Hold the phones...

According to the Seattle Times, Jones received a phone call from Coach Cal and looked visibly disappointed after the press conference earlier this evening. What is even more interesting is that Jones did not sign a LOI at the presser today like it was originally reported.

This could be much ado about nothing, but does this mean there's still a small chance UK is still in play?

Jones to Washington. . .

Crap. . .

Terrance Jones officially chose the University of Washington just moments ago. Coming off the heels of Leslie's decision and this one hurts. We just haven't had major snubs like these in the last year and considering we are in desperate need for the skill set that Jones and CJ possess and it hurts even more.

Oh well, I am sure Cal and the team are working on plan B (Thorton) and we'll be on top of it as always. In the meantime, we're going to lick our wounds.

It's almost time kiddies. . .

In just a few moments we will know where Jones is heading.

Maggard just said he believes it to be a two horse race between Kentucky and Washington. Goodman on Fox said he believes it'll end up being Kentucky. Factoring in that Evan Daniels reported that Ross said they won't play for the same school and it could all add up to a good "Derby Eve" in Kentucky. In twenty minutes, we'll know the answer and you can follow it live here.

Either way, we'll survive and live to play another day. In the end, Cal is in charge and that's enough to make me confident no matter what goes down here in a few minutes.

We'll be along later tonight to discuss, win or lose, so stay tuned...

Jones decides today...

Terrence Jones will announce his decision today at 5:30 PM CST. If you're going to try to get sneaky and get a pulse on his final destination a little early, well, good luck. We've been trying all week, and we've come up empty. If anyone knows, they ain't talking, so we have no idea what Jones will announce later today. We hope Kentucky, but we wouldn't be surprised if he stays closer to home out west somewhere. We'll have more later on what he says after he says it, so stay tuned; and in the meantime, enjoy this video...

Cal to introduce JV team?

Gomez here...

So yeah, Cal is considering a JV team at UK and that's apparently what he was talking about with Larry Brown earlier in the week. (And not a fantastical match up with an NBA team. I told Michael that was too good to be true!)

Apparently, Cal is hoping to give more hometown heroes a chance to suit up in the blue and the white and to experience the thrill of playing for Kentucky. I guess it could sorta work like a farm team too, meaning if someone just plays amazingly well, he could earn the opportunity to move up to the varsity level after everyone leaves for the NBA every April. (I kid, I kid)

Anyway, you might have heard about that already, but I just read some articles about it today, and thought I'd share. It'll be interesting to see if it pans out. I'm guessing not, but I've been wrong before.

Rivals Comes Out With Final 2010 Rankings

For those that follow recruiting, arguably the best site in the business for evaluating players came out with its final rankings for this recruiting period. Rivals new rankings were somewhat of a mixed bag for the Cats. Enes Kanter debuted as the #3 prospect in the class, but former #1 and UK commitment Brandon Knight slipped down to #6. #6 Cal? Really? That is the best you can do.. Going to be a long year in Lexington...

All joking aside, the rankings just confirm what we already knew. We have some very good players coming to play for our team next year. Doron Lamb came in at #21, and Stacey Poole at #33. You have to feel good when your least heralded recruit, and someone everyone forgets about, Stacey Poole is that highly regarded by scouts. Here is the complete breakdown, so go check it out. Rankings

Drake and the Cats...

Thursday Morning Quick Clicks

Here are a few quick stories you CATS fans may find interesting...

• Larry Vaught says UK sources think Jones is a UK lean.
  He will make his decision final tomorrow.
  
• This interview with Brandon Knight was posted a couple of weeks ago but if you haven't read it yet, then check it out to see what a classy young player we are getting next season.
  
• This is completely premature but NBADraft.net already has the 2011 Mock Draft posted and the Cats have 2 of the top 4 projected players in Knight and Kanter.
  
• Ed Ziti at NBADraft.net discusses Eric Bledsoe's next level potential among other things.

Let's hope Larry is right about Jones, we could be in for another magical year if he joins the party in Lexington. We will know for sure by tomorrow, and when we know, you'll know. You know?

GO BIG BLUE!!!

Join the barnstorming tour...

First two Barnstorming Games announced, more to follow...

THURSDAY, APRIL 29
Location: Newport High School (Newport, Ky.)

Benefit for Mark Krebs' mother, who is fighting cancer

Time: 7 p.m.

Cost: $5
Players: Mark Krebs, Patrick Patterson, Ramon Harris, Perry Stevenson, Ramel Bradley (tentatively)


THURSDAY, MAY 6
Location: Brian Taylor Sports Arena; Tell City, Ind.
Time: 7:30 p.m. (eastern); 6:30 (central) Doors open 1 hour prior
Cost: $8 general admission

$6 kids age 3-13
Players: TBA

CJ Leslie to NCST

Multiple sources are now saying that Leslie will soon commit to NCST. No formal announcement has been made yet, but it appears imminent. This is a big blow to Cal and the team next year, but it's not an unexpected one. Our sources told us that CJ was NCST bound two weeks ago. They also said Jones is 50-50, which means we all better keep our fingers crossed the next few days. The "Jones to Washington" rumors are in high gear; so the "Doomsday" scenario that we said could happen, is looking more likely every day.

Now, we aren't saying be worried, but we all should have our expectations toned down a bit for next year's team. It's an unfair and unrealistic expectation to believe Cal could do what he did last year every season. We shouldn't waste a way next year, but it's now clear that 2011-12 is the year that we are building towards.

More later when official news breaks...

Hump Day Clickables

Michael and Gomez are outside on this beautiful day acting out an epic scene from Star Wars, so I thought I would give you good folks some quick clickables to get you through this slow news day.

First up is a post about how Big Ten expansion will affect the college basketball landscape by Eamonn Brennan.

Also, many people are reacting to the move to bring the NCAA tourney field up to 68 instead of 96. Check out these articles for reactions by Dana O' Neil, Joe "Mr. Bracketology" Lunardi, various coaches, and a couple of players as well.

That's all I have for now; check back later for more news and views from BBNR. GO BIG BLUE!!!

And the winner is...

Jarrod Polson, who will follow in the footsteps of former in-state walk-on players such as Mark Heissanbuttle, Cameron Mills, and Mark Krebbs.

"It's been a lifelong dream..." remarked Polson's father Greg, when asked what he thought about his son becoming a member of the Wildcats roster.

Polson, despite being a non-scholarship player, sees an opportunity for himself. "(Kentucky coach John Calipari) said everyone gets an equal chance to play, so I'm just going to work hard and see if I can," Polson said.

While it remains to be seen if Jarrod will be able to make it onto the floor for many minutes, this is a great pickup for the 'Cats... not just because of the fact they got a talented winner onto the team, but because if there's anything UK fans love, it's a homegrown player.

Bledsoe Staying in the Draft

According to NBAdraft.net, Bledsoe has decided to hire an agent and stay in the NBA draft. Here is the article. Interesting read on a slow news day. Best of luck to Eric on the next level.

***Update*** UK has come out and denied this report from NBAdraft.net, and says he will make his decision May 8 at the deadline. Smart money says he is going to stay in the draft, but it appears to not be official just yet.

Early Entry Draft Grades

Eamonn Brennan over at ESPN (we love this guy, if you haven't noticed) is grading the guys leaving college early this year from A+ (DUH) to F (DUMB.) There are a few mentions of the boys in blue, so check out this article for some insight on this year's draft class.

GO BIG BLUE!!!

Wildcats vs. Bobcats?

Gomez here...

The rumor mill is churning right now that Coach Cal and Larry Brown could be cooking up the most epic exhibition extravaganza since Rocky Balboa took on Thunder Lips (The Ultimate Male) for charity way back in fictional 1983.

Again, its only a rumor, but there seems to be some serious speculation by many that Cal and Brown are trying to organize a Wildcats vs. Charlotte Bobcats match-up as one of Kentucky's exhibition games this November.

If you're a close follower of Cal's tweets, you'd know that he's been sending out some cryptic hints at what the two are cooking up, and so far, this rumor is the only thing that's gained any traction from it. Of course, it could be way off like Lloyd Christmas trying to remember the name Swanson, but its fun to think about nonetheless.

More later...

What if?

Eamonn Brennan of ESPN.com has posed some good "What if?" questions on his blog, many of which are related to UK in one way or another.

It's a good read, so here this clickable link for those too lazy to go find it for yourself. Just joking, so relax, dude, and enjoy the article.

More later...

The Undrafted...

Are you curious what the status is of undrafted players from Kentucky (or other schools of interest)? If so, here's a list of the undrafted free agents and its updated on a regular basis. You'll notice a few players from UK on the list, as well as other players from the SEC and OVC that you might recognize.

It's just something to look at on an otherwise slow day.

Man, it's going to be a long time until September.

Leslie and Jones still in limbo...

We're still waiting on word from CJ Leslie and Terrence Jones this week as to where they'll be attending school in the fall. After Terrence Ross announced his intentions to attend the University of Washington, it might seem that Jones would follow him to the Huskies. It's long been rumored that the two kids have a desire to play together in college, and both have liked Washington for a long time. He's scheduled to make his announcement on Friday.

Meanwhile, the recruitment of CJ Leslie has been interesting. Not long ago, he was considered a lock for NC State, but since then, Kentucky has rallied. However, over the weekend, Leslie went ahead and visited UConn and apparently had a good visit. So, where he'll eventually end up out of those three schools is anyone's guess. We can probably expect an announcement later in the week as both the spring recruiting period and the school year begin to wind down.

Kentucky really needs one of these guys, so keep your fingers crossed that Cal will land one. If he does, Kentucky will have the #1 recruiting class for the second year in a row, which is pretty awesome.

Stay tuned.

Lamb officially signs with UK...

Doron Lamb has signed a National Letter of Intent to play basketball at the University of Kentucky, head coach John Calipari announced on Friday.

A senior at Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Va., Lamb ranks 29th on ESPNU’s Top 100, 21st overall by Rivals.com and is rated the No. 3 shooting guard by Scout.com recruiting services.

“Doron is a terrific guard from New York and Oak Hill who will come in and contribute right away,” Calipari said. “With the Dribble Drive Motion and the way we play, his ability to score and his mid-range game will flourish. I think he’s going to be a great defender and a great addition for us at Kentucky.”

The 6-foot-4 Lamb, who hails from Laurelton, N.Y., spent his last two years at Oak Hill where he averaged 23.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg and 4.0 apg this past season. The 2010 McDonald’s All-American tallied 12 points in the McDonald’s All-American game, helping lead the West team to a 107-104 victory.

Lamb also participated in the 2010 Jordan Brand Classic All-American game along with future UK teammate Brandon Knight. He finished with 11 points in helping lead the West to a 129-125 win.

Lamb joins Enes Kanter, Knight and Stacey Poole Jr. in UK’s 2010 signing class.

Joker talks about the spring game...

Cats in the NFL draft...

Corey Peters was picked in the 3rd round as the #89 pick to the Atlanta Falcons. Meanwhile, Kentucky’s Trevard Lindley was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles with the seventh pick of the fourth round of the NFL draft, which was good for #105 overall. Conner was selected by the Jets with the 8th pick of the 5th round, which was pick #139 overall.

Congrats to all three of these awesome football players. Make us proud, boys!

Patterson to enter draft...

Gomez here...

No big shocker today when Patrick Patterson officially announced his decision to enter the NBA draft. He indicated that he had to weigh his options and in the end, right now was the right time to go.

Patrick has been a class act since his first day on campus, and he'll be missed. We wish him nothing but the best in his professional career.

More later.

Patterson Presser Live...

Watch live streaming video from cjsports at livestream.com

Friday News and Views...

Gomez here...

I took yesterday off, and I know you missed me, but never fear, I'm back with more of the good stuff. So let's good started.

:: Yesterday, Marquis Teague picked Kentucky over Louisville. In what was either a little mischief or a terrible oversight, Teague walked into the press conference wearing a red shirt, but when it was finally time for the reveal, donned the blue UK cap and put the endless speculation to rest. Rick Pitino has to be devastated by this, which makes me happy. Here's a pretty good article that summarizes everything nicely.

:: Meanwhile, it seems will have to wait another week to know what Terrence Jones is going to do. He let everyone know with a simple announcement that says "the 30th it is..." on his Twitter page. The schools on his final list are Kentucky, UCLA, Oregon, Washington, Kansas and Oklahoma. There is some speculation that Ross will announce next Friday, as well. I'm sure will have plenty of updates throughout the week, so stay tuned for the latest.

:: Later today, we'll be able to officially say goodbye to Patrick Patterson. While there has been some hope by die hard Kentucky fans that he'll decide to return for his senior season, everyone that we've been able to talk to says that Patrick will most likely announce his decision to officially enter the draft. While I would have loved to have seen Patrick at UK for one more season, this is most likely the best decision for him and his family. He has little to gain by coming back, especially since he's going to graduate with his degree this semester, and a whole lot to lose with a potential lock out looming in the NBA's future. We love Patrick and certainly wish him the best.

:: Tomorrow at 12 noon (CST), the UK football team will have their annual spring Blue-White game at Commonweath. For anyone in the Lexington area, this is a great opportunity to support our state's football team, and to get a sneak peek at Joker's Operation Win. It should be a fun day, and we'll have an update tomorrow night on the game and what we learned by watching it.

I guess that's all for now. We'll have more later.

It's official: Teague will be a Wildcat

As usual, no big surprise today when Marquis Teague selected Kentucky as his choice of destination next season, since his choice had been leaked hours in advance. He picked UK over Louisville, which is awesome.

More later.

CBS/Turner get NCAA Tourney rights...

Rumor has it that the NCAA has agreed to a 14-year contract with CBS and Turner Sports for the television rights for an expanded NCAA men's basketball tournament that will begin in 2011, USA Today reported Thursday. The cost is about $80 million per season. A press conference is scheduled for this afternoon.

The field will expand to 68 teams next season, and not the originally expected 96 team field, which is good news.

We'll have more on the specifics later.

Teague will be a Cat...we think

All signs are pointing to the reality that the Cats are about to pick up the #2 recruit overall in the 2011 recruiting class, Marquis Teague.

Tony Wroten Jr. tweeted that Teague was going to Kentucky, which if true, would mean that his choice won out over his father's (Louisville), which is the way it should be. And yes, I'd say that even if the roles were reversed and it was UK losing out.

Still, nothing would surprise me at this point, so we'll just wait a little while longer until we know for sure.

Stay tuned.

Wall is staying in draft...

Teague Update...

It appears that as of right now Teague is going to announce tomorrow that he plans to join Michael Gilchrist and the Kentucky Wildcats. Evan Daniels, TBK, KSR and various others believe that Kentucky may have pulled ahead for good after Marquis met with his family tonight.

I am not ready to go on the record, but I'll say this...my one and only source on the issue is very confident on Teague to UK, and he's never let me down before.

Now, if there has ever been a more up and down recruitment than Teague's, I don't remember it, so there's always a chance of a surprise tomorrow. 12 hours ago most believed he was heading to Louisville, so who knows what the next 12 hours will hold?

Stay tuned folks, tomorrow should be a crazy day...

More from Joker...

Football Links...

If you're anything like me your brain is fried from all of the news and rumors from the basketball recruiting trail. Maybe it's time you took a break and got caught up on the latest from Operation win.

ESPN's Chris Low says the bigger picture for Joker is winning...

Ridge Wilson is starting over, shooting for starting role...

Jeff Drummond takes a look at Day 13 of spring practice...

Cobb and Locke could be enough to get UK to 8 wins...

Larry Vaught explains that Kendrick is still adjusting to TE...

Saying Goodbye...

According to the UK Athletics Twitter feed, John Wall will have a news conference Thursday at 10 a.m. EST and Patrick Patterson will have one Friday at 2:30 p.m. EST.

The "Tweet" didn't post any specifics about the conferences, but one can gather that it will be an opportunity for both players to announce their intentions to stay in the NBA draft and officially say goodbye to Big Blue Nation, similar to the one held by DeMarcus Cousins last week.

We'll be covering both press conferences right here at BBNR.

Quick Leslie update...

According to some NC State insiders, CJ was visited by UCONN last night at his home. It's also believed that Lowe would like to visit with him at least one more time before the contact period ends. These tidbits were posted on the main Rivals message boards before being deleted just a few moments ago, or I would link it for ya. Not sure what this means if it's true, but thought it was interesting enough to pass it along.

Several recruiting analysts believe that Leslie will end up staying at home and playing for NC State, while others believe the lure of Cal will be too much to pass on, especially with the possible influence of John Wall on his recruitment. Leslie to UK has certainly gained some momentum as of late, but I still wouldn't bet against the Wolfpack in this one. As for UCONN, they were never really a player in his recruitment, and I don't see them being a factor this late in the game.

Stay tuned.

Rewind: The Beginning of an Era...

Here's the best "looking back" video of the past season that we've seen so far. Enjoy the beginning of the Calipari Era in Kentucky one more time...

Teague's a toss up...

Today is the last day that coaches can contact players in the spring recruiting period and all eyes are on Marquis Teague. The word on the street is that Coach Calipari will make his last plea to Marquis today, although some (UL fans for the most part) have said that visit has been cancelled. Two weeks ago most believed UK had pulled ahead in the Teague race, but now some of those folks say Slick Rick had somehow regained position for his services. My opinion, no one knows for sure which school he'll choose. Jerry Meyer has said that he believes Marquis wants to go to UK while his Dad obviously prefers he plays for Pitino.

Even Evan Daniels has said this is a toss-up between Kentucky and Louisville, and its hard to predict which school will end up with the kid. Meanwhile, all of this back and forth between the two schools has already added another layer to the already complicated rivalry/relationship between John Calipari and Rick Pitino.

Teague is a great player and will certainly be a huge asset to either school's basketball program. However, is he a "must get" for Calipari? No, he's not. If Cal misses on Teague, he'll simply move on to the next recruit, and in this case, that would be the 7th ranked player in the country, Tony Wroten Jr. I am sure the staff would be disappointed, however Wroten Jr. is not a bad back-up to have waiting in the wings.

In the end, this recruitment comes down to Calipari and Pitino, Kentucky and Louisville. UK and Louisville fans are hoping to land the recruit, so the hype will only build more and more in the overnight hours. But maybe John Clay said it best yesterday when he wrote, "UK wants Teague, UL Needs Him". More specifically, Pitino has to have him or his swan song in Louisville could begin sooner than anyone originally anticipated.

It's going to be an interesting 24 hours, to say the least, with plenty of rumors floating around everywhere. Depending on who you talk to, these rumors could hold either good or bad news for UK. However, we'll have to wait a little while longer before we know for sure.

So, as always, stay tuned...

Coach Cal expecting good news this week?

Here's my thoughts for the day...

I was about to write an article about recruiting and social networking when I noticed that Matt Jones had already made some valid points on the subject today at KSR. It is a serious situation, but I'm not sure how the NCAA can do anything about it. It would take more manpower and time to try sort out who's talking to who, and what violations are actually occurring then what the NCAA is probably willing to offer. And who can blame them? I mean they need all their extra time devoted to screwing up March Madness, while ignoring the problems with the BCS, but I digress. I am too lazy to throw up a link, but you can head over to KSR to read Jones' take on the effects it has on recruiting. I pretty much agreed with what he said.

On the flip side of the coin, one thing that has changed positively for recruiting is that fans now have more access to what's going on then ever before. I remember waiting anxiously for our family's copy of the print version of Cat's Pause to come in the mail so I could get the latest scoop, and then I remember reading Wildcat Lair and other early websites to pick up any recruiting nugget I could too. Now there is a wealth of information out there that anyone that has internet access can receive via Twitter or Facebook, literally seconds after the story breaks. So while Jones is right that social networking has changed recruiting negatively in some regards, the flow of information about recruiting has never been better. I guess we have to take the good with the bad.

Speaking of social networking, one of my favorite sites is Lexy. I don't have time to download a lot of podcasts or read everything online, but I can free up two or three minutes to listen to an "audio blast" from Coach Cal. On the latest cast, Cal says he hopes to hear some good news this week on the recruiting trail. The last time he expected good news, he just happened to lock down two No. 1 recruits in about an hour. I am not going to pretend to know who he is talking about, but he mentions replacing 70 points from last season's team, so I would expect he's talking about finishing out the 2010 class. Terrance Jones? C.J Leslie? Gomez? As Cal said, I guess we'll see soon.

As always, stay tuned right here at BBNR for the latest. We'll have more later.

Notes from the Joker...

Compliments of our man Tom Leach...

Notes from the first edition of the Joker Phillips radio show...

* no set timetable for naming a starter at quarterback; he says the coaches will discuss after spring practice ends whether or not it makes sense to name a starter

*says Chandler Burden would start at left tackle if they played today

*Mark Crawford is making a strong statement with his play at DT

*impressed with redshirt freshman Jordan Aumiller at tight end. Joker says he "can be (our) most complete tight end"

*freshman Alex Smith figures in the mix at tight end this fall, but they would like to see him lose a little weight (currently 262 pounds, says Joker)

*on the talent in Kentucky in the next recruiting class, says "it's as good as it's been since we've been here"

All good stuff from the new head guy at UK.

Tuesday News and Notes...

Gomez here...

Joey Lawrence turns 34 today, and all I can say is... "whoa." From his early days on "Gimme a Break" to his head turning days on NBC's "Blossom", to his most recent stab at relevance, "Dancing with the Stars", Joey Lawrence is like a bad penny... he just keeps turning up. I read a rumor yesterday that he's being considered for the role of Lex Luthor in the next Superman movie, which just sorta' blew my mind. Let's see: Gene Hackman, Kevin Spacey and Joey Lawrence... one of those names is not like the others. Anyway, we wish Joey a happy birthday, nonetheless, and hope he enjoys today's news and notes that have absolutely nothing to do with him whatsoever...

:: Now that Cal has locked up another stellar class for the incoming class and already added an epic center piece (Gilchrist) for 2011, rumor has it that he's now hard at work on 2012. JP Tokoto and Perry Ellis are both highly ranked small forwards that have caught Cal's attention, and seemingly would be perfect fits for his dribble drive offense. Of course, dealing with youngsters that are just now halfway through their high school career is a little tricky. You wouldn't expect these kids to commit too early, but its nice seeing Cal plant the seeds now, and it gives you an idea of how our coach plans ahead.

:: As we mentioned yesterday, Marquis Teague (2011 class) will be announcing his college decision this Thursday, and now we know specifically when. Pike High School said yesterday that Teague will make his announcement at 12:30 pm CST at the Pike Freshman center. While there's a number of schools still on his list, most believe it is down to Kentucky and Louisville, and we'll know for sure on Thursday who wins his services. Teague is the #2 player behind Gilchrist, and locking him down now would more or less guarantee a shot at one of the best classes of all time, especially now that Tony Wroten Jr. might be leaning towards UK, as well. Just keep your fingers crossed.

:: We're still awaiting the press conference for Patrick Patterson this week, and his announcement to forgo his fourth year of eligibility and officially enter the NBA draft. We certainly wish Patrick nothing but the best in his professional career. We'll be watching (and cheering for) him in the years ahead.

:: Meanwhile, we're shaking off this talk about Bledsoe and Orton's NBA stock falling and that they're thinking about returning to school this fall. I'd say there's a very (very) small chance that will happen and UK fans shouldn't really even think about it. Consider it a waste of your time.

Well, that'll wrap it up for now. We'll be back later with more of the good stuff, so stay tuned.

Fortunes, Fortunes, Lucky Charms!

Everyone likes to make predictions and I am no different. In October, my favorite baseball team, the St. Louis Cardinals, will win the World Series. In the fall, Joker will rap up "Operation Win" by leading the Kentucky Football team to an 8 win season. And in 2011 the NCAA Men's National Champion will be the Kentucky Wildcats, and the Connecticut Huskies will take home the women's hardware.

The best thing about this is that I have about 6 months before anyone can tell me I am wrong, and by then none of you will remember I even made these predictions.

You may make one wish to Zoltar for reading this post. Be careful though, you better not wish to be.... "Big."

For the record...

I, Mr. Gomez of The Big Blue Nation Report, will no longer be considered for the head coaching position at the University of Oregon. While I won't lie and say it wasn't somewhat tempting, I prefer to stay in my basement office, complete with both an endless supplies of Cheetos and Diet Mountain Dew, and working on this awesome blog.

Sorry, Mr. Nike. That's my final answer.

Teague to announce on Thursday...

Marquis Teague will announce on Thursday where he will attend school and play his college basketball, and right now, it seems its down to Louisville and Kentucky. Teague is a point guard and is ranked #2 overall in his class.

While some have said Kentucky is in a great position to gain his services, Louisville is still in the lead by a hair. If Cal was somehow able to steal him away, it would be another piece to what is shaping up to be an impressive class for 2011, as he would join the #1 recruit, Michael Gilchrist.

We'll know more in the next few days, as the stories always seem to leak before the official announcement. In the meantime, enjoy this highlight reel...

Monday is here again... yay

Gomez here...

It's Monday, and we're thrilled. Can't you feel our overwhelming excitement?

Most of us are still wiping the weekend out of our eyes and trying to struggle through another day of work or school (or in my case, laziness), but no matter how you cut it, Monday's generally suck. Still we're going to put our best foot forward here and see what we can do with this day.

:: As for true headlines, there ain't much to speak of besides what we've already talked about. To recap on recruiting, everyone is still waiting to see where Jones and Leslie will end up, and to be honest, we have no idea. These two have been all over the place in recent days, and we're not sure what to believe anymore. Someone close to the recruiting world told Michael that there's a good chance Leslie ends up at NC State and that Jones will come to Kentucky, but like we said before, its anybody's guess. For example, UK's latest recruit, Doron Lamb told the Zag Man that he expects both CJ Leslie and Terrence Jones to follow him to UK. Remember, that's his guess... not ours.

:: Florida had a rare, but brief, ray of sunshine this weekend when Rutgers guard Mike Rosario committed Sunday morning to coach Billy Donovan after taking his first official visit since getting released from Rutgers last week. “I’m a Gator. I committed this morning probably around 11:30 or 12," Rosario told reporters. “I signed already.” Congrats to Billy Donovan and thank you for reminding us that even a blind squirrel finds an acorn occasionally.

:: Saturday, April 24 is the deadline to declare for the NBA draft. We probably shouldn't be surprised that Patterson's press conference is coming when it is, and we also shouldn't be surprised when he says he'll be moving on to the NBA as he thanks everyone in Kentucky for three awesome seasons in Lexington.

:: Matt Jones is reporting that the new Louisville arena will be called The KFC Yum! Center, which if true will go down as one of the worst names ever for a new arena of any kind. Just goes to show you that you can't always sale your name to the highest bidder and expect it to work out well.

Guys, that's going to have to do it. I'll try to chime in later with some more stuff.

So stay tuned.

Sunday Links...

Former UNLV player hates on Cal and UK, says season was a failure...
Jerry Tipton wants to know the secret to Cal's recruiting success...
Chip Crosby takes a look at the UK QB competition...
Dave Telep is reporting that Rosario is headed to UF...
ESPN looks at Cal's latest prize recruit...
Mike Anderson to remain at Missouri, says no to Oregon...


More later...

Sunday Recruiting Update...

Well, Doron Lamb made it official last night and picked the Wildcats as his home of choice. It'll be awesome to see him lined up with the other big recruits and our returning players. We excitedly welcome him to the Kentucky fold.

Someone that will not be alongside those players is Josh Selby, who chose Kansas. No big shocker there though. Matter of fact, we've been saying all week that Lamb was heading to Kentucky and that Selby was going to Kansas, so when the announcements were made last night, it was nice, but not surprising at all.

As JLee reported yesterday, Patrick Patterson will announce his final decision in a few days, and the final pieces of next year's roster will begin falling into place. Everything we're hearing from people in the know is that Patrick will announce his intentions to follow his dream of playing professionally and thank the Big Blue Nation for three wonderful years. Of course, as we always say with these rumors, nothing is final until its final, so just hang tight a few more days, and then we'll know for sure whether our sources are right or not.

There's still a lot of scuttlebutt about Jones and some players in the 2011 class, but nothing is sure on those players either, so we're not going to speculate. Just enjoy your Sunday and we'll pop back in with anything you need to know.

Saturday Tidbits...

Today is a big day so let's get some news out of the way so we can get ready for tonight's big game...

:: The NCAA Tournament will remain with CBS (at least partially) according to an ESPN report Friday night. The article claims that the "mother ship" will not raise their current bid. CBS and Turner hold the highest bid which stands at 840 million while ESPN came in at 800 million. The interesting thing is that if this holds true, CBS and TNT will alternate rights to the Final Four annually. Who would have ever thought seeing the Final Four on cable? I guess if it's good for Conan, it can be good for the Big Dance. My how the times are a' changing.

:: Alan Cutler of WLEX reported Friday night that Patterson will hold a press conference to announce his future plans some time next week. While most believe Patrick will leave Lexington for the NBA, Tywanna Patterson told Culter that a decision has not been made. She went on to say that she wouldn't be surprised to see him back at Kentucky next season. It's hard to believe that he will turn down a potential first round pick two years in a row, but I guess stranger things have happened. Either way, we'll know his plans soon.

:: Recruiting rumors continue to heat up as the Jordan Brand All Star Game is just hours away. Doron Lamb and Josh Selby will announce their school of choice at the event and many believe Coach Cal will get another big time commitment. There have been a handful of people who have already reported that Lamb will choose UK tomorrow (including us), meanwhile, depending on who you talk to, Selby could pick a number of schools, but it seems Kansas is the safest bet. KUSports.com is reporting that he'll be headed to Lawrence next season (they are also predicting Lamb to Kentucky). Still there are some in Knoxville who still believe that they have a puncher's chance at Selby. Poor guys.

:: Speaking of the Jordan All Stars, it seems as if UK's newest addition had a good practice session yesterday. Jay Williams reported that he dominated the session saying, "(Knight was) making crisp passes and breaking down people left and right." Williams may not be a great source for recruiting information (he's now claiming that KU is in good shape for Jones?), but he knows a thing or two about the game and specifically the point guard position. If he thinks Knight is playing well this weekend, there's no reason to believe otherwise.

:: Well, today should reveal a few more pieces of the national recruiting puzzle and by all indications, Kentucky will be involved again. ESPN2 will be airing the game live tonight, and I am sure all of Big Blue Nation will not only be tuning in to watch our future point guard, but hopefully our next shooting guard, as well.

Stay tuned and enjoy the game, we'll be around later to break it all down.

What's going on with CJ Leslie...

You might think we'd be satisfied with this week's amazing recruiting haul, but heck, we want 'em all. That's why we continue to wonder where exactly CJ Leslie is right now, and if there's still a chance he'll join what is shaping up to be another epic recruiting class for Coach John Calipari.

Everything we're hearing has Leslie about ready to commit to NC State, confirming what everyone has thought for a while, the kid just wants to stay close to home. However, you also have reports like this one from Larry Vaught that argues that Leslie hasn't made a decision and won't for a while.

As you know (or at least should know), Leslie is a former high school teammate to John Wall, and the two remain good friends. Wall has said all along that he expects CJ to follow him to UK, and that he would be surprised if he didn't. However, Leslie as often shrugged that off as just John Wall making a sales pitch, and that no one should read too much into it.

In an off-season where so many kids have put off making their decisions public long after giving a silent verbal (oxymoron noted), here's one kid that might truly be still undecided.

Stay tuned.

Lamb Highlight Reels...

If it's in fact true that Lamb will join the Kentucky program (and we believe it is), we thought we might as well go ahead and hype up his arrival with a little highlight reel action. Lots to be excited about here, folks...

Breaking News: Lamb to Kentucky

We've said it all week, and now its breaking from reputable sources (not us) so let's go ahead and celebrate... Lamb is attending UK and will officially announce this weekend...

"If you missed it on National Signing Day, John Calipari is rebuilding another monster at Kentucky. Right after five of his underclassmen went pro, he immediately landed Brandon Knight, the top senior PG in the country, and Michael Gilchrist, maybe the top player period in the 2011 junior class. In addition to them, Calipari has two blue chip commits in swingman Stacey Poole and Turkish big man Enes Kanter. It’s time to add one more. While All-American senior shooting guard Doron Lamb is formally announcing his decision tomorrow at the Jordan Brand Classic, we already know what it’s going to be. Doron Lamb is headed to Kentucky."

Read the full article

Friday's notes, links, and other nonsense...

Gomez here...

I was trying to sleep in, which I'm known to do quite often, when I got a text message from Michael telling me to get busy with the Friday morning news and stuff. I ignored the text, rolled back over to sleep a few more minutes, and tried to rest. However, it was already too late... the seed had been planted.

Sometimes, I forget that most of our readers love UK basketball and football as much as we do around here, and you guys want to read something fresh and new everyday. And that's just as true in April, as it is in the fall and winter months of the football and basketball seasons. However, in these off-season months, especially after spring recruiting calms down a bit, the headlines will be fewer and far between. With that said, we'll do our best to continue to bring you the good stuff, as often as we can. And if we don't, random text messages will awake us from our sleep and guilt us from our pillows to the nearby laptop. So, just hang in there, stay tuned, and we'll all get through this summer together.

Now, on to the news of the day...

:: At the risk of sounding like a broken record, all signs continue to point to Doron Lamb announcing his intentions this weekend to become a Kentucky Wildcat. That would make four recruits signed on for Cal (Kanter, Poole, Knight, Lamb) with another one or two most likely coming to round out the class. When the dust settles, UK's class will be top 5 for sure, and maybe #1.

:: Meanwhile, it seems Leslie and Selby will be taking their services elsewhere. Leslie is most likely going to NC State and Selby will probably end up in Kansas. Cal is still after Leslie, and there's a chance he could make a late push, but it's a dim, distant hope at this point. Meanwhile, all hope is dead with Selby, so even if he were to change his mind on Kansas (which we don't think he will), we'd be shocked if he ended up in Lexington after the smoke clears.

:: In other recruiting notes, Terrence Jones might be leaning towards Kentucky now, and has thrown out some interesting hints that he might end up in Kentucky. Still too early to tell, but he's saying we at least got a chance down the home stretch of his recruiting.

:: In other news, Strickland pleaded not guilty to his latest DUI, and it does appear he'll keep his job at UK for now. Beyond that, we know little, but do wish him the best in all of this, which is a mess no matter how you decide to spin it.

:: Cousins made an official goodbye to the Big Blue Nation yesterday (see videos below), and while it wasn't anything earth shattering, its nice seeing him in this way one last time. If you're still angry that he's leaving, don't blame him, blame our coach. But honestly, it's the right move and we wish him well. You should too.

:: I hate Florida, always have, but especially after their little two year stint of being relevant. I remember having some somewhat heated arguments with some of the Florida press people after they won back-to-back championships, and were delusional enough to think Florida would continue to dominate and Kentucky would continue to drop. I just kept saying "just wait, this will sort itself out." But not even I thought it would happen this quickly. UK and Florida have been moving in polar opposites over the past 12 months, and I, for one, love it. I also love it when Florida's own writers start talking about their program's sudden demise, and contribute it to the return of UK to its rightful spot among the best of not only the SEC, but the entire NCAA Division 1 landscape.

:: Spring Football practice keeps rolling on, and unfortunately, continues to be overshadowed by Kentucky's latest recruiting romp. However, good news is coming out of the football camp, and everyone remains optimistic about Operation Win. It seems Hartline is continuing to position himself as the favorite for the starting QB job, and his receivers are warming up to him, as well. Here's what Joker said this week...



:: That's all for now folks. I need some more ZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzz

Rumor of the Day!

We're still hearing that Lamb has decided to attend Kentucky and will announce this weekend at the Jordan Brand Classic.

Meanwhile, Josh Selby is going to Kansas and will announce this weekend, as well.

As always this is subject to change.

Boogie says goodbye...

The day after the big day...

Gomez here...

The light at the end of the tunnel is bright, and no, it's not a train. Most of us were understandably pretty down after the West Virginia debacle, but yesterday's big news made that loss seem like a very long time ago. That's right folks, the light at the end of the tunnel is UK's bright future under the recruiting magic of Coach Cal.

Last night, I read somewhere in the countless articles circulating the interwebs about UK, where a journalist said that "only Coach Cal could lose five players to the NBA and not blink an eye." Well said by whoever said it (I'd give ya' credit for the line if I could remember who you are. But I'm sure you don't mind); Coach Cal seemingly has all this planned out and is well on his way to executing his plan to perfection.

The plan is pretty simple: Reload. As expected Coach Cal is locking down what he likes to call "the best of the best." Kanter, Poole, and Knight would be enough to make all of us giddy with anticipation, but the really great news is that it doesn't stop there. Josh Selby, Doron Lamb and CJ Leslie have all said they will announce their decision at the Jordan Classic this weekend. Our sources say Lamb is a lock while the the other two are leaning towards UK, as well. When you couple those rumors with the fact that Calipari has said he expects to sign 5 or 6 players in this class, you can't help but remain on cloud-9 about next year's potential.

Of course, the 2011 class might be shaping up to be even better. Yesterday's announcement from Michael Gilchrist could be a dominoe effect as other top prospects are now tempted to follow his lead to Lexington; Marquis Teague and Tony Wroten, Jr specifically. Our fearless leader (Michael Lee) told Travis Turner on his radio show that 2012 might be Kentucky's year to truly dominate the college basketball landscape, and so far, it does seem that perfect storm is brewing on the Big Blue horizon.

So, in closing, today (and everyday) is a great day to be a Wildcat. For those that might have lost a little faith in the past couple of weeks (bad shooting, mass exodus, Duke championship), all we can say is what we've said all along... "Relax. We're going to be just fine."

More later.

Video coverage of Knight's announcement...

A little more on UK's big day...

Is Doron Lamb next?

We're all still basking in the glow from today's big news (see below), but just like any true Wildcat fan, we can't get enough. With that in mind, I wanted to pass along a little tidbit that we've confirmed through multiple sources, and that's the word that Doron Lamb plans to announce his intentions to play for Kentucky this weekend.

As always, until the kid announces his plans to the public, anything can change, but right now, it looks good for the Cats.

Just another round of optimism for Operation Reload.

More later...

Its official... Knight, Kanter sign on the line, Gilchrist to offer verbal...

What we all hoped for has come true... Cal truly is reloading the Kentucky cupboards.

2010 so far...

Brandon Knight (signed)
Enes Kanter (signed)
Stacey Poole (signed)

2011 so far...

Michael Gilchrist (strong verbal)

Reload the "Live Blog" below to read our discussion. More later!

SIGNING DAY LIVE BLOG!

Cal expects Enes Kanter to play...

Kentucky has officially received Kanter's LOI, so Mike DeCourcy addresses the Enes Kanter situation in his latest article today. I believe that Kentucky fans should take a fresh dose of optimism from the article, so its worth the read.

Sure, the kid has some questions that remain to be answered, and DeCourcy addresses those, but at the end of the day, Calipari offered the kid a scholarship because he can play, and Cal expects him to be cleared by the NCAA to do so.

As for the talking heads (like ESPN's Doug Gotlieb) that says there's a real chance he won't play or will only play 10 to 15 games, Cal isn't worried about them or their misinformation...

"You can't have a contract before 18. You can't be professional — you're not allowed to be unless they're violating FIBA rules," Calipari said. "We know that, as in any other club, he received apparel. But there was no money, from what we're seeing, what the kid is saying and the family, and what Nike is saying. There's a lot of misinformation out there. You've got people talking about it that don't know, just heard a rumor."

Read the entire article to see what Cal thinks Kanter can do and what he expects from his style of play next season.

Bledsoe and Orton moving in wrong direction...

Gomez here...

According to the latest mock drafts, both Daniel Orton's and Eric Bledsoe's NBA stock is moving in the wrong direction. In the latest projections at NBADraft.net, Bledsoe has dropped all the way to 28th, while Orton is no longer projected in the first round as the 31st pick.

However, the other Cats are doing just fine... Wall is still expected to go 1st, Cousins 5th, and Patterson 9th.

As for the other two, this could be an interesting development, as neither have signed an agent yet, and both could decide to return to Kentucky if this downward trend continues.

Stay tuned.

Signing Day Quick Clicks...

:: Gary Parrish says Cal's master plan is beginning to take shape
:: Ross and Jones might end up being package deal
:: DeMarcus Cousins finally joins the Twitter movement
:: Evan Daniels says the dominoes are about to fall
:: Jerry Meyer expects big day for Cal and the Cats

More later...

A Great Day, and an Even Better Knight

As you might have heard, later today, Brandon Knight and a handful of other stars of the 2010 recruiting class are set to announce where they will call home next season. Evan Daniels at scout.com thinks that it would be a major surprise if Knight doesn't come to UK.

Tune in to ESPNU at 3 p.m. CST to hear his decision. Until then, keep hanging out here in our little corner of Big Blue Nation for more updates.

GO BIG BLUE!!!

ESPNU's Signing Day Line-up...

Here is ESPNU’s full lineup of players and coaches for Wednesday, the first day of the NCAA late signing period:

Brandon Knight – 4 p.m. EST (3 p.m. CST)
Ray McCallam – 4:15
John Calipari – 4:20
Jared Sullinger – 4:25
Josh Pastner – 4:30
Harrison Barnes – 4:35
Trey Zeigler – 4:45
Bruce Pearl – 5
Michael Gilchrist – 5:50

Tune in there and here for the latest.

Happy Signing Day!

Later today, we're going to have a much better idea on how the Kentucky basketball team is going to look in the coming seasons.

As we reported yesterday, Brandon Knight and Michael Gilchrist are both expected to announce their intentions later today, and its widely considered that both will announce their plans to attend UK and to play basketball for Coach Cal.

We'll have coverage on this all day, so stay tuned for the very latest.