Nikola Kusturica

[bucsrule8872]

I’m good with the team as is, but I’m not going to complain if we add another piece, especially if he might be an impact player. At this point in time, adding another player is just icing on the cake.

[South jones]

Dividing the minutes among 14/15 players is going to be very interesting. Even if he platoons (don't think he will) that would still leave 4/5 looking for playing time.
WOW, this team may be the deepest in the country

[Pobilly]

Also Early word on the roster is McBride came in to the summer in game shape (Dropped the baby fat) and is dominating drills and scrimmages so far. Most motor and energy guy on the team. Also Diallo is having a very good start to the summer season. So you might be looking at McBride starting at the 4.

[bucsrule8872]

Dividing the minutes among 14/15 players is going to be very interesting. Even if he platoons (don't think he will) that would still leave 4/5 looking for playing time.
WOW, this team may be the deepest in the country

I think we go 10 deep for most of the season, with the best five getting big minutes.

Who will be the best five and second five will be discussed and debated all summer, but what else do we have to do right now?

Momcilovic is a 30 minute guy, for sure. He’s not coming off the floor very much. He stretches the defense and will make everyone else much better because of his gravity. He’ll play the 3 and 4 depending on who is playing beside him.

Moreno is going to be a 25-30 minute guy at Center. If he stays out of foul trouble and he doesn’t have stamina issues, I think he is going to play as much as possible. Kepnang will only see 10-12 minutes a game most likely, especially if Moreno can stay out of foul trouble. I also could see N’Diaye getting some run at the 5 early in the season. Kepnang will need to be on a minute restriction due to his injury history.

Diallo and Wilkins should be 25-30 minute guys in the backcourt. Morton as the backup PG. Kam and/or Kusturica probably get the backup minutes at the 2. I see that as our backcourt rotation. I’m leaning more towards Kam at the 2. Probably the better defender at that spot.

So the biggest question is probably the forward spot beside Momcilovic. K Will, Kusturica (maybe), McBride, N’Diaye, and even Hawthorne are possibilities.

In the end, my 10-man rotation(with Kusturica):

Momcilovic
Diallo
Wilkins
Moreno
Kusturica
K. Williams
McBride
N’Diaye
Kepnang
Morton

Something like this for minutes:


PG Diallo(27)/Morton(10)/Wilkins(3)
SG Wilkins(22)/K. Williams(18)
SF Kusturica(20)/Momcilovic(20)
PF Momcilovic(10)/McBride(16)/N’Diaye(14)
C Moreno(27)/Kepnang(11)/N’Diaye(2)

If Kusturica doesn’t come here or takes some time to develop (wouldn’t surprise me, I am not big on international guys), then Kam would have a bigger role.

No Kusturica, then Hawthorne slides into the rotation.

And by the end of the season, I think the rotation will work down to 9 and maybe 8. Likely 9, I see Kepnang staying in the rotation just because we really only have two playable true Centers (no disrespect to Potter, but I don’t think he is an SEC caliber big man). I could see Morton falling out of the rotation by the postseason, just to tighten up the rotation and give some of the wings some more run.

[Catsrock]

Best thing about potentially filling the 15th spot may just turn out to be we could actually survive an injury or 2 without drop off.

[bucsrule8872]

Best thing about potentially filling the 15th spot may just turn out to be we could actually survive an injury or 2 without drop off.

Depends on who gets injured.

Lose Diallo, we still have Wilkins. Or vice versa. Still have a good backup guard with Morton. Mason Williams can step up and we could still be strong at guard.

Lose Kam Williams or McBride or N’Diaye, I think we can manage that and be okay. Hawthorne would need to step up.

Lose Momcilovic, that’s a little harder to handle. He’s a little harder to replace. Still, we have some possibilities at forward.

But an injury to Moreno would be devastating, IMHO. Kepnang is a solid backup. Cannot see us making a run at the SEC title or a deep run in the tourney with Kepnang as our starting five man. We would probably have to go small and hope N’Diaye can handle playing as a small ball 5.

The depth helps, but no amount of depth can make you injury proof. Lose a starter and it hurts. Lose your best player, and your chances at a deep run is pretty much over. For us, losing our starting Center would be almost impossible to overcome.

At least that is how I see it.

[bucsrule8872]

Starting to sound like we aren’t going to get him.

[Pobilly]

Starting to sound like we aren’t going to get him.

I saw this:
After originally placing a Crystal Ball prediction in Kentucky’s favor, Travis Branham has pulled it back, saying the recruitment isn’t as clear-cut as initially believed. Branham noted that other programs remain serious contenders and that early information may have overstated Kentucky’s position.
The recruitment is still very much open, and it sounds like this one may have a few more twists before a final decision is made

Does not sound like we do not get him or we do get him. Just that the process is still far from pick time. Have you heard something else?

[UKHoops01]

I think we go 10 deep for most of the season, with the best five getting big minutes.

Who will be the best five and second five will be discussed and debated all summer, but what else do we have to do right now?

Momcilovic is a 30 minute guy, for sure. He’s not coming off the floor very much. He stretches the defense and will make everyone else much better because of his gravity. He’ll play the 3 and 4 depending on who is playing beside him.

Moreno is going to be a 25-30 minute guy at Center. If he stays out of foul trouble and he doesn’t have stamina issues, I think he is going to play as much as possible. Kepnang will only see 10-12 minutes a game most likely, especially if Moreno can stay out of foul trouble. I also could see N’Diaye getting some run at the 5 early in the season. Kepnang will need to be on a minute restriction due to his injury history.

Diallo and Wilkins should be 25-30 minute guys in the backcourt. Morton as the backup PG. Kam and/or Kusturica probably get the backup minutes at the 2. I see that as our backcourt rotation. I’m leaning more towards Kam at the 2. Probably the better defender at that spot.

So the biggest question is probably the forward spot beside Momcilovic. K Will, Kusturica (maybe), McBride, N’Diaye, and even Hawthorne are possibilities.

In the end, my 10-man rotation(with Kusturica):

Momcilovic
Diallo
Wilkins
Moreno
Kusturica
K. Williams
McBride
N’Diaye
Kepnang
Morton

Something like this for minutes:


PG Diallo(27)/Morton(10)/Wilkins(3)
SG Wilkins(22)/K. Williams(18)
SF Kusturica(20)/Momcilovic(20)
PF Momcilovic(10)/McBride(16)/N’Diaye(14)
C Moreno(27)/Kepnang(11)/N’Diaye(2)

If Kusturica doesn’t come here or takes some time to develop (wouldn’t surprise me, I am not big on international guys), then Kam would have a bigger role.

No Kusturica, then Hawthorne slides into the rotation.

And by the end of the season, I think the rotation will work down to 9 and maybe 8. Likely 9, I see Kepnang staying in the rotation just because we really only have two playable true Centers (no disrespect to Potter, but I don’t think he is an SEC caliber big man). I could see Morton falling out of the rotation by the postseason, just to tighten up the rotation and give some of the wings some more run.

I know YouTube highlights are far from being the final authority on much of anything..... and you're at the mercy of whoever put them together.....but from what I saw, you're MUCH higher on him than I am. MUCH! Not only do I not see him starting, I'd be kind of surprised to see him getting heavy minutes in the rotation. He doesn't look as ready for SEC action as Braydon Hawthorne did last year, and Hawthorne redshirted. He needs to put on weight (super skinny) and he hasn't played against SEC caliber competition. I know shot form doesn't mean much, because a lot of players who are dead eye shooters have funky looking shots....but most European players usually have decent form, but his falls into the funky category.

I don't think he winds up at UK, and even if he does I don't see him starting over Kam Williams, and I'm not even sure he'd see more (or as many) minutes as Braydon Hawthorne. Just my opinion...but I'm usually right on these (not always, but the track record is good).

[bucsrule8872]

I know YouTube highlights are far from being the final authority on much of anything..... and you're at the mercy of whoever put them together.....but from what I saw, you're MUCH higher on him than I am. MUCH! Not only do I not see him starting, I'd be kind of surprised to see him getting heavy minutes in the rotation. He doesn't look as ready for SEC action as Braydon Hawthorne did last year, and Hawthorne redshirted. He needs to put on weight (super skinny) and he hasn't played against SEC caliber competition. I know shot form doesn't mean much, because a lot of players who are dead eye shooters have funky looking shots....but most European players usually have decent form, but his falls into the funky category.

I don't think he winds up at UK, and even if he does I don't see him starting over Kam Williams, and I'm not even sure he'd see more (or as many) minutes as Braydon Hawthorne. Just my opinion...but I'm usually right on these (not always, but the track record is good).

I haven’t really watched much of his clips, and if you read my posts I premised them with the fact that opinions are all over the place on this kid.

My rotation/minutes prediction is based on the idea that he might be good. We were discussing how to divide minutes among this deep of a bench. Assuming he is good was part of the discussion.

I also noted how Kam and Hawthorne could be in line for more minutes if he isn’t that good.

[UKHoops01]

I haven’t really watched much of his clips, and if you read my posts I premised them with the fact that opinions are all over the place on this kid.

My rotation/minutes prediction is based on the idea that he might be good. We were discussing how to divide minutes among this deep of a bench. Assuming he is good was part of the discussion.

I also noted how Kam and Hawthorne could be in line for more minutes if he isn’t that good.

I understand. It's a crap shoot. A roll of the dice. I was shocked to see you that high on him because I thought it was you that wasn't real high on European players, but I may be confusing you with somebody else.

Anyway, opinions can change, and sometimes we're wrong....but from what little I saw of this kid it didn't do much to get me excited about the possibility of adding him to the roster this year. I actually thought all the buzz was about him being a 2027 recruit, in which case you'd hope he'd develop a little more and fill out a lot more. But if he's a 2026 add to the current roster then he'll be a hard pass for me and I won't feel bad if we miss on him.

[bucsrule8872]

I understand. It's a crap shoot. A roll of the dice. I was shocked to see you that high on him because I thought it was you that wasn't real high on European players, but I may be confusing you with somebody else.

Anyway, opinions can change, and sometimes we're wrong....but from what little I saw of this kid it didn't do much to get me excited about the possibility of adding him to the roster this year. I actually thought all the buzz was about him being a 2027 recruit, in which case you'd hope he'd develop a little more and fill out a lot more. But if he's a 2026 add to the current roster then he'll be a hard pass for me and I won't feel bad if we miss on him.

No you are right, I am not high on international guys.

I was just discussing how the minutes might break down if this guy is starter good, because someone else was saying how it would be interesting to see how minutes would work out with such a deep (on paper) roster.

I don’t expect him to be a star, though, my guess is that Kam starts at the forward spot beside Momcilovic and that Kusturica is a backup 2/3. And I wouldn’t be surprised if Hawthorne beats him out for minutes. Same with N’Diaye.

Based on our track record with international guys, I kind of half expect a Kam, Mom, McBride, and Hawthorne rotation at the 3 and 4. Pope is going to try to get these international kids going though. Just like he did with Jelavic.

But there are quite a few talking heads out there that think this kid is a difference maker. They think he is going to be an impact guy. Heck one of the Sleepers Media guys thinks he will be our second best player behind Momcilovic.

I doubt he is that good. I’m expecting him to be a role player next season. He’s too young and needs to get his body ready for the SEC.

[samsdad]

All of this speculation and discussion reminds me of last summer after the Ferrari talk.

[Pobilly]

Everything I am reading today says UK is in a good spot with Nikola. Said that the team he is on now is making a hard push and that a few teams are trying to get involved or back involved. But that UK is in a good spot with the guy.