Hamidou Diallo to Test Waters (UPDATE: DIALLO TO RETURN TO UK)

[George]

Does anyone here think that is Baker shoots 46% from 3 and 51% from two in preseason practice and plays good enough defense, that Cal would start him over Diallo if Diallo shot 10% points lower from the field and only 32% from the 3 point line? Baker is a really good shooter and can score in many different ways. But he was not as highly rated..Doesnt have that 5th star..thoughts anyone?

Over Diallo?? Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeell no. MAYBE you get a small lineup here and there, with your PG, Diallo, and Baker out there at the same time, but that kid ain't starting over Diallo.

Truthfully, I don't think Baker sees any meaningful time next season. In a down class, relatively speaking, he's pretty behind in terms of talent and athleticism. He can shoot, but that's about it right now.

[Joneslab]

Does anyone here think that is Baker shoots 46% from 3 and 51% from two in preseason practice and plays good enough defense, that Cal would start him over Diallo if Diallo shot 10% points lower from the field and only 32% from the 3 point line? Baker is a really good shooter and can score in many different ways. But he was not as highly rated..Doesnt have that 5th star..thoughts anyone?

You don't get a guy back who had first-round NBA draft interest and who's spent a half-year practicing in your program and not start him and play him virtually all the time.

Baker may get some run next year but I highly doubt it. When things get sketchy offensively Cal usually isn't a guy who goes for offense. He tries to combat sluggishness with tough defense. This team should be a team that has the length and athleticism to really cause problems on the defensive end.

Would imagine Shai Gilgous-Alexander is the player who gets the back-up minutes on the perimeter. Don't think Knox or Diallo come out of the game a whole lot, a la Monk and Fox this past year.

[George]

Agreed.

But it seems like Cal has had an off-and-on history of being "one guy away." Meeks. Kanter. Teague. Johnson. Etc, etc. When Bamba picked Texas, I betcha he was kicking himself in private. Or whichever assistant had priority on Bamba.

I know this is annoying and we do this all the time, but I think '18-'19 is our next legitimate chance at a title. I'll be surprised if some of next year's guys don't come back for a second season, and it sounds like we have a good chance of loading up in the next class, which is reportedly STRONG.

Any noise we make next season will be a pleasant surprise.

[George]

Really??? Cmon now, your memory not that bad,,, We all know that Brandon played off the ball on offense and was more of a two guard, we even talked about it many many many times.....

That might've been his game, but that isn't what he played. How many times did Knight not play PG?

[Joneslab]

Going to be a pretty weak year next season in the sport of college basketball. When Arizona under a coach who's never been to the Final Four is the prohibitive favorite, you know you have a shot.

Best-case scenario for Kentucky is that the youth issues get worked out over the first half of the season and the team comes together late, similar to what happened with the Harrisons/Randle team. This absolutely isn't going to be a team that takes off from November and looks dominant. Way too many freshmen playing essential roles.

[Joneslab]

Strangely, though, while the sport as a whole will be down, the SEC is going to be very tough.

This league could honestly be the best conference in the game next year. Yes I said that.

[KCKUKFan]

Really??? Cmon now, your memory not that bad,,, We all know that Brandon played off the ball on offense and was more of a two guard, we even talked about it many many many times.....

He did? He was a point guard who shot a lot of outside shots, but the team was always his. Doron Lamb played some point to spot Knight, but Knight was always that team's point guard.

[KCKUKFan]

Would imagine Shai Gilgous-Alexander is the player who gets the back-up minutes on the perimeter. Don't think Knox or Diallo come out of the game a whole lot, a la Monk and Fox this past year.

Can we just call him Shai Alexander, please?

Not that I have anything against our recent trend of hyphenated names, but "Gilgous" is just sort've stupid sounding.

[Joneslab]

Really??? Cmon now, your memory not that bad,,, We all know that Brandon played off the ball on offense and was more of a two guard, we even talked about it many many many times.....

What in the name of ever-loving hell are you talking about?

[George]

Can we just call him Shai Alexander, please?

Not that I have anything against our recent trend of hyphenated names, but "Gilgous" is just sort've stupid sounding.

It sounds too much like "fungus."

[Joneslab]

Not to be the sour SOB in the room, but it'd be nice to actually see some positive results from this sort of talk. Not that we've had a ton of guys return who needed a summer like this, but more often than not I feel like mid-season we're all going, "I thought that guy hit the weights last summer?" I'm thinking of Wiltjer, Humphries, Wynyard, Dakari to some extent, and even Skal, who knew before he arrived that he had to get stronger.

Skal was a freshman but I think a couple of those guys did make leaps. Wiltjer being one, Dakari being another. Dakari completely changed his body.

Problem is with some of these guys it takes more than an off-season. An off-season is essentially five months long. That isn't enough to transform many of these players the way they need to be transformed. They're still 19 years old. These big kids are almost always strapped with baby fat that is really hard to work off in that short amount of time...and many times they've got basketball issues as well. They need to be playing and competing. If you come back strong as an ox but still can't dribble then the strength training did nothing for you.

[George]

Skal was a freshman but I think a couple of those guys did make leaps. Wiltjer being one, Dakari being another. Dakari completely changed his body.

Gonna have to disagree with you there.

Wiltjer left UK and took a redshirt year for the express purpose of changing his body because he didn't/couldn't do so during the downtime between seasons at UK. Dakari, in his sophomore year, was still pretty fat and still couldn't jump over a pizza box. I'm having a real hard time recalling a complete transformation in that kid.

[Joneslab]

Not being able to jump over pizza boxes is a genetic issue. Kyle Wiltjer was slow as molasses at Gonzaga just like he was at Kentucky.

Dakari absolutely made huge strides. But he was still pretty slow. That's just built in. Genetic.

But my point really was that we shouldn't expect these guys to come back looking like they're different people--or playing like it. It's one reason Cal prefers freshmen. His theory has always been that it's better to have these 18-year-old phenoms than bank on somebody returning shockingly improved.

[Joneslab]

Diallo planned to pay UK back for his spring tuition had he turned pro.

[KevinHall]

Can we just call him Shai Alexander, please?

Not that I have anything against our recent trend of hyphenated names, but "Gilgous" is just sort've stupid sounding.

It has a Ghengis-Khan feeling to it. Just call him SGA similar to SKJ.