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With Big Z officially here, what is our ceiling NOW

Mike-McD

Junior
Aug 3, 2022
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I admit I was skeptical that he would make the roster, given the bad luck we've had in the last few years. I had estimated we would end up 24-10 and no better than Sweet Sixteen.

Obviously that's changed, so what do you predict for us now?

And how many minutes do you think Big Z gets per game?
 
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I dont think it matters much. Cal won't win the national title or make a final four and probably loses in semis of SEC Tourney to TN again (our only final four run of season) and fails to win the SEC regular season.

We will beat down UL and win some high profile games against a down Gonzaga and maybe beat Miami at Rupp as well. Calipari will brag about this and tell us you people are crazy for expecting titles and final fours more than once in 10 to 12 seasons.
 
I dont think it matters much. Cal won't win the national title or make a final four and probably loses in semis of SEC Tourney to TN again (our only final four run of season) and fails to win the SEC regular season.

We will beat down UL and win some high profile games against a down Gonzaga and maybe beat Miami at Rupp as well. Calipari will brag about this and tell us you people are crazy for expecting titles and final fours more than once in 10 to 12 seasons.
Geez. And I thought I was negative.
 
I admit I was skeptical that he would make the roster, given the bad luck we've had in the last few years. I had estimated we would end up 24-10 and no better than Sweet Sixteen.

Obviously that's changed, so what do you predict for us now?

And how many minutes do you think Big Z gets per game?
I don't thing it has changed that much. This big guy Ivisic might end up being pretty good, but so are Bradshaw ann Onyenso. It's our deepest position. Let's see if Ivisic can play in the SEC without fouling every other time down the court. This was a talented team before Ivisic became eligible. I hope no one believes any of these centers will play forward, because that would be the best way to slow their development. I don't ever remember Cal using a true center as a forward. The closest would be Terrence Jones or WCS, but they went on and had NBA careers as forwards. Mitchell, Edwards, Burks, and Thiero should get the bulk of the forward minutes, and Cal will play some 3-guard. This was a good team yesterday and it just got slightly more interesting.
 
I admit I was skeptical that he would make the roster, given the bad luck we've had in the last few years. I had estimated we would end up 24-10 and no better than Sweet Sixteen.

Obviously that's changed, so what do you predict for us now?

And how many minutes do you think Big Z gets per game?
OP kinda crawfishing now.
It’s ok. Good to see

I think Z is really going to help. 6.6 pts 3 boards. Dude can run the floor and finish. Handles are terrific for his size.

Adds and even improved the overall team speed and he can keep that speed up with the ball. Jumps so he helps the lob game. Probably pretty tough from his back ground.

Defensively quick and long. I think he’s gonna be a big help. Crowd favorite. Has range from outside for his size I guess from playing up all his life.
 
I dont think it matters much. Cal won't win the national title or make a final four and probably loses in semis of SEC Tourney to TN again (our only final four run of season) and fails to win the SEC regular season.

We will beat down UL and win some high profile games against a down Gonzaga and maybe beat Miami at Rupp as well. Calipari will brag about this and tell us you people are crazy for expecting titles and final fours more than once in 10 to 12 seasons.
Sucks to be you.
 
I said before on HOB that I don't think he affects our ceiling that much, but does raise our floor with the injury concerns for our bigs. Good insurance and a chance he's better than we think. Low risk, high reward.
you nailed it
preseason our ceiling is about as high as it can get if we are injury free
he raises the floor to a point one big going down is not going to be a season killer
 
I dont think it matters much. Cal won't win the national title or make a final four and probably loses in semis of SEC Tourney to TN again (our only final four run of season) and fails to win the SEC regular season.

We will beat down UL and win some high profile games against a down Gonzaga and maybe beat Miami at Rupp as well. Calipari will brag about this and tell us you people are crazy for expecting titles and final fours more than once in 10 to 12 seasons.
Are you an actual Kentucky fan or just a troll?
 
I dont think it matters much. Cal won't win the national title or make a final four and probably loses in semis of SEC Tourney to TN again (our only final four run of season) and fails to win the SEC regular season.

We will beat down UL and win some high profile games against a down Gonzaga and maybe beat Miami at Rupp as well. Calipari will brag about this and tell us you people are crazy for expecting titles and final fours more than once in 10 to 12 seasons.
 
I'm not seeing any official announcement that he's enrolled and on campus at UK. Could you post the link, please?
 
I dont think it matters much. Cal won't win the national title or make a final four and probably loses in semis of SEC Tourney to TN again (our only final four run of season) and fails to win the SEC regular season.

We will beat down UL and win some high profile games against a down Gonzaga and maybe beat Miami at Rupp as well. Calipari will brag about this and tell us you people are crazy for expecting titles and final fours more than once in 10 to 12 seasons.
Honest question.

Why wouldn’t you take the year or years off that Cal is here and either find another team or sport to support. Just get away from UK basketball until it appeals to you again?
 
Honest question.

Why wouldn’t you take the year or years off that Cal is here and either find another team or sport to support. Just get away from UK basketball until it appeals to you again?

Don't have a problem with the players or team. My issue is with calipari. Still gonna support the team and hope I'm wrong. I still supported and watched joker UK football and watch the titans knowing we have almost a 0% chance of winning the super bowl.

Sorry all the sunshine pumpers think I'm a bad fan for expecting the underperforming seasons to continue but it's been 3 years and even some of the few before that weren't good.

I'll take a more kinder response to the OP and say sweet 16 or elite 8 at best. Better than last 3 seasons but still winning nothing that matters.
 
Don't have a problem with the players or team. My issue is with calipari. Still gonna support the team and hope I'm wrong. I still supported and watched joker UK football and watch the titans knowing we have almost a 0% chance of winning the super bowl.

Sorry all the sunshine pumpers think I'm a bad fan for expecting the underperforming seasons to continue but it's been 3 years and even some of the few before that weren't good.

I'll take a more kinder response to the OP and say sweet 16 or elite 8 at best. Better than last 3 seasons but still winning nothing that matters.
You should just go back to the Louisville board and quit trolling our board. I know you are upset that Louisville only won 4 games last year but Kenny Payne will make you proud this year.
 
I admit I was skeptical that he would make the roster, given the bad luck we've had in the last few years. I had estimated we would end up 24-10 and no better than Sweet Sixteen.

Obviously that's changed, so what do you predict for us now?

And how many minutes do you think Big Z gets per game?
Well this certainly is a far cry from you shitting on anyone who was taking a positive stance on this lol. I knew you would come around haha

If he is as good as advertised then I'd say he's worth a handful of wins at least. Hard to quantify because everyone still has to go play and anything can happen in a one game scenario in the postseason. But he's probably gonna raise us a seed line.
 
After watching them this summer, how did you expect a 10 loss season? That would be massively disappointing. I get the wait and see approach given recent history, but this is the type of roster that Cal thrives with. There is a reason that Vegas has us with the 4th best odds to cut the nets. Think this is our best team since 2015.
 
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You should just go back to the Louisville board and quit trolling our board. I know you are upset that Louisville only won 4 games last year but Kenny Payne will make you proud this year.

Stfu.

Bbncal and many others can vouch for my UK Fandom.

You people that are ok with what UK basketball has become lately are the real trolls and enemy.
 
After watching them this summer, how did you expect a 10 loss season? That would be massively disappointing. I get the wait and see approach given recent history, but this is the type of roster that Cal thrives with. There is a reason that Vegas has us with the 4th best odds to cut the nets. Think this is our best team since 2015.
Our players played well in Toronto, but the level of competition in the SEC will be much better than it was in Toronto. The other teams in Toronto were composed of non P5 players and players from Europen minor pro leagues. Playing in Toronto gave the participating Wildcats a chance to get acquainted and develop chemistry. But Bradshaw, Onyenso, and Ivisic did not play in Toronto. This will be a different team in January, playing against better athletes and a better level of competition. Some other SEC teams also played summer exhibition games. It is nice to be excited. But Toronto did not tell us much.
 
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Stfu.

Bbncal and many others can vouch for my UK Fandom.

You people that are ok with what UK basketball has become lately are the real trolls and enemy.
We are true UK fans. We pull for UK regardless of the coach. I will support the coach and UK regardless of who the coach is. Fans like you hate Cal so much that you would rather UK lose games so Cal is fired.
 
Yes have you seen Bradshaw play?
Yes. Bradshaw is quicker, more athletic, stronger, and bouncier than Ivisic, but Ivisic is bigger and longer. In Cal's system, Bradshaw's mobility gives him advantages. But if Cal uses Ivisic near the rim like he used Richards and Tshiebwe, then Ivisic might block a lot of shots. Ivisic can also shoot the basketball better than you would expect, although I think Cal will want Reeves, Edwards, Mitchell, Wagner, and Sheppard taking most of the shots. When they practice against one another, we will know more.
 
I am glad everything is falling into place for Z to play this year. This process was difficult, but ultimately it will be worth it.

I think how well this team works depends on the type of offense we run. If we go with an uptempo 4 out "pace and space" style, we'll be running a lot of teams off the court.

If this team plays down to the competition and let's the other team turn every game into a half court rock fight, then it will be a longer season with a lower ceiling and floor.

Expecting a young team to be in the hunt for a championship is a tall order, but if we stay healthy it is possible.
 
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Our players played well in Toronto, but the level of competition in the SEC will be much better than it was in Toronto. The other teams in Toronto were composed of non P5 players and players from Europen minor pro leagues. Playing in Toronto gave the participating Wildcats a chance to get acquainted and develop chemistry. But Bradshaw, Onyenso, and Ivisic did not play in Toronto. This will be a different team in January, playing against better athletes and a better level of competition. Some oher SEC teams also played summer exhibition games. It is nice to be excited. But Toronto did not tell us much.
Agree to disagree. I think it showed the chemistry this team has already. The competition was better, for example, than what we see on the Bahama tour. We showed we have multiple scoring threats and one of the elite shooters in America. We have the ability to play different styles of offense.

Had we went up there and struggled everyone would have been chicken little. Not sure why we can’t notice the positives?
 
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Can't wait to see us drop a spot in the preseason rankings because Big Z "won't have much of an impact" or some shit.

For UK, it means depth at every position, but also depth for every type of player you could want. We have multiple deep threats, multiple facilitating guards, multiple big bodies, multiple score-first wings, multiple defense-heavy wings, multiple guys with bothersome length, multiple shit (shot) blockers, multiple guys with unmatched speed.

I guess I see it this way, what else does Kentucky need on this roster? I don't think anything. Any addition is just icing on the cake. No other team can say that IMO.

Cal just has to get his coaching right.
 
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