One of my favorite pastimes is to take a look at what the future holds for the UK roster. In the past, I would hold my breath and hope for the 79th ranked player in the country to pick us on signing day. That isn't the case any more. The prospect of losing three studs like Patterson, Wall and Cousins isn't a source of great concern, only an excuse to look at who is going to take their place. These Cats are going to reload, not rebuild. I thought I would take a minute to look at what a reloaded lineup might look like. Here are the likely returning players come 2010-2011.
Orton
Harrelson
Miller
Liggins
Dodson
Hood
Bledsoe
Stacey Poole
This group will still offer us the versatility that might be our biggest strength for the upcoming season, and also gives Cal versatility in what he can add to the group in the way of recruits. None of these returning players are really going to scare away a top 25 talent, but are likely good enough to hold onto minutes of their own. We can take on any combination of players with different skill sets and fit them into this system comfortably with our returning players. It seems likely that we will add at least one player that can handle some Point Guard duties. This could come in the way of top ranked Point Guard Brandon Knight, or from two highly ranked combo guard players Josh Selby and Doron Lamb. There are plenty of minutes for at least one of these players, and I would be very surprised if one of them didn't end up in Lexington next season.
We also will need help in the front court. We are in the mix on several players that can fill this void including Center Adrian Payne and Forwards Tobias Harris, Terrell Jones, and CJ Leslie. We have minutes available for all of these guys, but we will have stiff competeition. It still seems very likely we will get one or more from this group.
I think we would like to add four or five players in this class, and these 7 guys will likely make up most of our recruiting efforts for the 2010 class. You aren't going to see Calipari panic and sign a 3 star player to fill out a class. If we strike out on these guys we will either add a juco guy, or just save the scholly's for a loaded 2011 class. We seem to be within striking distance on all of these guys, and the combination of available playing time and the best recruiter in college basketball make it seem like a no brainer that we will have another loaded class. It is still too early to tell which of these players will commit to the Big Blue, but whoever we end up with are going to be players that offer us a lot of talent and versatility. What do you think? Talk about who you think will be UK's top ten players on the 2010-2011 roster in the comment's section below.
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Just looking at Bledsoe, Miller, Orton, Hood, Poole and Liggins they'll have more than enough talent to be dangerous. Still I am like you, I think it's safe to say that Cal will add some more blue chips to next year's class to add to this list.
ReplyDeleteOn further review, the line up could be:
ReplyDeleteG-Bledsoe
G-Dodson
F-Miller
F-Harrellson
C-Orton
Bench: Poole, Hood, Liggins,
Still good enough for a Top 25 spot. However, you add some of those guys you mentioned and the lineup would look totally different.
I thought Coach Cal was brought to UK to be better than top 25. Now people are saying UK top 25, what is with that? Coach Cal also says, "UK is the Commonwealth's Team" but he has yet to recruit a Kentucky High School player. As a matter of fact he is being out-recurited in state by non other than Coach Pitino. Anyone with any answers??
ReplyDeleteRome wasn't built in a day.
ReplyDeleteCal isn't going to lose many in state recruiting battles to Ricky P. He'll be too busy in the bathroom stalls of Italian restaurants.
Cal will recruit the best of the best. Sometimes that will be from Kentucky but most of the time, it won't.
Get over it.
we missed out on a preferred walk-on unless there is a stud Kentucky boy that we missed out on that I am unaware of. Calipari doesn't want Walk-Ons ,he would rather spend his valuable time dealing with players that are going to help us on the court. With all of the things he has done right up to this point, you have to look pretty hard to find something to complain about. I could see an argument that could be made for complaining about Tubby recruiting somebody like Mike Porter when there were better players in our backyard.
ReplyDeleteI don't see how anybody can complain with what is going on with our recruiting. Pitino is still one of the best in the business and will field competitive teams. As far as Mr. Anonymous saying Top 25 isn't the standard, you are correct. JLEE said that what we will likely be returning, without the addition of new recruits, a top 25 squad. Once we add a couple more top notch recruits we will likely be top ten or better.
Pitino? What? Give me a break, he's done. Period, he'll never go to another Final Four at Louisville.
ReplyDeleteAnd Austin is right, Jlee said that even without any additions to the line up Kentucky would be Top 25 with what they already have coming back.
Speaking of the Top 25, where is Louisville at in this year's poll?
In state recruiting battles? Who are the last two studs to come out of Kentucky?
ReplyDeleteHmmm, Darius Miller and Jon Hood. I think UK is doing just fine with in state talent.
Also, UK will be Top 10 again next year once Cal gets his class lined out. My point was that we would be a Top 25 team even without them.
I can't really see Pitino around too terribly long either, but he will remain relevant until he decides to hang up his sweaty ALL-White tailored suit. I could see him hand over the reigns to Ralph Willard in a move similar to Lute Olsen, or there could be an incident in a Ruby Tuesday bathroom on the horizon. Anything is in play with Pitino at this point.
ReplyDeleteMy intention was to find out what your realistic roster would look like for next season and how you would rank those players. Here are mine
1. Brandon Knight
2. Eric Bledsoe
3. Daniel Orton
4. Darius Miller
5. Tobias Harris
6. CJ Leslie
7. Deandre Liggins
8. Stacey Poole
9. John Hood
10. Darnell Dodson
11. Josh HArrelson
If we could convince Doron Lamb or Josh Selby to join this group then even better, but I would take my chances with these guys. We would definitely still have a need for either guy, but I know that you can't get them all. I can't see us carrying 13 scholarship players next season. Calipari is good, but I don't think he is good enough to convince 6 top 25 players in this class. I wouldn't mind being proved wrong though.
WOW! I didn't know that Coach Cal recurited Miller and Hood, I thought the previous coach did (HMMM on that). And since when did incoming freshmen make a team jump so much in the rankings? And as for the walk-ons, just go back in our storied history and on every UK NCAA Championip Team and Final Four Team we have had walk-on players, oh and most of them were from the GREAT COMMONWEALTH of KENTUCKY! You can't measure the heart and desire in the Kentucky kids that walk-on at UK when they have full ride scolarship offers from other D-1 schools.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHow about this year for starters? When you have "one and done" freshman they can make a Top 25 team a Top 10 team.
ReplyDeleteYes Gillispie recruited Miller, but do you not think Miller would of chose to play for Cal? Honestly, get real dude.
As for Hood, Cal let him stay, period. Cal didn't recruit him, but he is very much why he is still in Lexington.
Dued, with one and done you can't build a quality long term program. Never worked anywhere else and will not work at UK. How many championships has Calapari won doing this? As for letting Hood stay, the young man signed a formal letter of intent with the University of Kentucky not the university of Calapari. This is a "contract" and cannot be broken just because either of the parties wants to, it must be a mutual agreement. That is why the university must give the player a release.
ReplyDeleteIf Cal didn't want Hood he wouldn't be at UK.
ReplyDeleteWe are going to have a mixture of one and done players alongside very good 2-4 year players. You can win a title with a one and done guy being your go to guy. Ask Carmelo Anthony. The only reasonable complaint I can see is that calipari might operate on the fringes of NCAA rules. Everything else seems like nitpicking to me.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous must be pat forde. Thanks for checking out the site pat.
ReplyDeleteNope, not Pat Forde just not one of to be quite about something I feel should be mentioned and defended if necessary. Time will tell about how successful Coach Cal will be at UK, but I for one think that if he does't win an NCAA Championship, at UK within his first four years, then he will have been "overated". Now he might accomplish this without carrying any Kentucky favorite high scool walk-ons, however no coach in UK history has done this.
ReplyDeleteAnd when the Justice kid, from Shelby Valley, wins the MR. Basketball of Kentucky Basketball title, this season, and walks-on at Louisville without even being looked at by UK, I want to see what everyones reaction will be. Coach Smith let Chris Lofton get away and now Coach Calapari has let one beter than Lofton fall through his hands. Time will tell.
Why not put your name for us to see? Gee whiz... what are you, 12 years old?
ReplyDeleteI find it highly amusing that people want to "mention and defend" certain topics but won't put there name to it? How can you possibly think you will have any credibility when you don't even have the balls to man up and say who you are? Anyway, as to your comment about Hood had to stay at Kentucky because he signed a letter of intent.... that would generally be true but I have to agree with JLEE on this one because if Cal had wanted Hood out of Kentucky he would not be playing there.
ReplyDeleteIf you followed the Coach Cal saga from the beginning you would have realized that under certain circumstances a player can get out of their letter of intent. For Example, Cousins who got out of his contract with Memphis to follow Cal to the Commonwealth just on the basis of a coaching change that he could not have foreseen when originally signing his letter. So if Hood had not wanted to play for Cal, or if Cal had not wanted Hood, he could have changed his letter of intent based on the same circumstances Cousins used and he could have played somewhere else.
I don't see the big deal on the name thing personally. People that have online handles are still pretty much anonymous. I'd like for users to go ahead and create a free account so we can know more about our posters though..
ReplyDeleteWhat about the original question I posed? What do you realistically think/hope our roster looks like and how would you rank those players?
Matt, I am glad you are amused. That was my intent all along.
ReplyDeleteAs for the letter of intent, I can tell you do not understand the full implications of this document. Read up on the rules that apply to this then get back on here when you are informed about it. In brief, a "LOI" is a contract and cannot be broken by one side. The other side must agree or there is a dispute that must be decided by a third party. Case in point is when Coach Pitino left UK and some incoming recurits wanted out of their respective "LOI". C.M. Newton, then atheletic director, said that these recurits signed the"LOI" with the University of Kentucky not the university of Pitino. They did not get their release but transfered the next season and sat out a year and became eligable players, once again, after that.
And to 'Gomez' (about) the 12 yrs. old comment, "why are you concerned, looking for a date or something".
when the whole pitino thing happened i was 7 years old so i have no clue what went on with that whole deal. I do realize that cousins got out of his LOI when Cal left memphis and if Cal wanted Hood out do you really think the Barnhart would have stopped him after just payin him almost 4 million a year? doubt it... so my point stands that if Cal really didnt want Hood do you think that a) Hood would have stayed anyway if he thought Cal didnt like him and wouldnt let him play? and b) do you really think UK would have forced the players to stay like you say they did with Pitino? cuz i seriously doubt it so i think it is completely reasonable to say that when Cal came to UK any players he wanted gone would have been gone...
ReplyDeleteSo i will stick to my opinion on this matter and not waste countless hours reading up on boring LOI rules cuz i can think of many better things to do with my time but thanks anyway
Matt, I understand your opinion and like you said will not talk about it further. It was very interesting when the LOI stuff was going on (back when) with Ryan Hogan, Mike Bradley, and Myron Anthony. C.M. Newton refused to give them their release and they stayed for the '98 season. However, even after winning the NCAA Championship all three transfered, lost a year of eligability, and finished their careers elsewhere.
ReplyDelete