![www.si.com](/proxy.php?image=https%3A%2F%2Fimages2.minutemediacdn.com%2Fimage%2Fupload%2Fc_crop%2Cw_650%2Ch_365%2Cx_0%2Cy_103%2Fc_fill%2Cw_1440%2Car_16%3A9%2Cf_auto%2Cq_auto%2Cg_auto%2Fimages%2FvoltaxMediaLibrary%2Fmmsport%2Fall_hogs%2F01j3zkb40pdgzx6nv5e7.jpg&hash=3b923fc669ef5b28c62087433deeba01&return_error=1)
Cauley-Stein Explains Why It's Calipari, Not Kentucky That Drew Recruits
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – A one-on-one interview with former Kentucky star Willie Cauley-Stein shows exactly why Wildcats fans were wrong when...
Pitino certainly could recruit like Cal. But he and Cal never got the amount of recruits they did till they were at Kentucky.Was John Wall coming here before Cal? Cousins? Bledsoe? Davis? KAT? MKG?
Having a gig at UK certainly helps, but let’s not kid ourselves and pretend 99.9% of athletes care about UK history or tradition.
Can a coach recruit at UK and fill a team with decent players? Sure. Can they recruit like Cal?
There isn’t a better recruiter in all of college basketball and I doubt we see much of a slowdown at Arky.
Who cares? The issue was never recruits. It was coaching. Which he is awful at.Was John Wall coming here before Cal? Cousins? Bledsoe? Davis? KAT? MKG?
Having a gig at UK certainly helps, but let’s not kid ourselves and pretend 99.9% of athletes care about UK history or tradition.
Can a coach recruit at UK and fill a team with decent players? Sure. Can they recruit like Cal?
There isn’t a better recruiter in all of college basketball and I doubt we see much of a slowdown at Arky.
I will not miss the summer of hype, followed by the “temper expectations” talk.Even if Cal was the main reason for getting all these five stars then he got the wrong recruits for a place like UK. Would rather have 4 star recruits that can shoot, dribble, play defense, pass and play team ball. Just saw where Cal is getting a little worried about the AR fans expectations. He told them to tone down their expectations. They already have sold out their arena for the year. Cal said he was trying to tell them they have only had a team for a few months and it is going to take patience and time.
He's in position to land a monster class. He already has a commitment from Acuff. He's in a great position with Dybantsa, Peterson, Thomas, Wilson, and Sealy. It's why I was hoping Cal wouldn't crap the bed until after next season when a bunch of those guys would have joined a sophomore Quaintance in Lexington.Was John Wall coming here before Cal? Cousins? Bledsoe? Davis? KAT? MKG?
Having a gig at UK certainly helps, but let’s not kid ourselves and pretend 99.9% of athletes care about UK history or tradition.
Can a coach recruit at UK and fill a team with decent players? Sure. Can they recruit like Cal?
There isn’t a better recruiter in all of college basketball and I doubt we see much of a slowdown at Arky.
Can't adapt, has no humility, and can't coach is a better descriptionAwww, bless their hearts. They keep conflating recruiting and winning. Of course Cal can recruit. He just won't adapt, show any humility, or coach effectively in the modern era.
Well I'll bet coach k and the current duke coach would disagree.Was John Wall coming here before Cal? Cousins? Bledsoe? Davis? KAT? MKG?
Having a gig at UK certainly helps, but let’s not kid ourselves and pretend 99.9% of athletes care about UK history or tradition.
Can a coach recruit at UK and fill a team with decent players? Sure. Can they recruit like Cal?
There isn’t a better recruiter in all of college basketball and I doubt we see much of a slowdown at Arky.
Ccc is nothing more than an over paid used car salesman. Nothing more important than his 5 star recruits, even though they weren't basketball playersNo young guys over the past 20 years knows about kentucky tradition, cares about kentucky tradition. Only kids from Kentucky, which Cal pushed away. He did not see a need to teach the life lessons to kentucky kids like he did his 5* guys. He did not want to tear down Edwards, bradshaw, wagner but had no trouble leaving Sheppard on the bench and not starting one of the best players.
CAL is a piece of CRAP. Plain and simple. He will say whatever and then backtrack or tell someone you misunderstood me. Glad he is away from here. He does not deserve to be in the rafters of Rupp. He will be but I do not think he deserves it.
Cal is 66 years old, he’s lost his fastball and won’t be in this game much longer. His best recruiting years are well behind him and his success was greatly benefitted by having the UK logo on his jacket.Was John Wall coming here before Cal? Cousins? Bledsoe? Davis? KAT? MKG?
Having a gig at UK certainly helps, but let’s not kid ourselves and pretend 99.9% of athletes care about UK history or tradition.
Can a coach recruit at UK and fill a team with decent players? Sure. Can they recruit like Cal?
There isn’t a better recruiter in all of college basketball and I doubt we see much of a slowdown at Arky.
He ought to run for vp for Harris. He fits in with her perfectly.No young guys over the past 20 years knows about kentucky tradition, cares about kentucky tradition. Only kids from Kentucky, which Cal pushed away. He did not see a need to teach the life lessons to kentucky kids like he did his 5* guys. He did not want to tear down Edwards, bradshaw, wagner but had no trouble leaving Sheppard on the bench and not starting one of the best players.
CAL is a piece of CRAP. Plain and simple. He will say whatever and then backtrack or tell someone you misunderstood me. Glad he is away from here. He does not deserve to be in the rafters of Rupp. He will be but I do not think he deserves it.
Whoever the coach at Duke happens to be says hi.Was John Wall coming here before Cal? Cousins? Bledsoe? Davis? KAT? MKG?
Having a gig at UK certainly helps, but let’s not kid ourselves and pretend 99.9% of athletes care about UK history or tradition.
Can a coach recruit at UK and fill a team with decent players? Sure. Can they recruit like Cal?
There isn’t a better recruiter in all of college basketball and I doubt we see much of a slowdown at Arky.
Yeah OP’s title up there isn’t like the article reads. For me anyway🤷♂️
Right or wrong OP’s thread title is only the SI article title almost verbatim.It didn’t read nearly like your headline. Good bait though.
Read more like a player that respected his former coach for life lessons and rules that were in place.
Pitino never came close. No one except K came close. It is what it is.Pitino certainly could recruit like Cal. But he and Cal never got the amount of recruits they did till they were at Kentucky.
This guy is a riot! He might be the Charles Barkley of the future. As an announcer I mean, he's not quite in the same league as a player. But he does have the same wit and fearlessness.
Same story different place. They will have a ton of recruiting wins in the portal and High School no doubt. They will always be ranked high and in the news. They will implode and lose games nobody thought they would, except those who pay attention or know his history.Even if Cal was the main reason for getting all these five stars then he got the wrong recruits for a place like UK. Would rather have 4 star recruits that can shoot, dribble, play defense, pass and play team ball. Just saw where Cal is getting a little worried about the AR fans expectations. He told them to tone down their expectations. They already have sold out their arena for the year. Cal said he was trying to tell them they have only had a team for a few months and it is going to take patience and time.
Always said Ratface was the best recruiter and Calipari was a close 2nd. But Calipari has never been able to spell X or O.Was John Wall coming here before Cal? Cousins? Bledsoe? Davis? KAT? MKG?
Having a gig at UK certainly helps, but let’s not kid ourselves and pretend 99.9% of athletes care about UK history or tradition.
Can a coach recruit at UK and fill a team with decent players? Sure. Can they recruit like Cal?
There isn’t a better recruiter in all of college basketball and I doubt we see much of a slowdown at Arky.
Wrong board dumbassHe ought to run for vp for Harris. He fits in with her perfectly.
It says a lot when the same people on this board can find nothing to talk about except Cal. I guess saying the same thing for months in a row makes this a better board.Can't adapt, has no humility, and can't coach is a better description
Right or wrong OP’s thread title is only the SI article title almost verbatim.
It’s true enough that in the short term, when Cal came here, most of the meaningful recruiting he did was to himself personally. Tubby and BCG had kind of killed our brand recognition in that generation. But that’s far from saying we couldn’t come back or our brand didn’t ultimately have value. There was a reason Greg Doyyel wrote that big article at the time “John Calipari and Kentucky Have Merged.” It only took a little bit of kindling to restart that fire precisely because of who we had always been. And once it was restarted it ran wild among journalists and sportscasters, giving Cal way more pull than he’d ever had at Memphis or anywhere else. I don’t blame WCS for being a little too young to appreciate that full picture. (Or, maybe he does appreciate it. I didn’t read the whole article, just enough to see the title theme was SI’s idea, not OP’s.