John Calipari says “I don't have an answer”

[Matt Dillon]

The Kentucky Wildcats suffered yet another painful loss Tuesday in Oxford to Ole Miss 70-62. In what has been a headscratcher of a season, it seems like John Calipari is finally at a loss for words on what ended up being a poor night all around for his team.

Calipari admitted in his postgame press conference that he simply doesn’t have an answer for Kentucky’s struggles.

UK Basketball: John Calipari says “I don't have an answer” - A Sea Of Blue

[Matt Dillon]

And I thought that was why he makes all those millions a year.

[Catsrock]

Well he is paid to assemble and coach a much better team than this. But there’s little value in spouting some BS solution to this team when the only solution is a fresh start next season after scouring the transfer ranks this spring and summer. Personally I’m kind of glad to hear him say he has no answer rather than complaining about the fans. WE didn’t contribute to this mess in any meaningful way.

[Dwight Schrute]

Agreed, I'm glad he's being honest. It's pretty clear this team is fundamentally broken and rather than state some nonsense it's best to just admit that this team isn't good.

[George]

There are some problems that even the richest, smartest people in the world can’t solve if they don’t have the right tools.

Cal deserves criticism for how he constructed this roster, but it is what it is, and at this point it’s silly to expect him to do anything more with what he has. If he says he doesn’t have the answer, it’s probably because the answer isn’t on this team. He can’t add players in March, and he can’t fix this season with money.

[JFCats22]

This team has two games (losses) left in the season. There is no magic pill or fix for this..

The answer is really simple. Every player on the team other than Mintz and Jackson have vastly underperformed compared to what everyone thought they would be. Additionally, the three "stars" of Boston, Clarke and Sarr have been dreadful.

A lot of this is on Cal but there is nobody who would have predicted that all of those guys would be this bad.

[GOCAT15]

I also am glad to hear him say it. I honestly think he had a small part of him that felt he could get this team going, but it is what it is. If this doesn't motivate him to put together a legit roster next season I don't know what would. He's either going to put together a good roster or if that's not the case then I would say in his mind he is ready to move on. I for one hope it's the motivation to put together a top 10 team for next season.

[GOCAT15]

This team has two games (losses) left in the season. There is no magic pill or fix for this..

The answer is really simple. Every player on the team other than Mintz and Jackson have vastly underperformed compared to what everyone thought they would be. Additionally, the three "stars" of Boston, Clarke and Sarr have been dreadful.

A lot of this is on Cal but there is nobody who would have predicted that all of those guys would be this bad.

Exactly, as frustrating as it is, I would bet there was only 5 to 10 coaches who wouldn't have traded their roster with ours on day one of this season.

[Joneslab]

I also am glad to hear him say it. I honestly think he had a small part of him that felt he could get this team going, but it is what it is. If this doesn't motivate him to put together a legit roster next season I don't know what would. He's either going to put together a good roster or if that's not the case then I would say in his mind he is ready to move on. I for one hope it's the motivation to put together a top 10 team for next season.

Yeah, this is where I am.

If this season is what's needed to make changes then that will be the silver lining.

But if we see an exodus and then have to patch the roster together again, can we really improve? I along with every other Kentucky fans expects at the very least five players to leave and as many as eight. So how is it possible that you do the very same things you had to do last year and expect much better results?

[GOCAT15]

Yeah, this is where I am.

If this season is what's needed to make changes then that will be the silver lining.

But if we see an exodus and then have to patch the roster together again, can we really improve? I along with every other Kentucky fans expects at the very least five players to leave and as many as eight. So how is it possible that you do the very same things you had to do last year and expect much better results?

And does anyone think he will really try and get some of these guys to stay by convincing them it will be better next season....

It was impossible to get second rounders and non drafted players to come back after they enjoyed a fun, winning season, that's a little easier of a sell.

And unfortunately I just don't see the mentality in this group to say, "let's come back next year and prove to everyone what we can do".

[justford]

I read that Cal said “Allen may get his chance going forward”
Did he actually say this? We have one regular season game left and a brief appearance in the SEC tournament. Is Cal just trying to appease the fans?

[GOCAT15]

I read that Cal said “Allen may get his chance going forward”
Did he actually say this? We have one regular season game left and a brief appearance in the SEC tournament. Is Cal just trying to appease the fans?

Maybe he meant the 2023-2024 season if he sticks around

[TrueblueCATfan]

He needs to find answers.....We can't have another mass exodus and a whole new team next year

[surveyor]

I don't know that an exodus matters. I don't want the same core back if they can't (and thus far have shown to be the case) play together. Expecting different from a different crop of guys versus expecting different from a known quantity seems a wash

[Joneslab]

I don't know that an exodus matters. I don't want the same core back if they can't (and thus far have shown to be the case) play together. Expecting different from a different crop of guys versus expecting different from a known quantity seems a wash

To know whether it matters or not we need to know whether what we're seeing is "normal" freshmen being thrown into the fire too early, or if these are just players who aren't on Kentucky's level.

I see something in guys like Toppin, Ware, Allen, and especially Mintz. I like Askew's effort but to like him you have to really only look at about five games all year and conveniently dismiss everything else.

You see guys coming back all over the country who look raw as freshmen and then start to get it as sophomores. We've kind of forgotten what that's like at Kentucky but it does happen all the time.

One thing is obvious to me however and it's that the constant churn of players is clearly not working. It only works if you're trading out what leaves with Anthony Davis types. Cal is no longer doing that, so he has to find a way to start building some experience.