What is Kentucky basketball?

[CatsFanIL]

Full discosure: I'm 39, I grew up in Harrodsburg (Mercer County), been a die-hard Kentucky fan all my life. My best friend's grandpa used to work the "chain gang" at Commonwealth and at the score-table in Rupp, and I tagged along every chance I got. I live in Illinois now, but my 2 kids have grown up with UK pacifiers, UK blankets, UK balls, and as they've gotten older, all kinds of shirts/jerseys/etc. So I'm die-hard, won't ever change.

Now with that said, I want YOUR opinion on "What is Kentucky basketball"? I'm putting together something and I'll share it on here later, but there's been a lot of chatter lately about "this ain't Kentucky basketball". So simple question, in YOUR opinion, what is Kentucky basketball?

I appreciate it. Go Cats

 

[Wonky]

Winning.

 

[AzubuikeandFitch]

A lost legacy with a fanbase longing for a team to instill pride in representing the state, university, and Commonwealth.
Unfortunately, our identity as a program is more about the NBA than college. Currently the cart is before the horse and until that changes the majority of BBN won't be happy.

 

[MidseasonTweak]

When I think of Kentucky basketball, I think of NBA farm school, young teams, multi-year type players transferring, losing at Rupp (recently), poor coaching and tourney flameouts.

We eat shit and last.

 

[BlueBomb]

Well, until about four years ago, I would've defined it as "The Best Tradition in College Basketball."

But tradition requires sustained excellence. Just ask IU.

 

[TOMCATS1990]

It’s sure as HELL isn’t this crap we are stuck with.

 

[Oldbluefart]

Kentucky basketball is the pride of this state. Not 2 minutes of horse racing, not whiskey barrels, but UK basketball.
Kentucky basketball is what the movie Hoosiers is all about. Kids outside dribbling basketballs with UK jerseys on; people waiting for game day. Taking your kids and grandkids to Rupp; looking up explaining all the banners with names on them.
Kentucky basketball is expecting to win. Kentucky basketball is planning your day around tip-off.
Kentucky basketball is about hard work, pride, winning, wearing the Kentucky jersey knowing you are representing the entire state.
Kentucky basketball is "the Unforgettable's" in a nutshell.

 

[crawfords corner]

A consistent winning tradition which has gone through times like this several times in it's history. While most others win from time to time Kentucky basketball has had this tradition of winning consistently for over 90 years now.

 

[WeWant9]

I think of tradition. The majority of UK fans were born into it, something ingrained in all of us at a young age. The truth is, most of us are a little crazy about UK basketball. BBN comes invading opposing team’s arenas and packing neutral sites. I always get goosebumps when I hear “Go Big Blue” on the road. We’re a fanbase that talks bball 24/7, 365 days a year. I can always talk UK bball with family and friends, and I have a lot of good memories of watching games with people I love.

It’s a program filled with winning at the highest level. A lot of us have witnessed multiple NCAA titles, FF runs, winning the league, etc. It’s a top program; that may lay dormant at times but will always rise back to the top of the mountain.

 

[TM2013]

G-league Ignite B squad

 

[CaptainBoogerBuns]

Kentucky basketball is the pride of this state. Not 2 minutes of horse racing, not whiskey barrels, but UK basketball.
Kentucky basketball is what the movie Hoosiers is all about. Kids outside dribbling basketballs with UK jerseys on; people waiting for game day. Taking your kids and grandkids to Rupp; looking up explaining all the banners with names on them.
Kentucky basketball is expecting to win. Kentucky basketball is planning your day around tip-off.
Kentucky basketball is about hard work, pride, winning, wearing the Kentucky jersey knowing you are representing the entire state.
Kentucky basketball is "the Unforgettable's" in a nutshell.

I went to UK and NOTHING about UK sports comes close to garnering national or world attention to our Commonwealth like horse racing.

 

[UKAlum84]

UK is in talks for winning a national championship.....Thats the standard.

Now you look at the past so many years...the standard is not being met.

 

[CatsFanIL]

A consistent winning tradition which has gone through times like this several times in it's history. While most others win from time to time Kentucky basketball has had this tradition of winning consistently for over 90 years now.

What do you mean by a "winning tradition" and winning consistently? 4 Championships since the Rupp era. Or are we talking about the all-time wins list? How many of us were even fans during the Rupp era, where a biiiiiiiiiig portion of these wins and titles came from?

 

[CatsFanIL]

UK is in talks for winning a national championship.....Thats the standard.

Now you look at the past so many years...the standard is not being met.

I like this. Competing for titles. I don't know how we try to quantify this, but UK should be contending for national titles. Twice though, Pitino failed to reach the Final 4 as a 1-seed, and once as a 2-seed he didn't get out of the first weekend. I wasn't on message boards back then and wasn't quite to adulthood, but how was the fanbase towards Pitino after those tournaments?

 

[CHAMPCAT11]

I think of tradition. The majority of UK fans were born into it, something ingrained in all of us at a young age. The truth is, most of us are a little crazy about UK basketball. BBN comes invading opposing team’s arenas and packing neutral sites. I always get goosebumps when I hear “Go Big Blue” on the road. We’re a fanbase that talks bball 24/7, 365 days a year. I can always talk UK bball with family and friends, and I have a lot of good memories of watching games with people I love.

It’s a program filled with winning at the highest level. A lot of us have witnessed multiple NCAA titles, FF runs, winning the league, etc. It’s a top program; that may lay dormant at times but will always rise back to the top of the mountain.

I was in agreement with this ^ until I read the part about ‘will always rise back to the top of the mountain’. I’d like to believe that but I believe that our POS coach has damaged UK basketball so badly that we may not be able to rise back up this time.

 

[ManitouDan]

Kentucky basketball is the pride of this state. Not 2 minutes of horse racing, not whiskey barrels, but UK basketball.
Kentucky basketball is what the movie Hoosiers is all about. Kids outside dribbling basketballs with UK jerseys on; people waiting for game day. Taking your kids and grandkids to Rupp; looking up explaining all the banners with names on them.
Kentucky basketball is expecting to win. Kentucky basketball is planning your day around tip-off.
Kentucky basketball is about hard work, pride, winning, wearing the Kentucky jersey knowing you are representing the entire state.
Kentucky basketball is "the Unforgettable's" in a nutshell.

Love your answer , I dont even like horse racing .. at all. To true BBN members hoops >>>>>>>>>>> horse and everything else. We bleed blue , we talk hoops all year , we used to follow recruiting like crazy . And yes , The unforgettable's are still being talked about , never ever to be forgotten . Very few or none care about draft staus or the amount of money these players make in the NBA , we care about what happens at the U of K . Nothing much else matters . Sadly the guy in charge has soured so much of what BBN was . We desperately need reunited , we need a new leader . Go Big Blue . Always

 

[sportspm]

I’m 51, from eastern ky. My Dad passed away last year but he told many stories about listening to Cawood call the games on the radio when they didn’t have television. I listened to Cawood on the radio many times myself when the game wasn’t on tv. Sometimes Dad would mute the volume and listen to radio broadcast instead of the announcers on tv. He couldn’t stand listening to Dick Vitale 😂
What is Kentucky Basketball? is hard to say, I’d say it means different things to different people. I know many people in eastern ky have never or very rarely been to Rupp Arena to see a game but never miss watching on tv. It’s a sense of pride in a way I guess, it’s one thing Kentucky is known for and good at other than horse racing. They say we and us, when talking about the team because we feel the connection like the team is part of the family in a sense. Unfortunately, at least in the area I live, those feelings have dwindled some in recent years. The kneeling episode turned a lot of people off. I heard some say they would never watch again until Cal is gone(although I think they secretly have). The one and done and all about getting players to the nba have turned many off. The relationships that fans felt with the players have been hurt with the one and done process.
Kentucky Basketball is not what it used to be but many Kentucky Basketball fans are longing for it to come back

 

[catben]

I like this. Competing for titles. I don't know how we try to quantify this, but UK should be contending for national titles. Twice though, Pitino failed to reach the Final 4 as a 1-seed, and once as a 2-seed he didn't get out of the first weekend. I wasn't on message boards back then and wasn't quite to adulthood, but how was the fanbase towards Pitino after those tournaments?

How many times did Pitino win the SEC regular season OR tournament title?
How many games did Pitino lose in his ENTIRE time here?
How many home games did he lose here?
How many times did we reach the Final 8 or higher?

Look up the answers to those questions and that is Kentucky Basketball!!!! And he did all of that with UK going through an NCAA probation as hard as ANY team had ever received.

I hated the way he left and that he took a job at our most hated rival, but the dude could coach and he KNEW what the UK tradition was all about.

Cal has DESTROYED UK Basketball and its tradition.

SAD

 

[etownblue25]

Now? its a joke and a shell of its former self. Its a warning sign of selling out your values for a quick fix. Its style over substance and the impact one snake can have on a once great program.

 

[WeWant9]

I was in agreement with this ^ until I read the part about ‘will always rise back to the top of the mountain’. I’d like to believe that but I believe that our POS coach has damaged UK basketball so badly that we may not be able to rise back up this time.

We won’t get back there under Cal, the next coach will really have to emphasis program first, again; but I don’t think this is our new norm. One of the reasons why UK has got to figure out a way to move on from Cal after this season.

 

[Klix]

 

[ManitouDan]

Having tears go down your cheeks listening to Cawood's last call.

 

[G-PIP]

I was in agreement with this ^ until I read the part about ‘will always rise back to the top of the mountain’. I’d like to believe that but I believe that our POS coach has damaged UK basketball so badly that we may not be able to rise back up this time.

As long as the fan interest remains high (and it's still higher at UK than any other program) the UK basketball program will always be able to compete with the top programs. But being able to doesn't guarantee that it gets done.

 

[Mike-D]

I don't know what it means to me anymore. I can tell you what it used to mean. My grandmother was a UK basketball super fan, and she was on her death-bed when the John Wall team lost in the elite-8. I walked in the room to check on her, and she was asleep. I knew that was the last UK basketball game she would ever watch, and I just wanted her to be able to watch one last title. I don't think I could have cried any harder.

 

[thebluestripes]

Kentucky basketball is the pride of this state. Not 2 minutes of horse racing, not whiskey barrels, but UK basketball.
Kentucky basketball is what the movie Hoosiers is all about. Kids outside dribbling basketballs with UK jerseys on; people waiting for game day. Taking your kids and grandkids to Rupp; looking up explaining all the banners with names on them.
Kentucky basketball is expecting to win. Kentucky basketball is planning your day around tip-off.
Kentucky basketball is about hard work, pride, winning, wearing the Kentucky jersey knowing you are representing the entire state.
Kentucky basketball is "the Unforgettable's" in a nutshell.

Kentucky basketball used to be about many of those things.

 

[CaptainBoogerBuns]

Love your answer , I dont even like horse racing .. at all. To true BBN members hoops >>>>>>>>>>> horse and everything else. We bleed blue , we talk hoops all year , we used to follow recruiting like crazy . And yes , The unforgettable's are still being talked about , never ever to be forgotten . Very few or none care about draft staus or the amount of money these players make in the NBA , we care about what happens at the U of K . Nothing much else matters . Sadly the guy in charge has soured so much of what BBN was . We desperately need reunited , we need a new leader . Go Big Blue . Always

So if you prefer UKFB to UKBB you’re not a true member of BBN?.

 

[cats2010]

Old fart said it best. “The unforgettables” are UK basketball. They will probably be my favorite team from my lifetime. They wore the UK jersey with pride and knew what it meant to play for the University of KY and did not take it for granted. I know the game has changed a lot and it might never get back to what it use to be but I’m tired of having players come here only to play for a coach and not the program. Cal is not UK and more importantly cal has forgotten what UK is all about and what we stand for. He got it when he first got here it seemed but he quickly reverted to turning UK into his own version of what he wanted us to be only the fan base as a whole never hitched to his wagon and especially when the losing became the norm.

 

[catzfanjim]

It’s a way of life but unfortunately Cal doesn’t understand this.

 

[BlueWorldOrder74]

This is Kentucky Basketball

 

[thebluestripes]

To me kentucky basketball is a shell of what I grew up thinkin it was. "pride tradition excellence etc etc" I lived and breathed it much of my life, but now I'm just a casual observer of it. It's just entertainment that is getting less entertaining. Letting go of the nostalgia can be hard, but its best to just accept what ky basketball currently is.

 

[H00SIER-Cat]

I'm 55 and grew up in the middle of IU country. I started rooting for UK to argue with my uncle who was an IU alum. Now it's maybe my main identity as a sports fan. Rafters, due to and in spite of its insanity at times, has given me perspective on the Kentucky born and bred folks that are the majority of BBN.

Kentucky basketball should be winning the conference at least every other year and being a serious contender for a natty every 3 years. I'm still trying to grasp all the factors that made that not the case anymore.

 

[ManitouDan]

So if you prefer UKFB to UKBB you’re not a true member of BBN?.

Not sure how you stretched my comment that far . I'm a season ticket holder of football. Have been for years . Football is far more fun than hoops .. but nothing replaces the excitement generated by a great Basketball team in Kentucky . I recall around 15K fans chanting C A T S as we left the arena after Monk dropped 45 on UNC .. or the body shaking noise in Rupp arena as Ky beat the good Ark teams in the 90s . Or watching the guys kill the SEC going 38-0 ... hoops in my blood . Football is far more fun though . And I certainly consider myself a 5 decade member of BBN .

 

[RunninRichie]

Full discosure: I'm 39, I grew up in Harrodsburg (Mercer County), been a die-hard Kentucky fan all my life. My best friend's grandpa used to work the "chain gang" at Commonwealth and at the score-table in Rupp, and I tagged along every chance I got. I live in Illinois now, but my 2 kids have grown up with UK pacifiers, UK blankets, UK balls, and as they've gotten older, all kinds of shirts/jerseys/etc. So I'm die-hard, won't ever change.

Now with that said, I want YOUR opinion on "What is Kentucky basketball"? I'm putting together something and I'll share it on here later, but there's been a lot of chatter lately about "this ain't Kentucky basketball". So simple question, in YOUR opinion, what is Kentucky basketball?

I appreciate it. Go Cats

Condolences for living in the midwest.

 

[CaptainBoogerBuns]

Not sure how you stretched my comment that far . I'm a season ticket holder of football. Have been for years . Football is far more fun than hoops .. but nothing replaces the excitement generated by a great Basketball team in Kentucky . I recall around 15K fans chanting C A T S as we left the arena after Monk dropped 45 on UNC .. or the body shaking noise in Rupp arena as Ky beat the good Ark teams in the 90s . Or watching the guys kill the SEC going 38-0 ... hoops in my blood . Football is far more fun though . And I certainly consider myself a 5 decade member of BBN .

You wrote UK Hoops >><>>> horse racing and <b>everything else</b>

 

[crestcat]

Opposing teams fans have stormed the court twice this year, that was because of what UK basketball was.

 

[Oldbluefart]

I went to UK and NOTHING about UK sports comes close to garnering national or world attention to our Commonwealth like horse racing.

I understand your view but other than that

Not sure how you stretched my comment that far . I'm a season ticket holder of football. Have been for years . Football is far more fun than hoops .. but nothing replaces the excitement generated by a great Basketball team in Kentucky . I recall around 15K fans chanting C A T S as we left the arena after Monk dropped 45 on UNC .. or the body shaking noise in Rupp arena as Ky beat the good Ark teams in the 90s . Or watching the guys kill the SEC going 38-0 ... hoops in my blood . Football is far more fun though . And I certainly consider myself a 5 decade member of BBN .

I was there for those games against Arkansas. Remember when Antoine Walker slapped the floor at mid court and getting sat on the bench. We lost that game. Outside it was so cold; a big winter storm hit the area.
Ate dinner at Slick Rick's restaurant before the game.
The good ole days.

 

[KAB Cats]

I asked Chat GPT to generate a poem on being a Kentucky basketball fan:

Being a Kentucky basketball fan
Is not an easy task
You have to deal with highs and lows
And sometimes wear a mask

You cheer for every victory
And mourn for every loss
You know the names of every player
And every coach and boss

You follow every rumor
And every recruiting news
You hope for every five-star
And dread the transfer blues

You watch every game with passion
And sometimes with despair
You feel every foul and turnover
And every referee's glare

You love your team with all your heart
And bleed the blue and white
You dream of every championship
And every Final Four night

But being a Kentucky basketball fan
Is also a great joy
You share a bond with millions
And a legacy of pride

You witness history and glory
And moments of pure grace
You celebrate the greatness
And the honor of this place

 

[Oldbluefart]

I went to UK and NOTHING about UK sports comes close to garnering national or world attention to our Commonwealth like horse racing.

You're right about the "national attention', but that usually only last one day. You don 't go to South Florida, California, places like the Bahamas and see too many horse racing shirts but you will see someone wearing a UK shirt.
For the one day in May, everyone is a horse racing fan but UK basketball fans are year around

 

[KAB Cats]

I asked Chat GPT to generate a poem on being a Kentucky basketball fan:

Being a Kentucky basketball fan
Is not an easy task
You have to deal with highs and lows
And sometimes wear a mask

You cheer for every victory
And mourn for every loss
You know the names of every player
And every coach and boss

You follow every rumor
And every recruiting news
You hope for every five-star
And dread the transfer blues

You watch every game with passion
And sometimes with despair
You feel every foul and turnover
And every referee's glare

You love your team with all your heart
And bleed the blue and white
You dream of every championship
And every Final Four night

But being a Kentucky basketball fan
Is also a great joy
You share a bond with millions
And a legacy of pride

You witness history and glory
And moments of pure grace
You celebrate the greatness
And the honor of this place

I asked it to write it again, but this time with more anger.

Being a Kentucky basketball fan
Is a curse and a pain
You have to deal with mediocrity
And seasons down the drain

You boo for every failure
And curse for every flop
You hate the names of every rival
And every dirty cop

You ignore every excuse
And every injury news
You loathe for every bust
And mock the transfer ruse

You watch every game with fury
And sometimes with disgust
You rage at every call and blunder
And every referee's unjust

You love your team with all your heart
But bleed the blue and white
You dread of every choke
And every Final Four fright

But being a Kentucky basketball fan
Is also a great sorrow
You lose a bond with millions
And a legacy of tomorrow

You miss the glory and the history
And moments of pure grace
You lament the downfall
And the shame of this place

 

[Oldbluefart]

I asked Chat GPT to generate a poem on being a Kentucky basketball fan:

Being a Kentucky basketball fan
Is not an easy task
You have to deal with highs and lows
And sometimes wear a mask

You cheer for every victory
And mourn for every loss
You know the names of every player
And every coach and boss

You follow every rumor
And every recruiting news
You hope for every five-star
And dread the transfer blues

You watch every game with passion
And sometimes with despair
You feel every foul and turnover
And every referee's glare

You love your team with all your heart
And bleed the blue and white
You dream of every championship
And every Final Four night

But being a Kentucky basketball fan
Is also a great joy
You share a bond with millions
And a legacy of pride

You witness history and glory
And moments of pure grace
You celebrate the greatness
And the honor of this place

Great post.
And we still hate Laettner!