From Matt Jones: the best explaination for a disasterous month

[Joneslab]

Fans like to portray themselves as though they are looking out for the players on the team, their futures, and their education, but in truth the players aren't the only selfish people in the building. How many fans have cut absolute shines over a player leaving early "because he isn't ready and needs his degree to survive" ?

Absolutely.

[gerntz]

Top 3 recruiting class yet there's anguish. LOL.

[lilproUK98]

And still, lest we feel too sorry for ourselves, we have two top ten players and the #1 overall according to Rivals.

A lot of schools would love to have found things so disastrous.

The only issue is that we needed more because of all that we lost. How big an issue that is remains to be seen, but I think it's pretty clear that so many things have to go right next year for Kentucky to contend.

I do know this: Cal is going to have to do the best coaching job of his career to be a "contender" next year, ALONG with everything going right before and during the season health-wise, and eligibility wise in Skal's case. I dont think Skal is in jeopardy, but you never know with the NCAA...

I, in no way, think that the negative recruiting ALONE did in Cal in the Spring signing period, but it did have a severe effect. Many circumstances went into this happening, clearly, but Matt would not put this out there if it was not the main cause of this rather shocking shutout dealt to Cal.

[Wonderstruck]

I said this in another thread on the recruiting forum and I'll say it here. These players are a microcosm of a very selfish society. Everybody wants theirs and care little about the overall well being. These guys in the end want all the points,adulation and fame for themselves only. They know they don't really have to win to be drafted into the NBA. One year and they are gone. So why not go somewhere where I can score 25 a game and be the BMOC. They don't have to sacrifice any points or fame to win a championship or make a Final Four. Just show up and score, baby. Not everyone is like this but the vast majority are becoming this way and that's what happened to UK. In the end something good Cal tried to do got turned around on him for selfish reasons.

I agree with this, but this also speaks to the selfishness of the fans as well. We want everyone who is great to come here and can't understand why anyone would go elsewhere. We just want ours and care little about what is in the best interest of each individual player. Goodness, once a player goes somewhere else, any good vibes that player had from the UK fanbase generally turns more to venom.

[Wonderstruck]

Top 3 recruiting class yet there's anguish. LOL.

Well, lose 7 guys and don't replace them with *enough* talent and that's what happens.

[Matt Dillon]

Many circumstances went into this happening, clearly, but Matt would not put this out there if it was not the main cause of this rather shocking shutout dealt to Cal.

This is just my personal opinion, but I don't have enough confidence in any media person, including Matt, to say they wouldn't put something out there if it wasn't true. While Matt may believe it is true, unless either the players themselves, or someone very close to them, stated platooning was the main reason they didn't sign with UK, how would anyone be able to say with, any degree of certainty, that was the main reason?

[J.Jennings]

If we had one more Power Forward or Center on the team (DAKARI JOHNSON), I don't understand why all the doom and gloom????

New flash!!!! We have enough quality players to field a pretty good team next season. We have a true point guard in Ulis, a player that was on the verge of becoming the beast(Poythrees), the number on center, experience in Willis and Hawkins, Briscoe, Matthews (considered top 20 til he was injured), Mulder (say he can shoot it lights out), and Lee........

Would still like to see us take a chance on the 6'10 kid who shoot threes and has a 44 inch vertical. Offensively, he has to be better than Lee right????

[Joneslab]

The main issue to me when you look at the roster is scoring.

Hard to see how this team puts points up consistently. You're going to need so many things to happen: Poythress being way more consistent than he's been, Skal being eligible and as good as advertised, Briscoe being able to play 30+ minutes right away, Mulder being able to contribute, Hawkins and Willis being able to play.

All those things we haven't ever seen so you can't verify that they'll actually happen.

Obviously if we would've landed one of these freshmen we wouldn't know either. Freshmen are always a gamble. But I'd much rather take our chances with somebody like Brown or Diallo on the roster than go in with what we've got.

Just some gaping holes in this roster unless some guys way out-perform what they've done historically.

[JFCats22]

The main issue to me when you look at the roster is scoring.

Hard to see how this team puts points up consistently. You're going to need so many things to happen: Poythress being way more consistent than he's been, Skal being eligible and as good as advertised, Briscoe being able to play 30+ minutes right away, Mulder being able to contribute, Hawkins and Willis being able to play.

All those things we haven't ever seen so you can't verify that they'll actually happen.

Obviously if we would've landed one of these freshmen we wouldn't know either. Freshmen are always a gamble. But I'd much rather take our chances with somebody like Brown or Diallo on the roster than go in with what we've got.

Just some gaping holes in this roster unless some guys way out-perform what they've done historically.

I agree...I have said the same thing multiple times. When you look at the roster it is pretty tough to see how this team gets to 65. The defense better be insane.

[Wonderstruck]

Take solace that there aren't a lot of great teams out there next season. Good? Sure. Great? Nah. This may be the best season to have this type of team. Just having Ullis, a healthy Alex, and Skal, that's going to win some games. Throw in the other guys and, well, we'll compete.

Curb your expectations though and you'll be alright.

[Spiritof96]

I'd love to know how anyone with any foresight at all could look at Kentucky's team as it's assembled right now and think that Calipari may platoon next year. We have ten guys counting EJ Floreal. If these players were worried about platooning, then Cal seriously failed in every living room he went in.

It's not even close to logical.

This is essentially what I have been thinking about the platoon system damaging recruiting. If this is what some of our recruits are thinking, perhaps they lack the critical thinking skills to be in college.

[BobS]

My opinion:

Negative recruiting is happening
Losing Slice hurt our recruiting
Other schools buying into the OAD
Weird class with weird players

Top players going to LSU, MSU, California, UNLV. Not all top heavy school there. Weird group.

Am I selfish? Sure thing. I am a college basketball fan, not an NBA fan. I want to see good players in college for as long as I can...period. But I am also a realist. And I would do just what they are doing.

Our team is missing some pieces, IMO. We certainly have some top notch talent potential but we are lacking in scoring. And let's face it....the last 3 years we have had a serious injury hurt the team. if we lose anyone of consequence next year, it would be even worse.

Good guard potential in Briscoe, Ulis and Mulder. Hawkins can backup.
Inside presence is shaky beyond Skal. Lee has ZERO offense other than dunks and cannot shoot FTs. We all hope Poythress come back stronger but you never know. Willis? Really?

Mathews is the most intriguing one. We need a 3 badly and is this the player that does it? Could be.

That is a really thin squad. But Cal is only going with 7-8 so we'll see. We have 9 scholarship players.

Should be interesting. Certainly a differnt trype of team. But we could not win it all with what we had last year so maybe this one shocks the world.

[BobS]

Take solace that there aren't a lot of great teams out there next season. Good? Sure. Great? Nah. This may be the best season to have this type of team. Just having Ullis, a healthy Alex, and Skal, that's going to win some games. Throw in the other guys and, well, we'll compete.

Curb your expectations though and you'll be alright.

We heard that last year as well. We hear it every year. But there are always 3-4 teams that rise to the top and stay there.

UK will be a top 15 squad (could not care less what pre-season hype we get) that will need to overachieve to go far, IMO. Been done before.

[Wonderstruck]

We heard that last year as well. We hear it every year. But there are always 3-4 teams that rise to the top and stay there.

UK will be a top 15 squad (could not care less what pre-season hype we get) that will need to overachieve to go far, IMO. Been done before.

That certainly doesn't make it any less true.

[Joneslab]

It definitely looks like a weaker year in that this season we'll not have two teams return almost everything from Final Four runs the previous year, and the class doesn't have a Jahlil Okafor (or a Karl Towns) in it.

But incomplete teams get exposed in this sport. What you notice about basketball is that the three-point shot and all the veterans some of these teams have lead to weird things. If your roster is lacking, it sometimes doesn't matter that you have more talent--you're going to take lumps. Maybe a lot of them.