And exactly how has that helped UK, especially the last six years or so? It is analogous to having a great looking car but the AC is not working while driving in a Florida summer. I think pitino's first year we were like 14-14 but you knew we were in for more to come. It feels like those days again, thankfully
WCS says Cal drew recruits not UK.
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I mean Pitino did have 11 NBA players on one roster, so he came close.
The question I worry about is can you win without ever being able to get top level recruits. Pope is a good coach, but it does take great talent to beat other top talent whether the kid is 18 year olds or 24.
Like Willy but he is crazy, I guess he never saw some of the greats from UK's past play any. I know Billy took the roster down but even Tubby who hated to recruit the big time players because of all the hype etc, brought in NBA talent here and there.
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...www.si.com
I never said it did, but quite frankly, it helped a ton as we were in the crapper when he got here. Let’s not act like we all weren’t singing his praises the first 7-9 years and whether we agree with the one and done model or not, having a ton of kids in the nba never hurt. All I said is that there is nobody that can recruit better, which isn’t a shot at anyone and it honestly isn’t calling Cal a great coach. Some years that method killed it, some sucked really badly.
Again, nobody has ever brought so many high profile recruits in here on a consistent basis. Others have had a sporadic highly ranked recruit or two. Cal brought 3-6 in yearly for a decade and a half. Recruiting is the only thing that I praised him for and if Pope can win on a high level, I don’t care if he has the #1 class or nothing but walk-ons. I love what he has done in his short time here. Hopefully we are as high on him in the next 5-6 years as we were on Cal and he has hung a few banners in that timeframe like his predecessor.
A few things. After the first 7-9 years I was plenty unhappy. With the amount of talent Cal brought in and only 1 national title? We had a lot of losses that were simply shocking, and as the years went by things simply got worse as coaches adjusted around the 3 pt line etc, but Cal never did. Even as Cal nudged a little as far as getting a few more experienced players he was enamored with athletes instead of skill and played his inexperienced players at the expense of losses, and he could not even try more defenses, making us easy to prepare for. And he still stuck to man to man on opponent out of bound plays, which put us in a 6 or 8 point hole every game almost. He also had way too few quality players so any injuries simply crippled us. You mention nobody can recruit like Cal, hell, I want the type of recruits Connecticut is getting. That is turning out pretty good.
Of course players came to UK so they could leave after 1 year to go to NBA. UK just gave them the stage and Cal was the cook that destroyed the traditions of our program.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...
Not to argue but you aren’t counting guys who sniffed the NBA vs multiple all stars are you?
Rupps A List of recruits traverses 3 decades if not almost 4. Hall had no trouble getting talent, no trouble at all. Sutton got talent. Pitino got talent. Tubby got tons less talent, Billy Clyde was so drunk he actually offered a scholarship to a golden retriever only to wake up the next morning to realize he was watching Air Bud.
Cal was going to bring talent, we knew that. Since it had been about 8 years since getting some of the top talent people went nuts.
Pope will bring in his guys, the talent he wants to fit his system, his style, his way of thinking. It todays age there are not as many guys out there that want to play for the name on the front of the jersey, hence NIL. Now it is all free agency. You better be able to put up some $$. You will always have the guys, very few now, (most instate) that will play for the name on the front. The biggest crux of the issues will be who adapts, not just coach but administration for NIL players. Now more than ever you need solid team guys and get a couple of high * talent and finish off in the portal. I would hope Kentucky pays a person to just scout the lower ranks of college basketball looking for the late bloomer, finding that guy that everyone missed.
Cal was going to bring talent, we knew that. Since it had been about 8 years since getting some of the top talent people went nuts.
Pope will bring in his guys, the talent he wants to fit his system, his style, his way of thinking. It todays age there are not as many guys out there that want to play for the name on the front of the jersey, hence NIL. Now it is all free agency. You better be able to put up some $$. You will always have the guys, very few now, (most instate) that will play for the name on the front. The biggest crux of the issues will be who adapts, not just coach but administration for NIL players. Now more than ever you need solid team guys and get a couple of high * talent and finish off in the portal. I would hope Kentucky pays a person to just scout the lower ranks of college basketball looking for the late bloomer, finding that guy that everyone missed.
Cal will continue to recruit at a high level at Arkansas. He will also continue to flame out in the tournament. Arkansas is going to take a major step forward in talent all the while taking a big step back in coaching. At the end of the day Cal is going to continue to lose 10 games a year at Arkansas and he will be explaining to the media about every other year how he let a directional school come in to Bud Walton and spank them. Arkansas isn't UK but they will grow tired of him soon enough too. He may beat UK every year but he never sniffs the final four again. For that reason I will take my chances on an unproven coach who wants to be here and WIN over a guy who wants to constantly speak about himself and cash checks.
Cal did get the recruits. I thought everyone was in agreement with thatCauley-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...
That's why we wanted him to leave is it not?
Hence I said “fan”. I’m not making up stuff at all. People follow men all the time. Hell that’s how cults are formed. Seems to be a popular thing these days, cults.
Watching Arkansas fans slowly turn on this guy is going to be so much fun.
Pitino recruited 3 All-Stars and two other top-two ranked guys (Rhodes, Mercer) in 6 years of post-probation work. He also added them to rosters that were already LOADED with quality upper classmen. In addition, that doesn't even count top 5 Turner, Tony Delk, Derek Anderson (a probable 1st team All-American if he had been healthy), Jeff Sheppard, Walter McCarty, Mark Pope, Nazr Mohammed, Scott Padgett, Heshimu Evans, Allen Edwards, and a bunch of other guys who actually made MULTIPLE Final Fours while they were here.
Maybe Pitino wouldn't have had the OAD success of Cal if OAD had been a thing in the 1990s, but do you think Cal could have ever convinced guys like Rhodes, Turner, Mercer, and Walker to "wait their turn?" There's no way.
Both guys excelled at UK at recruiting the way they did best while they were here, but downplaying Pitino's recruiting is hilariously flawed. He landed four top 25-50 guys in his last season here when it was clear each of them was going to come off the bench. McGrady was coming if Adidas hadn't make a $10 million dollar offer he couldn't refuse. Yarbrough, at the time the #1 forward in the nation, was coming. Mouton, a top 25 kid who went on to help Maryland win a title a few years later, had just committed. He convinced two top 5 guys to come to UK in 1995 when it was clear both of them would be playing reserve roles. He did the same in 1992 when he convinced Delk and Rhodes to come to UK as role players in their first year.
Cal could have never done that.
Be more objective.
Why the hypocrisy here? It seems many on RR claim that our university, with it's tradition and brand, brings in these recruits, but put the blame on Pope being new here as to why we have missed out on so many recruits. Can't have it both ways.
Actually Cal did do that before UK. It wasn’t necessarily him but the culture/environment. One and done isn’t that old. Although maybe I’m just old so it doesn’t seem too old.
On the players, none of Pitino’s players could hold water to the guys Cal brought in except for Mashburn.
Of the 96 team you referred two Walker was the best talent and he was really good. But not on the same level as AD, Cousins, KAT inside. Just saying. Extrapolate their careers out past UK and you see the talent. Hell there’s 7 UK guys in the Olympics.
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I haven’t read all these posts so maybe this has been mentioned but ….of course they did . That’s the way Cal recruits . He sells himself, not the university. Remember the “University of Calipari “ quote from the dude being recruited by Cal for Arkansas?
I’m probably older than you but UK has has always gotten 5* McDonald’s AA type kids in my lifetime. I still have several “Street &Smiths” college basketball yearbooks from the 70’s , 80’s, and 90’s to prove it .
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