will he continue what he has been doing. Maybe Ulis and Murray at the guards and a more traditional front court. I think it is possible that Cal could lose this team at a point as we finish out the season,(don't think it will happen) they could go in the tank.
We have had a bunch of bad losses this year and it appears there are more to come, getting to 20 wins is in question.
Now wait a minute. Willis played hard and performed well yesterday. He doesn't deserve a backhanded jab like that. Cal has always thought Willis would play in the NBA. If he continues his improvement trend, he is gonna be a very good player next year. The fact that we need Willis to be playing well right now tells me a lot but I don't need to disparage Willis in the process. We simply weren't supposed to need him the way we clearly do.
We are who we are. At most we have two players on the floor that can score the ball, this makes us easy to defend. There is no reason to have lofty expectations about this team. We have one star on this team but that will not get you the championship. I believe in miracles but my expectation isn't very high. I'm not placing blame. I'm not even disappointed. It's just one of those years where the talent just isn't there. It just shows what kind of talent we had last year. KAT was a beast inside and even Johnson compared to what we have now. We all know what the definition of insanity is and the offence we run mirrors insanity. I would like to see Cal try to develop the two legit big men we have that is sitting on the bench. There is no way it can be any worse than what we have seen.
No team is beating us in Rupp and we have 7 home games left. So getting 20 wins is manageable. I think key is winning at Arkansas and winning at either UT or Vandy. Any other road wins are very suspect at this point.
I would like to think that is correct, but against a team that can score we could lose anywhere. I think our schedule gets tougher from this point forward. We have trouble finishing a close game
Can't see Briscoe being a starter on any but a few Cat teams, He is lucky to be on this team and playing as much as he does. For him to be a starter tells a lot about this team.
Yep. UK is almost nonexistent as far as offensive post play. That is he biggest glaring weakness all season long.
Sat around 10-15 auburn fans last night and got hammered for this game. This team doesn't get it as far as fighting through the struggle. KU game will be an embarrassment on the court and won't be close. I'm okay with that too, because there's always next year. I will say that this team reminds me of the Brandon knight team though and you never know what can happen in the tournament ( if we make it )
If you really watch Willis. He is definitely (as a whole) a defense liability. He made some good rebounds and Played hard. But if he is going to help the team he has to hit those open threes.
Our 3. 4, and 5's may become the weakest ever for a season at UK.
He still needs to improve on D, but you do realize he is hitting 3's at a 2% higher rate than anyone else on the team. He is the only guy over 40%. What % is good enough for you?
*IF* the season started today, and knowing what we have now, I would have Hump and Tai compete for the 5 spot and stick the winner in there to provide bulk, rebounding and putbacks. Nothing more. With Willis at the 4, we'd be decent inside after a month of play.
With 3 guards providing the bulk of the scoring, and lots of backups on the bench, we could be a solid team by March.
It would require a change of style that Cal wouldn't make, IMO. But it would play more to our strengths rather than trying to make players do what they obviously can't.
With 3 guards providing the bulk of the scoring, and lots of backups on the bench, we could be a solid team by March.
It would require a change of style that Cal wouldn't make, IMO. But it would play more to our strengths rather than trying to make players do what they obviously can't.
A
anon_013cn8yrfncx2
Guest
He missed what? 2 open threes? How about Murray missing the key wide open three from the corner that would have given us the lead with about a minute to go. IMO given more minutes his confidence might go up enough to make even a higher %. Has he missed a FT all year? Murray missed another one yesterday. You can't have your best shooters missing anything from the line.
But how many wide open ones has he passed on. I saying for the team to be better SOMEONE at the 3. 4 has to step up. Willis, Lee or Poy. Scoring a few isn't enough. None of those guys are playing well.
And there is no way to go far in the ncaat with only the way those guys are playing.
Cal had a lot of eggs in the Skal basket. Or really thought Lee and Poy were going to be MUCH better than their play.
No one is perfect. And we all make mistakes at our jobs, we just don't do it in front of millions of people.
Cal is going to have to coach his ass of to make a final four run this year
So now, ANY complaint on Willis is bashing? You same guys say the same things about Cal defenders?
At least all the apologists are consistent. I guess everyone should just pick a player or coach and get all the strawman and apologists arguements ready.
People sometimes seem to judge solely based upon one game. Poy plays great against Bama and everyone concludes he should start. He stinks in his next game, he should be on the bench. Willis' defense almost cost us against Ole Miss and did against LSU, now he plays great comparative to the other front line against Auburn and everyone wants to promote him. I will admit with this team it is hard to find the answers. My view, despite improvements from Briscoe is our 3 guard line up still has to go. Lee, Poy, and Willis/Skal/Wynyard together with Murray and Ulis, and then you sub Briscoe for Ulis and Hawkins or someone else for Murray. It just seems with our rebounding and board work, the 3 guard line-up (despite those 3 being our best players) is problematic.
I'll add that we all know the front line is the issue, so to add support to our weakness means we should play 3 front court players together, not two.
I'll add that we all know the front line is the issue, so to add support to our weakness means we should play 3 front court players together, not two.
Think you are giving this year's guards WAAAAY too much credit!!!!
Based on demonstrated performance to-date, with the exception of 2012-13:
(1) none of UK's 3 current guards would have started.
(2) Ulis would have gotten some backup minutes at point.
(3) Murray might have gotten some spot minutes as a spot-up, 3-point shooter.
(4) Briscoe would rarely have seen the floor.
At this point in time, this year's team has average to slightly above average players in its 8-9 man rotation!
Oh, whine, drama queen. Nobody is disparaging Willis. Just because folks say he doesn't poop ice cream doesn't mean they are "hating" on him. Well, unless you are a fanboi, I suppose.
He's a marginal defensive player and rebounder. His interior game is suspect. Athletically, he's . . . well let's not even go there cause you are probably already about to stroke out. These statements are true in comparison with the type teams we'll face in both regular season and post season. If he plays major minutes, that suggests that we are out of better options and this season is about to get really long.
You mention next year, if the recruiting junkies are correct, Willis will be buried back on the bench, again.
Could be. The opposite might also be true. If he weren't on a struggling team, where his contributions were so needed, maybe all you see are his strengths and his weaknesses wouldn't be so emphasized. He can get to the rim against anyone (and imagine how that would stand out if he were playing with 5 guys who were all offensive threats). On a complete team, maybe his penetration and passing skills on offense, and his tenacious defense would be all anyone talked about re IB.....
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LIKE THE SAME RECRUITING JUNKIES THAT GAVE STAR RATINGS TO THIS YEARS GROUP ???? Gives credence to those that say you better not hang yer hat on that load of crapola .
As for Willis being buried on the bench , nothing would make you happier as we all know you are the reverse fan " boi" .
As for Willis being buried on the bench , nothing would make you happier as we all know you are the reverse fan " boi" .
Thats how you do it, add math to a post and think that should really confuse them. 2% smdh
Watch how many times our guards drive towards the rim, and Willis moves over to the open spot, and the guards throw up a Hail Mary. No one with in 6 feet of him, and numerous times the guard's shot never hit the rim. Obviously, Willis doesn't have the freedom to take shots as others, hence he does pass up some.
Kentucky's problems begin and end with Skal. He's a bust of epic proportions, and that doesn't work in Cal's model.
His model is built on bringing in a true stud every year. Wall, Knight, Davis, Noel, Randle, KAT -- all those guys met or exceeded expectations. Even the Noel team was coming on, and when he got hurt it collapsed. If Skal were playing like he was expected to, all the other weaknesses we have would not seem nearly as glaring.
We wouldn't be talking about Lee and Poy, because all they would really need to do is rebound and defend, and they can do that. We wouldn't be talking about Willis' defense, because he wouldn't play long enough stretches for it to really be exposed. We wouldn't be talking as much about Briscoe's shooting, because we wouldn't desperately be looking for a third scoring option. Instead, we'd be talking about the things he does REALLY well, which are defend and bring a toughness this teams lacks.
It really is a top-down problem. When the guy touted as a top-2 player in the country turns out to be a guy who not only doesn't meet those expectations, but is actually a liability every time he takes the floor, it's virtually impossible for a team that rebuilds every year like we do to recover. It's why Cal talks so much about everyone being the "best version of themselves," because when they try or are forced to be something they aren't, things begin to fall apart.
His model is built on bringing in a true stud every year. Wall, Knight, Davis, Noel, Randle, KAT -- all those guys met or exceeded expectations. Even the Noel team was coming on, and when he got hurt it collapsed. If Skal were playing like he was expected to, all the other weaknesses we have would not seem nearly as glaring.
We wouldn't be talking about Lee and Poy, because all they would really need to do is rebound and defend, and they can do that. We wouldn't be talking about Willis' defense, because he wouldn't play long enough stretches for it to really be exposed. We wouldn't be talking as much about Briscoe's shooting, because we wouldn't desperately be looking for a third scoring option. Instead, we'd be talking about the things he does REALLY well, which are defend and bring a toughness this teams lacks.
It really is a top-down problem. When the guy touted as a top-2 player in the country turns out to be a guy who not only doesn't meet those expectations, but is actually a liability every time he takes the floor, it's virtually impossible for a team that rebuilds every year like we do to recover. It's why Cal talks so much about everyone being the "best version of themselves," because when they try or are forced to be something they aren't, things begin to fall apart.
Never got in one of these Willis " discussions " before , but I gotta say , Willis is a better than average athlete and PLENTY athletic enough to play for any team in the country.
Willis is the kind of kid we all ask Cal to recruit. 4 year player who loves UK and develops each year until he becomes a difference-maker from the bench. His value will increase next year.
I had no intent to disparage Willis(and don't think that I did)he played well yesterday,but he(like everyone else on our team) has certain limitations. The collective talent,physical and mental toughness of this team limits how good this team can be.Even in this down year of college basketball we are maybe top 25.The losses we have are to teams that aren't in the top 25 for a reason (other teams are better)Auburn and OSU are bad losses no matter where you play them UCLA and LSU aren't that much better
I said while ago, Alex and Lee are great bench players.
but, it's not really sad. It's not like we will always have dominating teams like last year.
I was a little disappointed we lost a game where we have another player take a step forward. The sad part is our interior 3 hasn't taken a step forward.
but, it's not really sad. It's not like we will always have dominating teams like last year.
I was a little disappointed we lost a game where we have another player take a step forward. The sad part is our interior 3 hasn't taken a step forward.
Crazy things there seems to be a bunch of people blaming the guards for not getting the big men the ball
Back to attacking me again huh? That the best you've got? Who are you trying to convince Willis sucks? You may have to take that up with Cal. You're truly pathetic, you seem to enjoy attacking our players. I'm also not a Willis fan, I'm a UK fan and I'll acknowledge good play. Haters, like yourself, pick the things you like in life and attack everything else. Knock yourself out, its you who ends up looking stupid.
See, I'm not trying to convince anyone Willis sucks. That's just you running out of comebacks,
Speaking only about athletically, yes . Heck there are plenty of guys in the NBA less athletic than Willis . Probably every title Duke has won had some players less athletic than Willis . I'm talking about physical abilities like running and jumping . What are you talking about?
