Post by Lawdog on Jun 18, 2012 17:03:28 GMT -5
When Cal was hired over three years ago, we knew what we were getting. At least, we thought we did. While we hoped for the level of success that we’re now enjoying, I know I for one didn’t expect it. Maybe that’s jaded, maybe it’s just not wanting to get my hopes up after BCG. But now, looking back, it’s easy to say that Cal has more than delivered on everything he promised, and even above that: he’s delivered on everything we wanted.
Except one thing. And this is not a disappointment or a complaint. At all. Just something I’ve noticed. When Cal was hired, we knew his track record with guards at Memphis. Derrick Rose and Tyreke Evans were a pretty good two-man track record. And within his first few months at UK, he’d snagged John Wall. Okay, I get it. Two times is a coincidence, but three times is a pattern: we were going to be the new “Point Guard U.” Arizona and UCLA have shared that unofficial title for far too long, and they no longer deserved it. It was coming to Lexington.
And then a funny thing happened. Cal started focusing on big men, rather than point guards. And nobody really noticed.
Wall, of course, was paired with Cousins to form one of the best inside-outside duos that year. Boogie might have been a bigger fan favorite than wall, which is unbelievably hard to do. They were both drafted in the top 5, and have become reliable NBA starters. As crucial as John Wall was to that team, Cousins was just as important. Derrick Favors was taken before Demarcus in the NBA draft, but you won’t convince me that he was better than Boogie. We had the best big man in the NCAA that year.
Fast forward to 2010-2011: The Year of Brandon Knight. There’s no arguing that Brandon was the best player on that team; if NBA players had the fearlessness (and willingness to take the last shot) that he had, they’d all be called Kevin Durant. But what could that team have been with big man Enes Kanter? Let’s not forget how Cal snagged him from out of Washington’s covetous maw, just before doing the same thing with Terrence Jones, their last remaining morsel. Commentators nationwide spent all year raving about Jared Sullinger, arguably the best big man that year. Had Enes played, they’d have been singing a different tune. Remember the Nike Hoop Summit, where Kanter set a scoring record while stealing Sullinger’s lunch money? I can’t help but think that had he played, the UnderKanter would have been just like Cousins: the league’s dominant post presence.
And then there was last year. This is where the discrepancy between post presences over point guards starts to show itself. Zero disrespect to Marquis Teague; he showed what it looks like to grow and mature as a player, and he developed into a rock-steady starter that the championship team relied on. But if you’re going to argue for even a second that he was a bigger factor than Anthony Davis, you can go ahead and get out. I mean it. Because no big man in modern UK history has ever been quite as good as AD.
Now that legacy carries over to Nerlens Noel, “AD2.0.” Noel has a chance to at least come close to Davis’ block record, which shattered the previous UK freshman block record. He also has a chance to fossilize the big-man trend at UK, if he can merit the overall number one draft spot in just over a year. Remember, twice is a coincidence. Four years in a row signing the best big man in the country? That’s a pattern, folks.
So am I reading too much into this, or has Kentucky become “Big Man U?” Or is Kentucky’s roster just a reflection of the available talent in that year’s recruiting class? All I know is, while my expectations to see a UK team reliant on a point guard every year have been changed, the expectations of success have been far exceeded. And that’s the important part.
Except one thing. And this is not a disappointment or a complaint. At all. Just something I’ve noticed. When Cal was hired, we knew his track record with guards at Memphis. Derrick Rose and Tyreke Evans were a pretty good two-man track record. And within his first few months at UK, he’d snagged John Wall. Okay, I get it. Two times is a coincidence, but three times is a pattern: we were going to be the new “Point Guard U.” Arizona and UCLA have shared that unofficial title for far too long, and they no longer deserved it. It was coming to Lexington.
And then a funny thing happened. Cal started focusing on big men, rather than point guards. And nobody really noticed.
Wall, of course, was paired with Cousins to form one of the best inside-outside duos that year. Boogie might have been a bigger fan favorite than wall, which is unbelievably hard to do. They were both drafted in the top 5, and have become reliable NBA starters. As crucial as John Wall was to that team, Cousins was just as important. Derrick Favors was taken before Demarcus in the NBA draft, but you won’t convince me that he was better than Boogie. We had the best big man in the NCAA that year.
Fast forward to 2010-2011: The Year of Brandon Knight. There’s no arguing that Brandon was the best player on that team; if NBA players had the fearlessness (and willingness to take the last shot) that he had, they’d all be called Kevin Durant. But what could that team have been with big man Enes Kanter? Let’s not forget how Cal snagged him from out of Washington’s covetous maw, just before doing the same thing with Terrence Jones, their last remaining morsel. Commentators nationwide spent all year raving about Jared Sullinger, arguably the best big man that year. Had Enes played, they’d have been singing a different tune. Remember the Nike Hoop Summit, where Kanter set a scoring record while stealing Sullinger’s lunch money? I can’t help but think that had he played, the UnderKanter would have been just like Cousins: the league’s dominant post presence.
And then there was last year. This is where the discrepancy between post presences over point guards starts to show itself. Zero disrespect to Marquis Teague; he showed what it looks like to grow and mature as a player, and he developed into a rock-steady starter that the championship team relied on. But if you’re going to argue for even a second that he was a bigger factor than Anthony Davis, you can go ahead and get out. I mean it. Because no big man in modern UK history has ever been quite as good as AD.
Now that legacy carries over to Nerlens Noel, “AD2.0.” Noel has a chance to at least come close to Davis’ block record, which shattered the previous UK freshman block record. He also has a chance to fossilize the big-man trend at UK, if he can merit the overall number one draft spot in just over a year. Remember, twice is a coincidence. Four years in a row signing the best big man in the country? That’s a pattern, folks.
So am I reading too much into this, or has Kentucky become “Big Man U?” Or is Kentucky’s roster just a reflection of the available talent in that year’s recruiting class? All I know is, while my expectations to see a UK team reliant on a point guard every year have been changed, the expectations of success have been far exceeded. And that’s the important part.
