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

[lilproUK98]

LOL, shut it down mods.

[KCKUKFan]

Wall, Davis, Towns, Monk, Fox, Cousins, Bledsoe, Booker, Rose, Evans, Randle, Murray, Knight, etc. etc, etc... NBA PLAYERS FROM THE START, DOESN'T MATTER WHO OR WHERE THEY PLAYED, WAS GOING TO THE NBA REGARDLESS.

Would you rather have them here for one year or at Duke/Kansas/UNC for a year?

That's what I thought.

[J.Jennings]

Nobody has said anything about this.

Kentucky basketball will survive with or without Cal and with or without Hamidou Diallo. It doesn't change the fact that Cal has won a title, been in another championship game, been to four Final Fours, and six Elite Eights. Not to mention the quality of kids he recruits. And the quality basketball has consistently been a blast. The NCAA tournament is a hard thing to win, which is why we've only done it eight times in our program's history. The only thing you can ask for is to be there in the hunt at the end, and Cal has had us in the position every single year except for the one where our best player went out with a torn ACL.

If you want to complain about these results, because the one and done culture hurts your delicate sensibilities as a longtime fan, then that's on you. We get the Monks and Davises and Towns because of this very Diallo situation. As a fan, I won't pretend that it's not frustrating, but it doesn't bother me only because, like you noted, I understand that Kentucky basketball will go on and be successful with or without him. Begrudging him his lifelong dream isn't fair.

As for going overseas, I wouldn't complain if some did that. Some kids already do it. Most don't, because their game is displayed on a bigger platform and easier for scouts to observe in college in the U.S.

If people want to complain about John Calipari's tenure simply because they don't like the one-and-done culture, then that's their issue. The rest of us can continue to enjoy an awesome product on the court, as well as being the "cool" program in college basketball.

Enjoy the awesome product on the floor??????? It's takes 30 games to even resemble some kind flow with all these freshman year in and year out, it's AAU ball for the most, not a well oiled machine that looks polished.

I assume Cal has this all figured out or he wouldn't be recruiting so many guards right now, he may have seen the writing on the wall with Diallo....

[J.Jennings]

Or we could go back to being an also-ran again like we were for the decade-plus before Cal got here. Be careful what you wish for, sir.

Let's fight for guys like Konner Tucker and Morakinyo Williams again. We can keep them for four years.

That's on the AD, not the University of Kentucky basketball program. Hire the right coach, it will all work itself out with or without Calipari...

[KCKUKFan]

Look, I'm not going to sit here and act like Cal's biggest apologist. Some of the things he does irks me.

But I also remember what being a Kentucky fan was like during Tubby's last years and Billy's tenure. It was sickening.

The uber-critical fans need to step back and think: we are in the glory years, certainly the best run of UK basketball since I've been alive. The only thing that would compare is the run in the 90s, but this has been an almost decade-long run of consistent excellence. Aside from the surprise 98 title, the results in this decade are better overall.

When Cal leaves, Kentucky basketball will go on and it will be successful. And, yes, we'll win more titles, but this is fun. These are good kids. Cal gets them to buy in and play hard. It's a pleasure watching them develop over the course of the season. We're always in the hunt, and frequently we're in the final weekend of the NCAA tourney. I'd like one or two more titles, sure, and it's debatable whether or not we should have them, but overall the NCAA tournament is a random thing and it's super tough to win. For every argument that we can't win it without seniors, I'd point to the Duke team that won with freshmen and all the senior-laden 1 seeds who have bowed out in the first weekend. There's a rebuttal to every argument.

Cal has made Kentucky basketball the "it" program again and we should bask in our good fortune. I feel sorry for the fans that have nothing better to do than complain because a kid they've never even seen play is dipping his toes in the water to test out his value in his future career.

[KCKUKFan]

That's on the AD, not the University of Kentucky basketball program. Hire the right coach, it will all work itself out with or without Calipari...

Do you trust Microwave Mitch Barnhart to do that? I don't.

The fact that you're even suggesting that John Calipari should be replaced, after all of his success here, proves that you're the reason why Kentucky fans are labeled as "crazy."

It's insane that we're even discussing this.

[J.Jennings]

No one is saying they wouldn't have gone pro. Calipari gets those kind of players here. If he wasn't here some or most of them would've gone somewhere else. He gets those players and he wins a bunch of games. He gets paid millions of dollars to do what's best for the program. That is get the best players in the uniform and make a run at a title. He has done that in six of the eight years he has been here. Name a coach in the country that could've done more at UK in the eight years he has been here than Cal.

Name a coach(s) in the country that could have won possibly 3 to 4 titles with all that talent the past 8 years...


Now lets' keep it all the way real, i can start pointing fingers to all those UK fans who swore up and down Calipari was a crook and a cheat at Memphis, now they love him, ready to take a bullet for him lol lol lol lol lol

Like it or not, at some point it's time to start looking a head and scoping out another coach for down the road, Cal is not going to be here forever.....

[J.Jennings]

Moral of the story is this....

If you can't win title now with ALL THIS TALENT that comes to Lexington year in and year out, Kentucky will never ever win another Championship again, it's plain and simple.

Stick a fork in it, it's done.................

[J.Jennings]

Do you trust Microwave Mitch Barnhart to do that? I don't.

The fact that you're even suggesting that John Calipari should be replaced, after all of his success here, proves that you're the reason why Kentucky fans are labeled as "crazy."

It's insane that we're even discussing this.

HELL NO,, FIRE HIM, CAN'T STAND HIM,,,,,

What's a boy from Kansas really know about Kentucky basketball??

[Dwight Schrute]

Name a coach(s) in the country that could have won possibly 3 to 4 titles with all that talent the past 8 years...


Now lets' keep it all the way real, i can start pointing fingers to all those UK fans who swore up and down Calipari was a crook and a cheat at Memphis, now they love him, ready to take a bullet for him lol lol lol lol lol

Like it or not, at some point it's time to start looking a head and scoping out another coach for down the road, Cal is not going to be here forever.....

Man, I get your frustration, but chill out. This is insane.

[KCKUKFan]

Like it or not, at some point it's time to start looking a head and scoping out another coach for down the road, Cal is not going to be here forever.....

No, it's not. He's going to be here as long as he wants to be, and certainly as long as Brad is still in school.

The hot coach today won't necessarily be the hot coach in five-ten years, which is, presumably, when we'll be in a coaching search.

Another thought: if Hamidou Diallo was fifty-fifty on his decision to return and he read some of these message boards, do you think it would sway his decision towards leaving? Who would want to play for these ungrateful people?

Kids going pro early or Kentucky winning titles? It's not mutually exclusive. I'll take my chances on winning a title with these one and done guys any day of the week, and if you're smart, you would, too.

[J.Jennings]

Man, I get your frustration, but chill out. This is insane.

I am perfectly fine lol lol lol lol lol

It's Monday morning entertainment lol lol lol

Cal going to be alright with or without Diallo. I still hope to land that transfer from Pitt, i think that kid could help now and give us some experience. I am more worried about rim protection and the paint now more than anything, they can all score if needed.....

[KCKUKFan]

Moral of the story is this....

If you can't win title now with ALL THIS TALENT that comes to Lexington year in and year out, Kentucky will never ever win another Championship again, it's plain and simple.

Stick a fork in it, it's done.................

Okay, I'll play your little game.

Which coach would you take over Cal to coach all this NBA talent to more titles than the one we've got?

Coach K? We saw what he accomplished with his "super team" this year.

Bill Self? Ha.

Roy Williams? Arguable. But we've seen him bust with super talented teams for years.

[J.Jennings]

No, it's not. He's going to be here as long as he wants to be, and certainly as long as Brad is still in school.

The hot coach today won't necessarily be the hot coach in five-ten years, which is, presumably, when we'll be in a coaching search.

Another thought: if Hamidou Diallo was fifty-fifty on his decision to return and he read some of these message boards, do you think it would sway his decision towards leaving? Who would want to play for these ungrateful people?

Kids going pro early or Kentucky winning titles? It's not mutually exclusive. I'll take my chances on winning a title with these one and done guys any day of the week, and if you're smart, you would, too.

Well this board is nice compared to others. Nobody mad at him, mad at Cal for not playing him this year. If he was that good, shoud have played him, could have won a title...

[KCKUKFan]

Well this board is nice compared to others. Nobody mad at him, mad at Cal for not playing him this year. If he was that good, shoud have played him, could have won a title...

The coaches asked him if he wanted to play and he said no. What were they supposed to do?

Ultimately, I'm guessing he'll be back in Kentucky blue next year and this will all be a moot point.