BINGO . It wouldn't even register on my radar. With that being said we are going to land him so this is a silly thread whose sole point has to be to act as a beacon to the trolls ( as some of the responses in this prove )
IF, UK doesn't get Cade Cunningham
- Thread starter TopCatCal
- Start date
Xavier Henry was a huge miss. He didn’t turn out to be the stud people thought he would be, but good lord, could that team have used a 42% outside shooter.
Not a popular opinion but I was disappointed when Zion didn't pick us. I knew he was going to be a media star due to his instagram following.
I wanted Hunter McClintock, so there's that......
Seconds thoughts is short for adidas
Nope he wouldn't even make my list, he was not even a possibility with his brother there, and if he comes he will be on my biggest surprise list, even in front of Knox.
Dirk is/was all UK but was from a time when college was an option. He still considers himself part of the BBN.
We have an awesome class already and still have lots of time to add graduate transfer and other people. Cade will be icing on the cake. Hope we get him, if not we are all good.
Thankfully the days of Shagari/Thomas/Perry/Orbzut classes are far in the past. The days of waiting for my CatsPause to arrive in the mail only to get kicked in the teeth by every big man we NEEDED, while UNCCHeat stockpiled them is my biggest disappointment. The recruits we added instead were just salt in the wound. (No personal offence to those guys intended)
One million percent agree on everything you said. I remember back in the day having to buy SLAM magazine to keep up with recruiting. The catspause mag was great also...
UK needs to land a couple front line players to repeat a common board theme. Cal is loading up on wings and 1 thru 3 guys. Slight fear that UK could have the most talented donut hole team in history.. Just missing a big... don't think that will happen but a 5 Star big recruit would help. Cade is great but class needs some balance. Just waiting for that piece.
I'd like to have all the cash I spent as a kid on college basketball mags. Street & Smith's, Blue Ribbon and CatsPause were necessities and Vitale and all the others were always picked up for fear of missing anything. I've still got them all but space had run out. This internet thing came along at just the right time.
Oh yes def. Some of the best times of my life also though. Things have changed so much.
I think it was more than just adidas. His former aau coach and now agent mike George held a grudge over the fan reaction to Bennett going to unlv. His host parents at Huntington prep were basically uofl fans at that point because they had also hosted gorgiu dieng. You can hear the host mom in the background during his commitment saying “at least it wasn’t Kentucky”.
So yeah he had people close to him that really didn’t want him here. Mike George also had plans on using the kid as a meal ticket though and probably had some kind of deal in place with adidas himself.
Cal Era
Xavier Henry
Andrew Wiggins
Jaylen Brown
Miles Bridges
James Wiseman
We were supposedly in the driver's seat for all three at different points. They all gave us guys who would have rounded out the forthcoming roster more completely.
Xavier Henry
Andrew Wiggins
Jaylen Brown
Miles Bridges
James Wiseman
We were supposedly in the driver's seat for all three at different points. They all gave us guys who would have rounded out the forthcoming roster more completely.
I will be disappointed if we don't get CC, but it would rank way down the list of misses, for me. I think Askew will be able to take his place quite nicely. In fact, he may end up being better for that team than Cunningham. Not saying he is a better player, but maybe better for the team.
I'd also contend that Ray Allen might have been the biggest real "miss" UK ever had.
Unlike Larry Bird - who wanted UK but was overlooked by Joe B. Hall, and Tracy McGrady, who was a product of the straight to the league realities of the late nineties - Ray Allen was a kid UK wanted and who wasn't inhibited by any real outside barrier keeping him from UK.
Pitino simply dropped the ball on Ray's recruiting visit and basically ignored him at the restaurant when Mashburn took Ray out on his official visit. Pitino came in and went hobnobbing with a bunch of elite Lexington residents and didn't even come by Ray's table. Then, when he did talk to Ray, Pitino talked about himself and this really stood out to Ray as being indicative of Pitino's lack of character.
Ray Allen would have been Tony Delk on steroids if he came to UK. The way he played, the fact that his style exemplified pretty much the ideal version of what UK fans love - elite shooting with a splash of incredible athleticism. He would have been hailed on the same level as Mashburn if he came here, if not more so.
Factor in the reality that he was the best shooter in NBA history (pre-Curry era) and it would have catapulted him even more.
Unlike Larry Bird - who wanted UK but was overlooked by Joe B. Hall, and Tracy McGrady, who was a product of the straight to the league realities of the late nineties - Ray Allen was a kid UK wanted and who wasn't inhibited by any real outside barrier keeping him from UK.
Pitino simply dropped the ball on Ray's recruiting visit and basically ignored him at the restaurant when Mashburn took Ray out on his official visit. Pitino came in and went hobnobbing with a bunch of elite Lexington residents and didn't even come by Ray's table. Then, when he did talk to Ray, Pitino talked about himself and this really stood out to Ray as being indicative of Pitino's lack of character.
Ray Allen would have been Tony Delk on steroids if he came to UK. The way he played, the fact that his style exemplified pretty much the ideal version of what UK fans love - elite shooting with a splash of incredible athleticism. He would have been hailed on the same level as Mashburn if he came here, if not more so.
Factor in the reality that he was the best shooter in NBA history (pre-Curry era) and it would have catapulted him even more.
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One of my all time favorite players anyway couldn't imagine how much more I'd have loved him had he came here lol
Keep in mind, lots of people assumed Zion was coming to UK. Fans were salivating over highlight reels when he was a high school sophomore, hearing he was coming to UK. So Zion, Wiggins, Shabazz Muhammad - those are probably the 3 big ones of recent years.
Adidas bought Muhammed with the sister who is just a level above Milosh the character in Seinfeld who sold Jerry an expensive racket and couldn't play---getting a big contract for someone of her marginal ability.
Throw in Wiggins getting a 1-2M to sign with Kansas as part of his Adidas contract when he turned Pro.
Not much you can do there.
Zion...I never felt UK was in it and thought everyone had him ticketed to Clemson and were stunned he chose Duke?
Remember that negative vibe all with the class Zion was in as I came to board with news immediately after RJ Barrett's visit that UK was out and was put on blast for being a liar, fake, etc....but that class was not lining up well for Cal with the top guys. Reddish was always a Duke lock, Barrett was heading there minute UK visit ended, and then they spent time working over Zion-who as poster above mentioned had been quoted saying he'd likely go where Quickley went to school.
Biggest misses were parts missing on teams who could've won it-so I'd say Miles Bridges for '17 team
Jaylen Brown was a huge miss for that '16 team--he takes them to higher level.
After seeing how Wiggins career has ended up, I echo what the Twins said about him, but he'd have been pushed to be a different player at UK/would've put them over top.
Throw in Wiggins getting a 1-2M to sign with Kansas as part of his Adidas contract when he turned Pro.
Not much you can do there.
Zion...I never felt UK was in it and thought everyone had him ticketed to Clemson and were stunned he chose Duke?
Remember that negative vibe all with the class Zion was in as I came to board with news immediately after RJ Barrett's visit that UK was out and was put on blast for being a liar, fake, etc....but that class was not lining up well for Cal with the top guys. Reddish was always a Duke lock, Barrett was heading there minute UK visit ended, and then they spent time working over Zion-who as poster above mentioned had been quoted saying he'd likely go where Quickley went to school.
Biggest misses were parts missing on teams who could've won it-so I'd say Miles Bridges for '17 team
Jaylen Brown was a huge miss for that '16 team--he takes them to higher level.
After seeing how Wiggins career has ended up, I echo what the Twins said about him, but he'd have been pushed to be a different player at UK/would've put them over top.
Agree. I’ll never let a 17 kid dictate whether I’m happy or disappointed. There was UK basketball before him and there will be UK basketball without him. If he wants to win, play for the greatest program in college basketball and get to the league he knows what “hat he should pick” or he can take the Ben Simmons, Markelle Fultz route.
I would add Bamba to the list of difference makers. Bamba down low with Knox and SGA? Definitely agree with miles bridges. We needed a big in that 2016 class though. I don’t think Zimmerman or any of the bigs in that class were good enough however. Maybe the kid that went to IU that we passed on?
I agree with Wiggins. He needed someone to get in his face a little. Self just didn’t have the right demeanor. But anytime he was questioned in high school he responded.
I think the twins and Randle’s competitive spirits would have rubbed off on him as well.
Roderick Flemings was a must get but went to Hawaii instead.
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Who was the kid that Tubby tried to recruit that went to a prep school instead, and then Notre Dame? That was embarrassing.