Bye week for Kentucky football gives us a chance to start thinking about that other sport in Lexington. Wait, what’s that? Some people never stopped thinking about it? Fair enough. In case you’ve been focused on the gridiron, here are ten things to know about Calipari’s UK basketball squad, which is No. 2 in the country and opens its season Tuesday, Nov. 5 against No. 1 Michigan State.
1. They’re talented
It goes more or less without saying, but after adding 247sports.com’s No. 2-ranked recruiting class in the nation to an unusually deep returning group (guards Ashton Hagans and Immanuel Quickley, big men E.J. Montgomery and Nick Richards), Kentucky again finds itself as one of the most talented teams in college basketball.
2. There’s not much depth in the frontcourt
The most immediate weakness of this UK team (other than experience) is a lack of frontcourt size. Montgomery (6-10) and Richards (6-11) are joined by tweener grad-transfer Nate Sestina (6-9), but that’s about it. In fact the lack of depth was so severe …
3. … They added a baseball player
Calipari’s need for size caused him to take a late walk-on in UK baseball player Nick Jordan. Jordan is a 6-9 pitcher who will add some depth at power forward for the Wildcats, at least in practice, where he’s another big body to bang against Montgomery and Richards.
4. Remember those guards who couldn’t shoot?
Last year, defending Kentucky called for opponents to sag off point guard Hagans, who was tough in the paint but no threat otherwise. Meanwhile, freshman Quickley struggled to score anywhere. Suffice it to say that both guards are showing improved perimeter skills. In UK’s Blue-White exhibition and the Wildcats’ first exhibition game, Hagans has gone 5-for-12 from 3-point range (he made 14 3s all last season) and Quickley was 5-for-10 from deep and was high scorer of the first exhibition game.
5. An under-the-radar freshman might surprise
Despite signing highly regarded recruiting classes, Calipari usually hides a lower-ranked recruit (sometimes a mere 4-star) who explodes as a freshman. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, for instance, was just such a player. Watch for wing Keion Brooks, who had 20 points and 11 rebounds in the Blue-White game, and then played a team-high 26 minutes in the first exhibition. Calipari loves his defense and athleticism.
6. Injuries can always matter
Richards, the junior center, injured his ankle in the exhibition opener against Georgetown College. Richards, who had 6 points and 5 rebounds in 14 minutes, was on his way to an excellent game, and if he is out for any length of time, his absence could hurt Kentucky early, particularly because …
7. UK hasn’t started out well on the backboard
Kentucky won its exhibition opener comfortably, 80-53, but was outrebounded by NAIA foe Georgetown College 45-39. With Michigan State lurking around the corner, giving up 16 offensive rebounds to an NAIA team isn’t what Calipari had in mind.
8. Senior transfer Sestina might be key
Last year, senior forward Reid Travis was a contributor but never really showed the athleticism to have a significant impact on Kentucky’s season. This year’s graduate transfer, Nate Sestina, is a different matter. Sestina, who transferred from Bucknell (15.8 PPG and 8.5 RPG last year), is not a next-level athlete. But he is a smooth shooter and a strong enough inside player to create matchup difficulties in high screen and roll sets with Hagans, Quickley or freshman guard Maxey.
9. 3-point threats abound
Coming off a season when Kentucky had only a couple of consistent 3-point bombers (only 2 players averaged more than 1 3 per game), UK has definitely added shooting depth. Freshman Johnny Juzang is as good a shooter as will be found in college basketball. Transfer Sestina and freshman Maxey both look solid, and with the improved shooting from Hagans and Quickley, Kentucky will have half a dozen or so legitimate long-range threats.
10. For once, the Calipari-to-NBA rumor mill is quiet
Signing a “lifetime” contract could have something to do with it, but for the first time in recent memory, there are no burgeoning rumors swirling around Calipari’s potential move to the NBA.
Yes, son Brad did transfer to Detroit-Mercy, but between the new contract, a renewed focus on the recruiting trail, and a lack of any NBA buzz, it sounds like Calipari will be in Lexington for quite a while.
Joe Cox is a columnist for Saturday Down South. He has also written or assisted in writing five books, and his most recent, Almost Perfect (a study of baseball pitchers’ near-miss attempts at perfect games), is available on Amazon or at many local bookstores.
