UK MMB is holding a televised pro day: SEC Network+ Monday, October 7 | 6:00 PM
- Thread starter Smashcat
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Or the one that wanted Rupp Arena’s name changed? You know the greatest coach of our history! So glad all that shenanigans is gone!
You notice the other poster hasn't responded to our posts right? Just makes goofy takes and ignores counterpoints by other posters. All college students only purpose for taking classes is to get a good job in their chosen field. Same with sports. The ones that are pro material are there to hone their craft so they can make money. That doesn't mean they also aren't competitors and want to win in college.
Unless the other poster is a homeless college student in their 30th year of college, their point is ridiculous. You need money and support for your family. If any of us were good enough to go pro into sports, we would have done so.
It’s great. Another chance to get eyeballs on the team. I’m all for giving Pope the rope he needs unless/until he shows he doesn’t deserve it.
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You win championships by getting good players.
Good players likely have dreams of making it to the NBA at some point.
It doesn't have to be one and done NBA factory like it was under Cal, but you can't turn off big time recruits either.
I see nothing wrong with continuing "pro day". I like it. We should not go from one extreme to another here.
Good players likely have dreams of making it to the NBA at some point.
It doesn't have to be one and done NBA factory like it was under Cal, but you can't turn off big time recruits either.
I see nothing wrong with continuing "pro day". I like it. We should not go from one extreme to another here.
You understand this is, in part, a recruiting tactic, correct? It's also, in part, Pope's commitment to helping players achieve their dreams.
Every major program in the nation does a Pro Day - maybe not televised, but every major program does this. If UK was to NOT do this, it would be a major hinderance in recruiting. It's also incredibly naive to think the UK coaching staff doesn't have an obligation to help their student-athletes reach their dreams. And finally, if we have so many players that care primarily about winning championships instead of the NBA, I'm sure they're allowed to NOT participat in the Pro Day if they don't want to
This was a valid take in the 1980s and 1990s. Players don't go to Duke for the elite education these days. Players don't go to Alabama for the education. Michigan has a terrific academic institution, but JJ McCarthy didn't go there to hang a diploma on his wall. It's naive to think that, at the elite level, kids are making college decisions based on diplomas. I can assure you that Caleb Wilson isn't critically weighing the differences in college curriculums amongst his Top 5. Furthermore, I bet Reed Sheppard and Travis Perry grew up dreaming of wearing the UK jersey, but did NOT dream of going to Woodward Hall or Kincaid Auditorium
You keep it going, man, you keep those books rolling. You pick up all those books that you're gonna read and not remember and you roll, man. You get that associate's degree, okay? Then you get your bachelor's. Then you get your masters. Then you get your masters' masters. Then you get your doctorate. You go, man
And then, when everybody says quit, you show them those degrees, man. When everyone says, "Hey, you're not working, you're not making any money."
You say, "You look at my degrees, and you look at my life. Yeah, I'm fifty-two, so what? Hate all you want, but I'm smart, I'm so smart. And, and I'm in school. All these guys out here, uh, making money all these ways. And I'm spending mine to be smart. You know why? 'Cause when I die, buddy, you know what's gonna keep me warm? That's right, those degrees"
This right here. Have said that for a while
And yes, I know the NBA is going by then. They send scours everywhere
Ambivalent on Pro Day stuff.....
When this culture at UK being a stepping stone to NBA will come down to who comes back to college as the common sense option.
1. The days of guys like BJ Boston playing like crap but declaring nonetheless is what killed me. Same for why Wenyen Gabriel, Chris Livingston, Dakari Johnson, etc.. leaves so fast. And then guys like Juzang, Jermal Baker, DJ Wagner, Brooks, etc... that felt like they had to transfer vs. feeling like they could develop at UK.
2. So, if we get to end season and guys like Oweh, Garrison, Chandler, etc feel like they can't wait to leave as they have little future for UK....then this culture crap will still be a problem under Pope. (But I don't feel it will turn out this way)
But a UK pro day doesn't really matter one way or the other IMO.....just how the offseason unfolds is what I'll be paying attention to.
When this culture at UK being a stepping stone to NBA will come down to who comes back to college as the common sense option.
1. The days of guys like BJ Boston playing like crap but declaring nonetheless is what killed me. Same for why Wenyen Gabriel, Chris Livingston, Dakari Johnson, etc.. leaves so fast. And then guys like Juzang, Jermal Baker, DJ Wagner, Brooks, etc... that felt like they had to transfer vs. feeling like they could develop at UK.
2. So, if we get to end season and guys like Oweh, Garrison, Chandler, etc feel like they can't wait to leave as they have little future for UK....then this culture crap will still be a problem under Pope. (But I don't feel it will turn out this way)
But a UK pro day doesn't really matter one way or the other IMO.....just how the offseason unfolds is what I'll be paying attention to.
Actually it is there to help them prepare for the NBA. If college basketball programs were ranked in terms of future prep for the next level, Kentucky is Ivy League.
No shit we are doing a pro day. It’s Kentucky. Unless you want to suck and recruit a bunch of 2-3 star guys. See how that works out
Surprisied this is even a debate in 2024 (although I probably shouldn’t be). This isn’t 1970. The NBA is a huge factor. Always will be
The NBA combine is in May. The NCAA season ends in March, at the earliest. Measurements are not going to drastically change in a two month period. If you have players that are elite, they will be at the NBA combine. It makes ZERO sense to have them have a combine in April or March.
I agree that they're going to school nowadays (most of them) to try and move up in the basketball world, but I was disagreeing on what "college is for". College is for education. They're just exploiting the process.
A "Pro Day" is practically a necessity at any strong program these days. It is what it is.
We don't need to recruit good players. Cal recruited good players and what did it get us. Therefore, we should only go after 30 year old players who only care about playing for Kentucky and will give up the sport after they can't play here anymore.
All you have to do is look at other big time programs. The Dukes of the world, Kansas, UNC, etc etc
Do they have pro days?
Of course they do.
College basketball has changed. This isn't 1970 anymore no matter how some wish it still was. Adapt or get left behind.
Pope can still make UK the focus AND also cater to the needs and dreams of the players.
The problem with Cal wasn't that he didn't want both. The man that said draft night was one of the most important nights in UK history BUT also spewed on and on about catching UCLA in titles and having an undefeated season.
He just got the balance completely wrong. Hopefully Pope will get that right.
Do they have pro days?
Of course they do.
College basketball has changed. This isn't 1970 anymore no matter how some wish it still was. Adapt or get left behind.
Pope can still make UK the focus AND also cater to the needs and dreams of the players.
The problem with Cal wasn't that he didn't want both. The man that said draft night was one of the most important nights in UK history BUT also spewed on and on about catching UCLA in titles and having an undefeated season.
He just got the balance completely wrong. Hopefully Pope will get that right.
The average NBA salary in the 1979-80 season was $173,500. Today that is $693,878. The current MINIMUM for rookies is $1,157,153. Times have changed.
If a kid says that he only cares about banners, then he's either lying, not good enough, or a damn idiot.
If a kid says that he only cares about banners, then he's either lying, not good enough, or a damn idiot.
Whether it's a pro day or not, no coach at any level would deny NBA personnel access to watch practice or see a particular player work out.
A scheduled Pro day just makes things easier for all parties involved.
A scheduled Pro day just makes things easier for all parties involved.
These kids do not exist anymore. Literally. They might ALSO care about banners but kids that only want to win and don’t care about the NBA are kids that aren’t good enough to play at the highest level.
Very true.
Look at Japer Johnson and Trey Kinney spurning KY HS basketball for OTE.
OTE is definitely not about hanging banners lol but instead giving talented kids a head start down the professional path.
Exactly. And you know what? That’s fine. If they care about BOTH, I’m good. I don’t care if a kid wants to be a pro and make millions of dollars. If I was a parent of a 5* kid, I wouldn’t push him to go to NKU because that’s where all of my family went. I’d want his butt somewhere he’ll get seen by the world and developed by the best coaches.
I don't love pro day,but I would watch this year if I could. But I'm not paying for SEC plus to watch it.
No, enabling this kind of stuff is not how you fix it. If you're wanting to fix it, that is.
Do you also think UK should not utilize NIL, because it's also enabling it?
It’s not getting fixed. This isn’t a little tweak that college basketball needs to make. You’re talking about transforming an entire societal mindset that’s been slowly morphing over the last 40 years or so. UK not holding a pro day will do nothing but ensure that no recruit with NBA aspirations wants to go there.
The times are what they are. You gotta either embrace it, at least to a degree, or fade into obscurity. And from what I’ve seen thus far, Pope seems to be looking to strike a happy medium in that regard. You can help kids reach their NBA dreams without making the university into a draft factory like Cal did.
Pretty sure the other poster is being sarcastic and making fun of the morons on here who believe those high paid mercenaries...I mean "kids" do exist.
There is a fine line between making the NBA priority #1 and making it a possibility via UK.
I think Pope understands the assignment.
I think Pope understands the assignment.
This is true.
I never had a problem with pro day. I thought it was a great idea. Nothing at all wrong with helping kids as much as you can while also getting nice exposure for your program.
All I ever wanted was for after pro day, those same kids and coaches to focus on winning games for the program until the end of the season. I suspect thats all most fans want too.
So I don't think most fans ever had an issue with pro day. I think the issue was pro day ended up stretching to the entire season/career for Cal U.
Ditto.
Kentucky Men's Basketball Pro Day | SEC Network +
Monday, October 7 | 6:00 PM
1) There’s a difference between having a Pro Day (like Pope is doing) and having a Pro Day while also gearing your entire program around getting kids into the NBA (like Cal did/does)
2) Every top major D-1 program has a Pro Day
3) Pro Day is basically just another day of practice…but with NBA scouts present. Added bonus…it helps the players deal with pressure situations when all eyes are on them
4) Detractors in this thread need to catch up with the times. Even High School teams now have what is essentially “Pro Days” where college coaches visit their HS team practices during the preseason. It’s called the “evaluation period”. The college coaches can’t talk directly to the athletes or their parents…but they can talk to the HS coaches & they can evaluate the players during their HS practice.
Pro Day in college is basically the same thing…except top teams like UK can schedule one day where a bunch of NBA scouts come in to watch the players.
5) Pro Day is a huge recruiting tool if you attract the number of scouts that UK does. Would be dumb stop it. It would be recruiting suicide.
6) Hosting a Pro Day changes nothing. I guarantee you that Pope’s focus is still on hanging a banner & his players will follow his lead.
2) Every top major D-1 program has a Pro Day
3) Pro Day is basically just another day of practice…but with NBA scouts present. Added bonus…it helps the players deal with pressure situations when all eyes are on them
4) Detractors in this thread need to catch up with the times. Even High School teams now have what is essentially “Pro Days” where college coaches visit their HS team practices during the preseason. It’s called the “evaluation period”. The college coaches can’t talk directly to the athletes or their parents…but they can talk to the HS coaches & they can evaluate the players during their HS practice.
Pro Day in college is basically the same thing…except top teams like UK can schedule one day where a bunch of NBA scouts come in to watch the players.
5) Pro Day is a huge recruiting tool if you attract the number of scouts that UK does. Would be dumb stop it. It would be recruiting suicide.
6) Hosting a Pro Day changes nothing. I guarantee you that Pope’s focus is still on hanging a banner & his players will follow his lead.
Is anyone going to be recording this? For people that are not home at the time. I have YouTube tv but I don’t think I can record on sec+. Is there anyway to record on the ESPN app?
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