Rumors circulating about Cal and Texas (UPDATE: Shaka to Marquette)

[GOCAT15]

I don't dislike Cal. His schtick gets tiring but he has done a lot of good in Lexington and has been great for the program and the state. I'd love nothing more than to see Cal recapture the magic he had when he got here.

But there's a side of Cal that I've grown to not like, and it's the side that seems to get resentful towards the fans for having an opinion, for saying things that make it seem like he is not in it for the program, and just a general attitude that he's above us all. To an extent I get it because we have some real crazies in our fanbase, but that Cal isn't going to cut it here at UK.

So if that's the Cal that's going to be here, I'd like it if he just left because the program is going to become irrelevant. But I'll never not appreciate the work he's done here or what he did in his first 5 years.

I can't argue with the point about being above the program. That is honestly the only thing that has always bothered me some about him, but I truly think he loves the program but he just won't change his sales pitch about the NBA which has lost its luster over the years with recruits.

[lilproUK98]

We weren't quite on that level. That team was at 30% from three, which is danger time. There were thoughts all year that that might end up biting them.

KC is right that they were more like the '09/'10 UK team. I always had a worry with that bunch that they would have a game like they did against West Virginia. Clankers all over the place.

If Michigan State could beat them, so could we. If we played our best.

[lilproUK98]

This is where I had a really big problem with the “transfer portal”. There is a potential for it to turn college basketball as a sort of G league for the big time programs. The big programs would lure away players who are already proven on the college level.

As I posted on the other thread, why do people have such a huge problem with kids being free to do what they feel is best for them? The colleges don't own these kids. The scholarships are 1 yr contracts.

[Joneslab]

Going back to the Texas thing specifically, there's a weird silence around that job that usually doesn't happen with high-profile openings. I assumed we'd get a leak by now.

I thought over the weekend that Chris Beard was probably being brought in for an interview and that was the reason for the pause in news, but things have been eerily quiet since Friday.

[Joneslab]

As I posted on the other thread, why do people have such a huge problem with kids being free to do what they feel is best for them? The colleges don't own these kids. The scholarships are 1 yr contracts.

It does give college basketball a kind of mercenary feel, much like the whole one-and-done thing.

But it was created to balance out this thing where coaches jump from job to job. If coaches can go anywhere they want and leave players in the lurch, it only makes sense that players should be able to do the same.

[Dwight Schrute]

Going back to the Texas thing specifically, there's a weird silence around that job that usually doesn't happen with high-profile openings. I assumed we'd get a leak by now.

I thought over the weekend that Chris Beard was probably being brought in for an interview and that was the reason for the pause in news, but things have been eerily quiet since Friday.

Quick, get Alan Cutler out of retirement and get WLEX over to the Craft center.

[DA#23]

The colleges don't own these kids. The scholarships are 1 yr contracts.

The colleges don’t own the kids, but it isn’t treated quite like a 1 year contract...yet. They are renewable yearly but outside of rare cases where a guy is kicked off the team for (name a legit reason) these scholarships typically are renewed. Rhodes is a familiar example of being encouraged to transfer, but he also wasn’t thrown out of the lodge and made homeless, either.

If they want it be treated as an actual contract, then do we become accepting of a guy like Khalil not being renewed. If had wanted to stay at UK, do we just not renew it because he wasn’t close to what we thought we were recruiting.

There’s an extent to which it “goes both ways”. I don’t think athletes want to go that level. I’d hate to suddenly have my access to education and pursuit of a career suddenly end because I stink or a better option comes to the table...and my scholly is needed. Becomes more serious than that, too, housing and meals come to mind.

[DA#23]

Going back to the Texas thing specifically, there's a weird silence around that job that usually doesn't happen with high-profile openings. I assumed we'd get a leak by now.

Cal’s still busy sampling Franklin BBQ ... must be nice to cut line there!

[DA#23]

I dislike it because it means that college basketball has both a continual Free Agency and in a sense some programs become g-league/farm teams.

[Spiritof96]

I dislike it because it means that college basketball has both a continual Free Agency and in a sense some programs become g-league/farm teams.

I would prefer they stick with the sit-out a year rule unless a coach leaves the program. You can still go if you want to go, (I did) and the school you leave could still release you from that obligation if they wanted to and there were extenuating circumstances.

The auto-transfer with no sitting out is a bad plan and unfair to the departure school.

[lilproUK98]

I think Cal to Texas or anywhere else can be put to bed.

[Catsrock]

I think Cal to Texas or anywhere else can be put to bed.

At the very least we know he didn’t tell Powell to hold off UK so he could take him to Texas

[40bill]

I don't dislike Cal. His schtick gets tiring but he has done a lot of good in Lexington and has been great for the program and the state. I'd love nothing more than to see Cal recapture the magic he had when he got here.

But there's a side of Cal that I've grown to not like, and it's the side that seems to get resentful towards the fans for having an opinion, for saying things that make it seem like he is not in it for the program, and just a general attitude that he's above us all. To an extent I get it because we have some real crazies in our fanbase, but that Cal isn't going to cut it here at UK.

So if that's the Cal that's going to be here, I'd like it if he just left because the program is going to become irrelevant. But I'll never not appreciate the work he's done here or what he did in his first 5 years.

I think this is it summed up really well. Coach Cal has done fine things. It normally comes a time for anyone when for any of a thousand reasons it is time to move on. He certainly has given that impression this year. I am certain it will change in one direction or another. BUT the current combative attitudes between him and the fans do no one any good.

We have all made the same remarks about our football coach. Last year did seem better, but he has had a notoriously thin skin with everyone from media to officials. Once again, it has done him no good.


Whether coaches agree with fans opinion or not (as long as it doesnt involve family) its part of the down side of a really well paid job. Nothing wrong with being assertive. Being aggressive is a whole different animal.....and its really hard not to slip from the first to the second.

[Lighthouse]

At the very least we know he didn’t tell Powell to hold off UK so he could take him to Texas

I might have missed something but how do we know this?

[Catsrock]

I might have missed something but how do we know this?

Surely Cal isn’t cold hearted enough to be recruiting players and to be honest with one telling him to hold off to go with him to Texas but just leave the other hung out to dry by committing to the former school.