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Wheelers body language

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RalphDaltonFan

Heisman
Apr 3, 2002
60,143
41,435
113
He's going to be needed. How well he plays will determine how much he plays on a given night but he'll be needed and is capable of contributing. But it's not as if he's a 5 star elite recruit who was PG of a championship team at any point of his career. UK went dumpster diving....found a guy who racked up stats on bad teams and had a nice season on a team that fell apart last year in part to his weaknesses.

If they choose to play him blindly no matter his performance, he can watch as they miss out on Postseason. If he accepts role...he'll have games he's helping them get big wins and playing a lot and games he's contributing with others playing more and the team winning. If winning doesn't matter. I don't care if he smiles, claps etc..he can sit and watch from his dorm room. I think he's more mature then that and will step up to the challenge and accept it and help them win games.
 
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K

Kats23

All-American
Nov 21, 2007
8,683
5,913
63
Wouldn’t bother me if the kid just took his ball and went home. Honestly, it would make it easier on Cal so he didn’t fell obligated to play him. He seems like a nice kid but I don’t think he played more than a few minutes in the 2nd half and we scored 51. UK is a -9 with him in there and a +9 without him.

This is a business more than ever and you have to play the kids who can win you ballgames. That’s not Wheeler right now.
 
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kyjeff1

kyjeff1

Heisman
Sep 8, 2012
50,703
71,110
113
Well, he has to be down on himself. I mean, any of us would be feeling it if we were in his position.
I feel bad for the guy, he's trying extremely hard to be great, but he just doesn’t have it.
He still has a big role on this team, it just can't be the guy he wants to be.
Cal had to win the game today, Georgia made him go to the lineup we knew had to be on the court in August. He just has to swallow his pride and do the right thing and unfortunately for Sahvir, he has to sit.
 
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S

smray0002

Sophomore
Dec 16, 2017
76
160
0
Seems like a pretty normal reaction for losing PT. He is a good kid and I’m sure wants to be out there. There will be times this year where he will still help this team win. But he has now reversed roles with former bench players in terms of how long of a leash he has and will have. It’s what needed to be done.
 
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E

Elliott Tim

All-American
Dec 10, 2005
10,122
6,290
0
Ltbarnett25 said:
I’ve been watching how he reacts tonight while on the bench. He doesn’t seem happy about not getting any playing time the second half and is hardly cheering on his teammates that are on the court.
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Name me someone who loves being replaced by a more qualified person?
 
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serdi

All-Conference
Mar 22, 2009
2,672
3,934
0
Ltbarnett25 said:
I’ve been watching how he reacts tonight while on the bench. He doesn’t seem happy about not getting any playing time the second half and is hardly cheering on his teammates that are on the court.
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When he is not in there, we roll. He isn’t good enough to help us win. These last two games have proven it. He should appreciate that he had an opportunity to play here. But accepting that he has been bypassed and not be a cancer
 
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U

Ugoff

Heisman
May 7, 2009
16,403
21,489
0
kyjeff1 said:
Well, he has to be down on himself. I mean, any of us would be feeling it if we were in his position.
I feel bad for the guy, he's trying extremely hard to be great, but he just doesn’t have it.
He still has a big role on this team, it just can't be the guy he wants to be.
Cal had to win the game today, Georgia made him go to the lineup we knew had to be on the court in August. He just has to swallow his pride and do the right thing and unfortunately for Sahvir, he has to sit.
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It's a shame the season has to get derailed before this coach feels compelled to make the necessary moves to win.
 
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UKLone

Senior
Aug 14, 2022
402
691
0
I didn’t like his expressions on the bench at all. He definitely wasn’t happy when we was winning.
 
Dead Cat Bounce

Dead Cat Bounce

All-Conference
Jan 8, 2003
2,774
4,906
113
I don’t blame Wheeler at all for hanging his head. This has gotta be a tough moment in his basketball career. But he better stay ready. Whether we like it or not, he’s one back spasm (or rolled ankle, etc) away from big minutes.
 
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L

LmdCat

Heisman
Jan 8, 2006
23,627
18,894
0
IL Wildcat said:
I've defended Wheeler all season but he should have been benched the way he was playing. He made a couple good plays shortly after coming in but then he turned it over and gave up easy shots. If I were Cal, I would have done exactly the same. And once the other guys proved themselves, the rhythm of the game dictated Wheeler stay right where he was.

Wallace's defense in the 2nd half was absolutely essential on Roberts, and he was sensational. You can't take him out. It wasn't Wheeler's game. I hate it for him with it being his birthday and being his former team, but that's life sometimes.
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Cal should have talked him into believing he had a shoulder injury for one more game so that he wouldn't have to realize on his B-day that he has been demoted. Maybe I am wrong, but the way he was waving his arms in the air on Saturday didn't look like a player suffering from a shoulder injury. I have had my share of shoulder injuries from football and I certainly wasn't capable of raising my arms above my shoulders.
 
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C

CincyUKFan

All-American
Dec 1, 2009
4,582
7,576
0
Allcats08 said:
I’m 32 and I still dont understand why people think their birthday is so special. If it wasn’t for people telling me happy birthday I’d never know it was actually the day.
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Because hearing people tell you “ happy b-day” over and over just makes you feel good. Don’t know why. Not like you accomplished anything. But it does.
 
C

CincyUKFan

All-American
Dec 1, 2009
4,582
7,576
0
ralphdaltonfan said:
He's going to be needed. How well he plays will determine how much he plays on a given night but he'll be needed and is capable of contributing. But it's not as if he's a 5 star elite recruit who was PG of a championship team at any point of his career. UK went dumpster diving....found a guy who racked up stats on bad teams and had a nice season on a team that fell apart last year in part to his weaknesses.

If they choose to play him blindly no matter his performance, he can watch as they miss out on Postseason. If he accepts role...he'll have games he's helping them get big wins and playing a lot and games he's contributing with others playing more and the team winning. If winning doesn't matter. I don't care if he smiles, claps etc..he can sit and watch from his dorm room. I think he's more mature then that and will step up to the challenge and accept it and help them win games.
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Needed is a strong word and I don’t agree. I think there are more than enough guards on this roster who aren’t detrimental to the team’s chances of winning. I am confident that this team can reach its peak without Wheeler playing a single minute. And it may actually be the case that we can only reach our peak when he doesn’t play at all (last week demonstrated that, the 30-16 margin to end the game while he sat tonight did too).
 
H

Hopmix

Senior
Mar 7, 2011
1,274
687
101
lol.. havent seen the last of wheeler. He's still gonna have a big role and some clutch moments for this team to make a deep run. He just shouldn't be starting over Wallace.
 
C

CincyUKFan

All-American
Dec 1, 2009
4,582
7,576
0
sambowieshin said:
Wheeler has a role to play on this team. Cal just needs to figure it out. Some games it will be ride the pine... Some games it will be let him run with it.
The starting point should definitely begin with coming off the bench.
We will need him at times though.... whether we like it or not.
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We really should be careful using this word “need” in regard to Wheeler. He hurts the team. He’s the main reason we’ve lost so many games. I’ve argued before, and will keep doing so - if the dude wasn’t in our roster we’d not only be fine - we’d be better. Now there are two games of unquestionable evidence to support that.
 
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W

Wildcats1st

Heisman
Sep 16, 2017
18,949
28,911
0
LmdCat said:
Cal should have talked him into believing he had a shoulder injury for one more game so that he wouldn't have to realize on his B-day that he has been demoted. Maybe I am wrong, but the way he was waving his arms in the air on Saturday didn't look like a player suffering from a shoulder injury. I have had my share of shoulder injuries from football and I certainly wasn't capable of raising my arms above my shoulders.
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The more this plays out the more I wonder of the ulis timing joining the staff. Did cal bring him on to break the news and deal with wheeler? Every player the second half was in their hoodies and jackets except wheeler who sat there ready to go. I like seeing a player who loves the game like that and maybe ulis can help wheeler see his role on the team and he can have some positive moments.

There are times we could use him. Late game if wheeler can shut the mental issue of not playing and works free throws. I mean he is probably the best ball handler on the team against the press. But he has to work on the fts

Defense. He has to play like a dog and not care about picking up fouls. Physical and work his butt off.

Forget shooting. Teams aren’t going to respect him. But some time maybe a high press situation wheeler could get to the basket there will be those looks and cal has to recognize.

Slowing the game down and getting off the ball. Let the team move it. When it comes back to you look to make a play. Mix it up. It’s hard though when he is a limited offensive threat.

There are some situations he can help IF he gets it.
 
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know1

Heisman
Dec 8, 2002
12,855
14,925
0
Maybe he stole someone else's phone and saw the undeserved trashing he gets by a bunch of our a-hole fans.
 
kyjeff1

kyjeff1

Heisman
Sep 8, 2012
50,703
71,110
113
Ugoff said:
It's a shame the season has to get derailed before this coach feels compelled to make the necessary moves to win.
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Yup, but I think Cal finally saw what he needed to see last night. That’s another game we lose if Wheeler stays in.

Cal was asked about the Wallace, Reeves, CJ, Toppin, Oscar lineup in the post game presser. The media asked him what he saw with that lineup, because he had it in there for 8 straight minutes. Cal recognized it, but talked around it and eventually, changed the subject.

We have 6 losses and it's because he refused to play the right line-up and for whatever reason, this team looked way behind for way too long. Not sure what happened there.

Bottom line, Wheeler is a backup at best. There are no more cupcake games, every game is going to be extremely hard to win.
Collins needs to be buried deep on the bench, no more of that guy until he understands how to play at this level.
 
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Cowtown Cat

Cowtown Cat

Heisman
Aug 23, 2015
24,122
54,823
100
Dead Cat Bounce said:
I don’t blame Wheeler at all for hanging his head. This has gotta be a tough moment in his basketball career. But he better stay ready. Whether we like it or not, he’s one back spasm (or rolled ankle, etc) away from big minutes.
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Well, the guy had literally every opportunity to improve in order to play. That just has not happened. Yeah, his 3 point shooting has improved some. However, his FT shooting % has drastically dropped. So that’s a wash. His decision making is still piss poor. Kid just doesn’t have the savvy PG gene.
 
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kyjeff1

kyjeff1

Heisman
Sep 8, 2012
50,703
71,110
113
FltDoc said:
Wheeler should be practicing his 3s and FTs like crazy, 'cause we will need him at some point....
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He has to work on everything.

Last night, Wheeler did what he always does, he started out on fire, made a few great plays and got a few nice assists, but then, after a few game minutes, he gives it all back.

The longer he stays in there, the bigger his errors get. Cal had no choice but to pull him and keep him on the bench even though Wallace was in foul trouble.
 
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R

Ryan Lemonds Hair

Heisman
May 31, 2018
15,280
30,690
98
He was very much into the game Saturday but did seem down last night. I hate it for the kid but he needs limited minutes for this team to be their best. I'm not saying don't play him at all but 10-15 minutes per game in relief of Cason is the max for this team to win.
 
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Wunky

Wunky

Heisman
Jan 16, 2021
4,372
18,199
78
Creed Bratton said:
He was very much into the game Saturday but did seem down last night. I hate it for the kid but he needs limited minutes for this team to be their best. I'm not saying don't play him at all but 10-15 minutes per game in relief of Cason is the max for this team to win.
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Disagree, even playing him that much hurts the team.

The beauty of Thiero is that he can backup Cason, Fredrick, AND Reeves depending on who is gassed or in foul trouble.

Wallace \
Fredrick \
Reeves. / … Thiero
Toppin … Livingston
Tshiebwe … Ware

8-man rotation. Cut it there and play it rest of season if this team is to have any chance at all.
 
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Cowtown Cat

Cowtown Cat

Heisman
Aug 23, 2015
24,122
54,823
100
Creed Bratton said:
He was very much into the game Saturday but did seem down last night. I hate it for the kid but he needs limited minutes for this team to be their best. I'm not saying don't play him at all but 10-15 minutes per game in relief of Cason is the max for this team to win.
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He was into the game Saturday because he knew he wasn’t available to play. He was available to play last night. That’s the difference. He also knew we finally beat a team with a pulse with him out. Not only that, but a legit top 5 team on the road and a rivalry game. He sees the writing on the wall.
 
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S

Smango

Junior
Mar 19, 2017
213
281
0
I hate it for Wheeler, old Team, and Birthday. He came in off the bench and done some things positive. We just seem like a better team without him.
 
jack8291

jack8291

All-Conference
Dec 8, 2019
917
1,033
0
Sometimes one can be upset at themselves and their own play . He got yanked after a lazy entry pass ended up as a turnover …
 
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