Scale of 1-10, your Derek Willis confidence level

[TrueblueCATfan]

I really hope Hawkins and Willis both have break out seasons next year....

[J.Jennings]

Yes, I can definitely see where all the laughing, smiling, and jumping up and down could be construed as them being disengaged.

Fwiw, when i first saw Willis in high school i though to myself, no way he can play at a school like Kentucky. From then to now, this kid has made great strides and is actually alot better than i thought he would become. With two years left, Willis may surprise alot more people than just myself.

[jimlowe7]

I'm hoping he can contribute like Miller in his JR year...solid bench player who worked well in certain match-ups and got better by the year's end.

[Joneslab]

Miller started for most of his sophomore year on a team with John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins on it. I believe Willis's threshold might be a little lower.

As for JWORLD's point about Willis making great strides: I wouldn't know if he has or not. Hasn't played enough. I thought he looked very good in the Bahamas and far better than he did when I saw him in HS (which makes sense considering two years had passed). In HS he was extremely weak and I think that's still one thing that's held him back from contributing.

I don't think folks understand or appreciate the strength it takes for these guys to play at this level. Unless you bring something incredible to the table offensively, then you really can't play if you're physically soft. I think Willis still needs to add a lot of muscle.

[J.Jennings]

Miller started for most of his sophomore year on a team with John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins on it. I believe Willis's threshold might be a little lower.

As for JWORLD's point about Willis making great strides: I wouldn't know if he has or not. Hasn't played enough. I thought he looked very good in the Bahamas and far better than he did when I saw him in HS (which makes sense considering two years had passed). In HS he was extremely weak and I think that's still one thing that's held him back from contributing.

I don't think folks understand or appreciate the strength it takes for these guys to play at this level. Unless you bring something incredible to the table offensively, then you really can't play if you're physically soft. I think Willis still needs to add a lot of muscle.

You make a great point about strength which brings me to this. Do you play two guys who have practiced against pros for two years and know the system or do you play a weak freshman straight out of high school that has no idea what it's like to play college ball? Unless your one of the big dogs(Cousins,Wall,Davis,Towns,etc,) out of high school, I think guys like Willis and Hawkins would have to have the upperhand.

If Willis and Hawkins earn themselves a spot on the floor and fail, so be it. What bothers me is I sometimes feel as if even if they do earn the minutes it's unlikely they will ever see them. I can live with the fact they are just not good enough but at the same time, how do we know if they never get the opportunity??

These kinds of discussions have been going on for many years and it's just he way it is.............

[J.Jennings]

Fwiw,,,, had to play Devil's advocate on this thread out of curiosity.............

[Wonderstruck]

Fwiw,,,, had to play Devil's advocate on this thread out of curiosity.............

Hey, I started the thread out of curiosity. Derek Willis is a sensitive topic to the natives. Interesting topics bring interesting discussion.

So do you believe anything you said?

[J.Jennings]

Hey, I started the thread out of curiosity. Derek Willis is a sensitive topic to the natives. Interesting topics bring interesting discussion.

So do you believe anything you said?

Of course i do i many ways. Willis is 6'8, can handle the ball, above average athlete, can shoot, and has been in they system for two years playing D1 basketball. He may not be a one and done but he's not trash either. I see no reason why he can't be that Ron Baker or Sam Dekker type of player. If he can play up to or better than what we saw in the Bahammas, of course i hope he can see the floor this season. I don't think D. Willis is going to hurt us and it's time for him to get some minutes..........

[Joneslab]

It's never about the individual player.

It's always about the individual player relative to the other players on the team.

When I played I thought I always improved. But I was usually just a spot player. Started some games, barely got off the bench some games--just decent. Until my senior year I was essentially a glorified water boy.

Some of my family never understood that. Got to the point where they just wouldn't come to the games. I understood it perfectly and it didn't bother me at all: I realized that even though I had improved, other guys were simply better.

Guys who are at the end of the bench really have to improve at a place like Kentucky. Cal is always bringing in guys who can really play. It's like corporate America: you can't just not hurt the team here. You have to be able to perform at an incredibly high level because of the way he recruits. He's always searching for top-flight guys who are going to end up on NBA rosters.

It's brutal for some of these local guys to crack the rotation because that's the case. If they do, generally they're guys like Polson and Hawkins who just kind of fit in a niche.

[J.Jennings]

Does anyone ever feel like the local state kids are sometimes overlooked and taken for granite?? I get the impression that it's okay to overlook them because they are just happy to here. For some that may be the case but others, i am not so sure.

[teamchemistry15]

Does anyone ever feel like the local state kids are sometimes overlooked and taken for granite?? I get the impression that it's okay to overlook them because they are just happy to here. For some that may be the case but others, i am not so sure.

Maybe it is because they aren't as good as our other players. Who should Willis have taken playing time from? Hawkins? Hood? Beckham? The list goes on. We shouldn't hand them playing time because they are from Kentucky. They have to earn it. If our coaching staff doesn't think they deserve it, why should we? Because we want a home town kid to be successful like in the early 90s? Our coaching staff is with these kids every single day. If they dont feel they have earned the right to play, I don't think I have the right to be upset about it. I highly doubt Cal says "He is from the state. He is fine sitting on the bench" and doesn't give them a chance.

[J.Jennings]

Maybe it is because they aren't as good as our other players. Who should Willis have taken playing time from? Hawkins? Hood? Beckham? The list goes on. We shouldn't hand them playing time because they are from Kentucky. They have to earn it. If our coaching staff doesn't think they deserve it, why should we? Because we want a home town kid to be successful like in the early 90s? Our coaching staff is with these kids every single day. If they dont feel they have earned the right to play, I don't think I have the right to be upset about it. I highly doubt Cal says "He is from the state. He is fine sitting on the bench" and doesn't give them a chance.

Derek Willis can actually ball and so can Hawkins. What's Cal scared that if one of the local boy gets some PT and does some good it's going to force him to put one of his other recruits on the bench?

It's easy to say they are not good enough but let's be honest, have either player enough to really tell??? You would rather gamble on a freshman with no D1 experience who hasn't practiced against pro's for two years and hope it pans out?? You would rather wait on Knight and Goodwin to develop and have there *** saved by a player that was mentally tortured by Gillispie and given the chance to play because the NCAA said Kanter couldn't play and Cal had to play him???

You don't have a clue as to whether or not Willis or Hawkins can contribute but you would rather play the % and gamble with the house on the one and done theory? Correct me if im wrong, but Cal has had some mad talent at Kentucky since he's been here with 1 Championship to show for. Kyle WIltjer saw the writing on the wall and left school to become a absolue NCAA scoring machine. Wasn't good enough to make it at Kentucky but try and tell the rest of the college basketball world that. Of course "he wanted to go home" but i think we all know the real reason

As for Beckam, Hood, and yes Hawkins and Willis, a complet waste of time.

[catfaninin]

Of course i do i many ways. Willis is 6'8, can handle the ball, above average athlete, can shoot, and has been in they system for two years playing D1 basketball. He may not be a one and done but he's not trash either. I see no reason why he can't be that Ron Baker or Sam Dekker type of player. If he can play up to or better than what we saw in the Bahammas, of course i hope he can see the floor this season. I don't think D. Willis is going to hurt us and it's time for him to get some minutes..........

Willis can play and can contribute. But comparing him to Baker and Dekker I think is a major overestimation of what he can do. Those guys are both damn good players. I remember Aaron telling Baker "you're a bad man" after they played in the tournament. And we all saw what Dekker can do. Would love for Willis to be in the class of those 2 but I don't see it.

[teamchemistry15]

Derek Willis can actually ball and so can Hawkins. What's Cal scared that if one of the local boy gets some PT and does some good it's going to force him to put one of his other recruits on the bench?

It's easy to say they are not good enough but let's be honest, have either player enough to really tell??? You would rather gamble on a freshman with no D1 experience who hasn't practiced against pro's for two years and hope it pans out?? You would rather wait on Knight and Goodwin to develop and have there *** saved by a player that was mentally tortured by Gillispie and given the chance to play because the NCAA said Kanter couldn't play and Cal had to play him???

You don't have a clue as to whether or not Willis or Hawkins can contribute but you would rather play the % and gamble with the house on the one and done theory? Correct me if im wrong, but Cal has had some mad talent at Kentucky since he's been here with 1 Championship to show for. Kyle WIltjer saw the writing on the wall and left school to become a absolue NCAA scoring machine. Wasn't good enough to make it at Kentucky but try and tell the rest of the college basketball world that. Of course "he wanted to go home" but i think we all know the real reason

As for Beckam, Hood, and yes Hawkins and Willis, a complet waste of time.

You really think Cal doesn't play Willis or Hawkins because they might play better than his high profile recruits and make him look bad? I wouId rather play Briscoe than either Hawkins or Willis because he is stronger, faster, and projected as a future first round pick for a reason. I guess the NBA scouts don't project Willis or Hawkins as first round picks because it might make their recruiting rankings and draft projections look bad, right? Willis can play. Greenberg said he probably would have started on most of his Virginia Tech teams. The problem is the guys in front of him would have started on every college team in the country. I know he isnt good enough because Cal would play him if he was. To say he could be Baked or Dekker is insane. Willis could play 40 minutes a game this year and not do what those guys do.

[boomdaddy]

Hawkins is a solid player. I don't see him getting much better.

Lee is a solid defender. He could improve his rebounding. I dont see his offense getting any better. He just can't shoot the ball and has no moves, but he is a good passer .....does anyone think he will magically get some moves next season?


Willis can pass and shoot. He is not a great defender nor is he a good creator with the ball. If he works on his game, he can be a big contributor, next season. The rumors on him is that he did not work on his game, like the other players did, after practices. If Willis wants to play and make a difference on the team, it is up to him. If he was slow of foot, had no hops, and couldn't shoot, I would agree with a lot of the posters on this thread that Willis will never play. That is not the case. He has the speed and hops that Wiltjer doesn't have and he can score. He is not a token in state white boy. You can actually use a stop watch to time the speed of Willis, instead of using an hour glass for Wiltjer. I believe if Willis wants to break into the line up and get playing time, it is up to him, not the coaches.


Fans can speculate that Calipari won't play in state players or won't play white players. That is a lot of hooey. What is wrong with recruiting the best players and playing the the kids that work the hardest and do what you need them to in your system? As for in state players, Kentucky as a state does not produce that many. The Louisville metro area produces the most and most of them go to the home town school. For some odd reason or other, Lexington rarely produces a D1 player and when it does, the kid is either not good enough to come to Kentucky or is over looked by by the staff and the kid is star at another school. But, during the Calipari era at Kentucky, there has yet to be a single super star player come out of the state. I, personally, don't care what color the kids are or what part of the country they are from. Would love to see local boys be star players on the team, but only if they are the level of talent that Coach is looking for.