2025-26 Roster Chatter (UPDATE: Oweh Returns, Roster Complete)

[KentuckyWild2020]

Oh, he got recruited over? By.... better players? Players he wasn't as good as?

Word of advice, some ex players have been known to visit this site.

Like them or not,usually don't trash players here,that's why it's different.

Now personally, I would trash Julius Mays to his face, it is what it is and there's a reason.

Harrelson was recruited over too (Kanter) and the NCAA said hold my beer.

Forced Harrelson to get on the exercise bike and Calipari to play him.

More than likely would have been Josh who? If not for all that.. The 3 star from Missouri

[teamchemistry15]

It's crazy to watch basketball in the 1980s because of how much space the defense gives players. In the last 25 years, guys have been guarded at such a close proximity that freedom of movement has kind of gone by the wayside. This has introduced all that "physicality" basketball talking heads go on about. (A lot of times it's not even guarding, it's stuff that happens off the ball. When guys cut these days they're sent through a forest of arms and grabs that would've made basketball fans in the 1980s crap their pants in horror.)

Aesthetically it's not nearly as pleasing as it once was. But the skill and conditioning needed to play it at a high level are much more demanding.

The players have a lot more at their disposal now as well. More angles of film, more analytics, better health and fitness for conditioning, better equipment. Kobe talked about how he memorized the officials handbook to learn where they were supposed to be at certain times so he knew he could get away with holds and grabs that they wouldn't be able to see.

[teamchemistry15]

Word of advice, some ex players have been known to visit this site.

Like them or not,usually don't trash players here,that's why it's different.

Now personally, I would trash Julius Mays to his face, it is what it is and there's a reason.

Harrelson was recruited over too (Kanter) and the NCAA said hold my beer.

Forced Harrelson to get on the exercise bike and Calipari to play him.

More than likely would have been Josh who? If not for all that.. The 3 star from Missouri

Saying that Hood got recruited over by players better than him isn't trashing him. It's the truth. It's nothing personal towards him.

[KentuckyWild2020]

While this is true, it isn't really what the poster is arguing.

Amari Williams wasn't just a point guard because he had to be, he actually was a pretty good point guard situationally. That was more about his skillset.

The point made was specific: Oweh was a 2, Brea/Robinson a 3. I mean the world ain't gonna collapse if we don't get to the bottom of that, but it just objectively isn't accurate. The poster said that it was more about who those players guarded at the beginning of the game that set the positions, and that also isn't accurate as players don't always guard their opposite.

And the fact Pope runs a 3 guard offense but call it what you want.

Oweh started off guarding Clayton at Rupp.

Really petty to argue over this cause it don't matter.

Not that it matters buf if Oweh is drafted, they calling him out as a SG or SF when it's announced?

[KentuckyWild2020]

All of those Jon Hood teams would have accomplished what they accomplished without him. They essentially did, seeing as how he barely played and averaged 1.5 PPG over the course of his career.

He was recruited over, because he wasn't as good as the top fleet recruits Cal was targeting. And we wanted to win. If we would have started Jon Hood and just went with him, we'd have the same sort of results as if... well, we just started Chandler or Perry or Williams at the starting shooting guard this year.

Which is to say we'd suck.

He could start over Mays but I don't ever and mean ever recall lobbying for him to start,especially his first 3 years and yes I agree, he wasn't leading us to a title so it wouldn't matter.

Moral of the story, it's how Cal rolls. Three years in a system on a daily grind means nothing to him, Big Z found that out the hard way but we told him..

[KentuckyWild2020]

It's crazy to watch basketball in the 1980s because of how much space the defense gives players. In the last 25 years, guys have been guarded at such a close proximity that freedom of movement has kind of gone by the wayside. This has introduced all that "physicality" basketball talking heads go on about. (A lot of times it's not even guarding, it's stuff that happens off the ball. When guys cut these days they're sent through a forest of arms and grabs that would've made basketball fans in the 1980s crap their pants in horror.)

Aesthetically it's not nearly as pleasing as it once was. But the skill and conditioning needed to play it at a high level are much more demanding.

Off the top of my head, go back Barkley vs Shaq or Malone vs Rodman or Clifford Robinson vs Garnett, that physicality was real allowed and expected, not sure players today could handle it emotionally..

[40bill]

While we are waiting on a "Boom" or "Kaboom" (leaving or going elsewhere), how do we think player's of old would perform in this era or vice versa?

We have those discussions a lot. It would require same rules, same nutrition, on an on.
you'd also have to have the same coaching philosophies.

would Jabbar be great today? How about Chamberlain? Maravich? I tend to think they would given the same training benefits.

Would today's players dominate back "in the day" under the conditions and rules of those days? Maybe. Game was stricter though...less 'creating'.

Maybe. Maybe not.

[Lighthouse]

Now with all due respect and i mean all due respect, you know many of the high school Kentucky legends had padded stats because they didn't play any real competition and they always had the ball in their hands.

If you get a chance, Google and find the Ramon Harris Jon Hood podcast, you may have a different opinion of Hood..

I saw Hood play to many games to change my mind.

[teamchemistry15]

We have those discussions a lot. It would require same rules, same nutrition, on an on.
you'd also have to have the same coaching philosophies.

would Jabbar be great today? How about Chamberlain? Maravich? I tend to think they would given the same training benefits.

Would today's players dominate back "in the day" under the conditions and rules of those days? Maybe. Game was stricter though...less 'creating'.

Maybe. Maybe not.

I'm imagining Iverson playing in today's league where they're allowed to take the extra "gather" step and trying to figure out how you stop him.

[KentuckyWild2020]

We have those discussions a lot. It would require same rules, same nutrition, on an on.
you'd also have to have the same coaching philosophies.

would Jabbar be great today? How about Chamberlain? Maravich? I tend to think they would given the same training benefits.

Would today's players dominate back "in the day" under the conditions and rules of those days? Maybe. Game was stricter though...less 'creating'.

Maybe. Maybe not.

I agree, some would thrive regardless of what era.

[KentuckyWild2020]

I saw Hood play to many games to change my mind.

Understood.

If you called his games, you would know more in between the lines than me or others.

[KentuckyWild2020]

I'm imagining Iverson playing in today's league where they're allowed to take the extra "gather" step and trying to figure out how you stop him.

It would be criminal. Iverson was a bad man.

[justford]

This thread has over one thousand posts and still going strong!! Still not sure why the 2 or 3 position is so controversial🤷‍♂️

[Joneslab]

This thread has over one thousand posts and still going strong!! Still not sure why the 2 or 3 position is so controversial🤷‍♂️

Because that man looked at one of the best small forwards Kentucky has had in awhile and said, casually and with full confidence, he's not a small forward.

It's like my students who used to come to class without reading the assigned reading, but they wanted to comment anyway. They had strong thoughts...but you had to stand up there and say, "Fella, I'm not sure you know what it is you're talkin' about." Lovingly, of course.

[Joneslab]

And the fact Pope runs a 3 guard offense but call it what you want.

Oweh started off guarding Clayton at Rupp.

Because Clayton was their best player. He guarded Josh Hubbard a lot when we played Mississippi St. Oweh's not a 1.