Things I don't get

[jedwar]

DJ is unplayable at this point except for spot backup mins. I hate it but that's the reality.

I don't get having Burks and Edwards in at same time.

I don't get having Bradshaw and Ugo in at the same time.

Yes Reeves got 3 fouls but you have to ride him even if he gets 4 or fouls out.

Where are the screens for the shooters. Double screens for Reeves, Sheppard and Dillingham. We have 3 knock down shooters and they need to fire away but need some screens.

Lineup bizarro world has derailed this team. The asinine combinations and not playing the best players the bulk of the minutes has cripped this team mentally imo.

 

[MachineHead1]

Bradshaw and Ugo in the game at the same time when you’re desperate for scoring is pure insane stupidity.

 

[UKWildcats1987]

If Dilly got 30 mins a game he would average 19 to 20.

We would have 2 scorers near Reeves ppg

 

[MadaboutBlue]

There's definitely good news and bad news with your post-which, by the way, I'm in complete agreement with.

The bad news is we've. lost several games we shouldn't have. The good news is that with the right line up, this team is still wickedly dangerous.

 

[MachineHead1]

Yes but the one thing everyone can agree with on this team is that Shep, Dilly, Reeves, Thiero, and Ugo (Mitchell when healthy) should be the main lineup.

Cal will not do that.

 

[UK90]

I don't get having Burks and Edwards in at same time.

I don't get having Bradshaw and Ugo in at the same time.

Completely agree on both of these. If it were me, I'd never put those combinations on the floor together …ever.

Weird illogical lineup choices have been this team’s theme all season long. We have a coach who absolutely REFUSES to start what is BY FAR our best lineup. A coach who refuses to start two of our three best players. And then we get these head-scratching oversized frontline combinations that seem nearly guaranteed not to give us the offense we need.

I'm done trying to figure what Cal’s thinking. I just wish he'd leave so we can get a fresh start.

 

[St.PatterSoN-54-]

The answer is that Cal is either a complete idiot, or he's trolling the fanbase. He's so muleheaded stubborn that he truly thinks he can win with 4 non scorers (and non-defenders) on the floor with one scorer.

Granted, some teams CAN win with that strategy, but it takes high-end game planning to get that scorer good looks.

Cal is not capable of pulling it off. We ran ZERO floppy sets last night, even after it worked so well against Auburn.

Cal can eat a bag of D.

COACHING MALPRACTICE

 

[LineSkiCat14]

Agreed. I think Bradshaw was put in because we didn't have Tre, and BigZ proved to be unplayable (was he setting fake screens out there?). I don't like it, I'd have rather have seen Adou get more time or I guess go small ball.. but we did need beef in the middle, so I sort of get why Cal tried this. Also probably to get Bradshaw his minutes, bleh,

 

[uk78]

So funny how after Auburn there were a lot here back on the Cal train. Observing that I posted my question of will you jump back off the train if we lose? However, I didn't expect that loss to be against a terrible LSU team.

My posts have been consistent pointing out that Cal's history is exactly what we have seen with Cal over and over so expecting different line-ups (even moving forward) has no reality for expectations. Nor will you see a different defense like a zone that would have completely eliminated LSU drives, etc.

The result is yet another mediocre season full of promises that end up undelivered. We will win a game or two perhaps in the tournaments and then bye bye.

 

[katwest]

I agree with what has been said, also we have 3 seven footers and they all together give us maybe 10 rebounds a game, 10 to 12 points a game combined, you have got to have more offense than that to beat good teams. Outside of Mitchell, teams don't even worry about our other 3 seven footers scoring. Cal sub pattern is bizarre at times, you shouldn't lose games when you have a 15 point lead. A 15 point lead for us only seems like a 5 point lead or something because it sure gets erased quickly.

 

[TheDude73]

Once we all accept the fact that Cal plays lineups specifically to showcase draft picks, it becomes easie…..


Ah what the hell am I even saying. His idiotic obsession with the draft over UK wins will never be easier to swallow.

 

[BlueWorldOrder74]

To me - it’s easy. Play the right lines ups we probably have four losses today. Start the right players. Play the right lineups. Cal is just blowing it with this team. It’s obvious that some of our freshman are just not that good. Looking at you DJ, Edwards, Bradshaw. But it’s Cal starting DJ, it’s Cal playing these line ups. It’s Cal leaving Reeves on the bench. It’s Cal playing two bigs at a time we need scoring. Come on Cal, it shouldn’t be this hard. What are you doing man? WTF are you doing? Stop the madness.

 

[Rockfly78]

DJ is unplayable at this point except for spot backup mins. I hate it but that's the reality.

I don't get having Burks and Edwards in at same time.

I don't get having Bradshaw and Ugo in at the same time.

Yes Reeves got 3 fouls but you have to ride him even if he gets 4 or fouls out.

Where are the screens for the shooters. Double screens for Reeves, Sheppard and Dillingham. We have 3 knock down shooters and they need to fire away but need some screens.

Lineup bizarro world has derailed this team. The asinine combinations and not playing the best players the bulk of the minutes has cripped this team mentally imo.

These are good points.

I'm to the point where I don't want to see Burks or edwards at all. DJ isn't a player that builds as he goes. If he isn't giving you anything early then he probably wont. But he is potentially a key piece and does some things better than the other guards. I want to see Z get more minutes but a short leash is still needed. when he's good, he is really good but when he is bad he is really really bad.

I want to see reed hunt his shot more. If he played like Meeks he'd match reeves in scoring. You are correct about the lack of screens on the perimeter that serve to spring shooters. With our shooters this shocks me.

 

[JerseyCat84]

Cal's gotta get DJ drafted.

 

[jedwar]

We are almost in March and the crazy lineup conbinations continue. When we get to March, the guys will have no continuity even if Cal, which I doubt he does, goes to his best lineup.

 

[Jjohnb5393]

Once we all accept the fact that Cal plays lineups specifically to showcase draft picks, it becomes easie…..


Ah what the hell am I even saying. His idiotic obsession with the draft over UK wins will never be easier to swallow.

I don’t think the minutes Bradshaw and even Wagner are getting lately are necessarily showcasing them for the league. If anything, it’s showcasing he doesn’t have much confidence in them .

 

[zwynn10]

Yes but the one thing everyone can agree with on this team is that Shep, Dilly, Reeves, Thiero, and Ugo (Mitchell when healthy) should be the main lineup.

Cal will not do that.

Bingo. Cal knows it too. So why won’t he play the team that way. It’s because protecting certain players draft status and ego is equally as important to Cal as winning. That is the core problem this year - the incoming most hyped players are not the best players right now and Cal simply won’t play the best players the vast majority of minutes.

 

[cats2010]

Agreed. I think Bradshaw was put in because we didn't have Tre, and BigZ proved to be unplayable (was he setting fake screens out there?). I don't like it, I'd have rather have seen Adou get more time or I guess go small ball.. but we did need beef in the middle, so I sort of get why Cal tried this. Also probably to get Bradshaw his minutes, bleh,

It’s easy to see that Z is getting little to no instruction in practice. He’s not new to the game itself just college basketball but he’s like a lost puppy out there at all times. Many times he did go to set screens but shep wasn’t using them and instead breaking his drive off into the lane. Despite Z not really doing anything we did end up with a 12-1 run with his time on the court to end the half. Properly coached/utilized Z would be a handful but unfortunately we have cal.

 

[ace on the river]

Bradshaw and Ugo in the game at the same time when you’re desperate for scoring is pure insane stupidity.

I told you guys months ago that was going to happen. HE CANNOT HELP HIMSELF

 

[UKfanINcoach]

DJ is unplayable at this point except for spot backup mins. I hate it but that's the reality.

I don't get having Burks and Edwards in at same time.

I don't get having Bradshaw and Ugo in at the same time.

Yes Reeves got 3 fouls but you have to ride him even if he gets 4 or fouls out.

Where are the screens for the shooters. Double screens for Reeves, Sheppard and Dillingham. We have 3 knock down shooters and they need to fire away but need some screens.

Lineup bizarro world has derailed this team. The asinine combinations and not playing the best players the bulk of the minutes has cripped this team mentally imo.

Double screens?? I've never seen that from any team under Cal. I think it's to complicated for him. Cals fine with a 50+% player (Reed) only getting 1 shot last night.

 

[kingdom come cat]

We've got some players that should only be allowed to shoot within 2 feet of the basket shooting alot of threes. I'm good with letting Reeves, Dillingham, and Sheppard take all the shots unless the're layups or dunks.

 

[UK90]

Bingo. Cal knows it too. So why won’t he play the team that way. It’s because protecting certain players draft status and ego is equally as important to Cal as winning. That is the core problem this year - the incoming most hyped players are not the best players right now and Cal simply won’t play the best players the vast majority of minutes.

Yep, except the issue is not that the freshmen have under-performed, instead it's that they've performed in the reverse order of how they were ranked.

He never considered that Dillingham and Sheppard would be better than the higher ranked Edwards, Wagner, Bradshaw trio. But they clearly are, and Cal is too stubborn and pig-headed to properly adapt to this new reality. He'd already decided what his starting lineup and rotation would be before the season began, and he still wants to stick to his original plan even though it no longer makes sense.

 

[TheDude73]

I don’t think the minutes Bradshaw and even Wagner are getting lately are necessarily showcasing them for the league. If anything, it’s showcasing he doesn’t have much confidence in them .

It's come to the point where it's not about minutes, it's about timing and where the game stands when he inserts them into the lineup. It's always at a bizarre time and with an odd pairing. As many have stated, there are moments where we have 4 non-scorers / non-defenders on the floor at the absolute worst time... you know, when we need stops and scores??

 

[TankedCat]

Once we all accept the fact that Cal plays lineups specifically to showcase draft picks, it becomes easie…..


Ah what the hell am I even saying. His idiotic obsession with the draft over UK wins will never be easier to swallow.

I said this on another thread

Wins are a by product of his coaching approach to basketball

 

[catben]

Yep, except the issue is not that the freshmen have under-performed, instead it's that they've performed in the reverse order of how they were ranked.

He never considered that Dillingham and Sheppard would be better than the higher ranked Edwards, Wagner, Bradshaw trio. But they clearly are, and Cal is too stubborn and pig-headed to properly adapt to this new reality. He'd already decided what his starting lineup and rotation would be before the season began, and he still wants to stick to his original plan even though it no longer makes sense.

This is his “Cal’s favorite Players First” program!!!

You hit the nail on the head! He is concerned about keeping his UNDERPERFORMING so called TOP recruits and their families happy, winning be darned!


Sad

 

[The_Answer1313]

Team is missing Mitchell.

Sometimes I feel the biggest issue on this team was pretty much this entire season we were missing players. I think we've played one game where everyone was available.

 

[TankedCat]

Team is missing Mitchell.

Sometimes I feel the biggest issue on this team was pretty much this entire season we were missing players. I think we've played one game where everyone was available.

3 weeks ago it was we can't win without Wagner

You can play what if all day long but 17th ranked UK lost to a 5-7 SEC team.

UK beat Auburn without Mitchell

 

[UKNothinButNet]

Translation... It's all about deals and $$$ (e.g. Klutch's Kats) rather than playing the players needed to win games.

 

[Drcatfan]

I may be the minority, but I think Wagner provides some driving ability and is solid on defense. I don't think he should start, and I think he should only be getting 15 minutes or so. However, he should lose those minutes if he keeps getting baited into 3 point shots. There is a big reason teams are leaving you open = They want you to shoot it!

 

[aceman509]

People that were praising Cal for "changing" his offense in November have to feel stupid now. He was forced into it against his will.

Tre Mitchell was never supposed to come here, but Huggins got a DUI. We magically had a 3 point shooting, point forward type big.

Every 7 footer on the roster was hurt/ineligible.

Cal was forced against his will to play small ball and he STILL managed it poorly. Giving so many minutes to DJ/Edwards and not enough to Reed/Dilly early on. This has gotten better but is still a problem.


Cal never wanted to play with the hyper spacing and 3 point shooting modern basketball style. Remember all the stats about how we ranked so high in 3 point attempts? We are outside the top 200 nationally now. The second he got to jam his "rim protectors" into the lineup he did and never looked back.

 

[Bluesbrother]

DJ is unplayable at this point except for spot backup mins. I hate it but that's the reality.

I don't get having Burks and Edwards in at same time.

I don't get having Bradshaw and Ugo in at the same time.

Yes Reeves got 3 fouls but you have to ride him even if he gets 4 or fouls out.

Where are the screens for the shooters. Double screens for Reeves, Sheppard and Dillingham. We have 3 knock down shooters and they need to fire away but need some screens.

Lineup bizarro world has derailed this team. The asinine combinations and not playing the best players the bulk of the minutes has cripped this team mentally imo.

Everything can be understood if you consider Cal's priorities. That's the only way I, personally, can make sense of anything this clown does. Again, winning for the sake of winning isn't Cal's priority ... he's told us that. Should we not take him at his word? Once I got beyond this, things he's done began to make sense ... in a perverted and twisted way that just boils my blood. He hasn't tried to hide it ... in fact, he's been very transparent about it. If you disagree ... he doesn't give two shits that you do. He will not listen to the detractors and is unfazed. He's protected by his contract thanks to an AD that just signed a contract extension himself.

 

[catben]

People that were praising Cal for "changing" his offense in November have to feel stupid now. He was forced into it against his will.

Tre Mitchell was never supposed to come here, but Huggins got a DUI. We magically had a 3 point shooting, point forward type big.

Every 7 footer on the roster was hurt/ineligible.

Cal was forced against his will to play small ball and he STILL managed it poorly. Giving so many minutes to DJ/Edwards and not enough to Reed/Dilly early on. This has gotten better but is still a problem.


Cal never wanted to play with the hyper spacing and 3 point shooting modern basketball style. Remember all the stats about how we ranked so high in 3 point attempts? We are outside the top 200 nationally now. The second he got to jam his "rim protectors" into the lineup he did and never looked back.

Yep.

Heck, last night in the 2nd half with a 1 point lead, Cal had Ugo AND Bradshaw in the game together with Edwards also!!! That is one lineup that should NEVER be on the floor together. But to your point, Cal just can't help himself and UK LOSES because of his stubbornness!!!

 

[ukfan1622]

DJ is unplayable at this point except for spot backup mins. I hate it but that's the reality.

I don't get having Burks and Edwards in at same time.

I don't get having Bradshaw and Ugo in at the same time.

Yes Reeves got 3 fouls but you have to ride him even if he gets 4 or fouls out.

Where are the screens for the shooters. Double screens for Reeves, Sheppard and Dillingham. We have 3 knock down shooters and they need to fire away but need some screens.

Lineup bizarro world has derailed this team. The asinine combinations and not playing the best players the bulk of the minutes has cripped this team mentally imo.

And the only people in the world that don't know it are the ones who don't watch much UK basketball and Calipari. Even the ones who defend Cal's lineups and playing time allocation don't really believe it; they just think they're doing their duty.

 

[gharding07]

I stated months ago that barring injury DJ is going to start the point EVERY game! Don't even waste your efforts arguing or getting worked up..because it's a 100 percent guarantee. And it's still true.

 

[ManitouDan]

We are almost in March and the crazy lineup conbinations continue. When we get to March, the guys will have no continuity even if Cal, which I doubt he does, goes to his best lineup.

exactly my thought , we ever get them together they will be like strangers on the court . no continuity at all.

 

[aceman509]

Yep.

Heck, last night in the 2nd half with a 1 point lead, Cal had Ugo AND Bradshaw in the game together with Edwards also!!! That is one lineup that should NEVER be on the floor together. But to your point, Cal just can't help himself and UK LOSES because of his stubbornness!!!

And that lineup still gave up paint touches and offensive rebounds. If you are going to commit to playing that big you better guarantee that we get every single rebound and don't allow a single shot in the lane to offset the drastic drop off in offensive production playing them causes.

 

[NociHTTP]

I'm a bit of a sadomasochisist. I say leave the bigs in there until they're gasping for air, bent over, holding their shorts and getting the daylights dunked out of them. Then when they come to the sidelines begging to come out say to them "Next time play a hell of a lot harder from the get-go, then you'll be able to sit sooner".

 

[NociHTTP]

I stated months ago that barring injury DJ is going to start the point EVERY game! Don't even waste your efforts arguing or getting worked up..because it's a 100 percent guarantee. And it's still true.

If he doesn't return, I DO NOT want to see his name mentioned anywhere near Rupp Arena, nor do I want to see his face in this state. He's NOT about UK. At all. It's on Calipari for allowing this crap to continue.

 

[NociHTTP]

Everything can be understood if you consider Cal's priorities. That's the only way I, personally, can make sense of anything this clown does. Again, winning for the sake of winning isn't Cal's priority ... he's told us that. Should we not take him at his word? Once I got beyond this, things he's done began to make sense ... in a perverted and twisted way that just boils my blood. He hasn't tried to hide it ... in fact, he's been very transparent about it. If you disagree ... he doesn't give two shits that you do. He will not listen to the detractors and is unfazed. He's protected by his contract thanks to an AD that just signed a contract extension himself.

I'm beginning to think lately that there are non-UK people working at UK and around it that promoted the contracts of Mitch and Cal. Not every employee is a fan of said employer.

 

[Cawood86]

DJ is unplayable at this point except for spot backup mins. I hate it but that's the reality.

I don't get having Burks and Edwards in at same time.

I don't get having Bradshaw and Ugo in at the same time.

Yes Reeves got 3 fouls but you have to ride him even if he gets 4 or fouls out.

Where are the screens for the shooters. Double screens for Reeves, Sheppard and Dillingham. We have 3 knock down shooters and they need to fire away but need some screens.

Lineup bizarro world has derailed this team. The asinine combinations and not playing the best players the bulk of the minutes has cripped this team mentally imo.

All the issues have the same common denominator