If We Get BlackShear
- Thread starter jrollins24
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I, for one, am not bothered if you don't respond. I just figured you read it and thought it was a decent response and moved on. No worries on my part.
The only problem with that is Ej wants to play the 4 and for all we know was sold on that opportunity to come back. He really isn't a center and doesn't play like one. I see more of Blackshear at the 5 and EJ at the 4 with both covering for each other when the other drifts out towards the perimeter. No reason the 2 can't switch according to defense and the situation each position. If Ej has improved there is no way to keep him and Blackshear off the court at the same time.
I am sure Cal has figured it out and knows how to play them together.
All we are doing is speculating right now.
The only thing that really gets on my nerves is all the talk about Blackshear has to play the 5 and is a Center and Montgomery has to play the 4.
We really don't know how Cal will play them together.
Yes, Blackshear has played Center his entire career, but that hasn't translated to getting him drafted. It might be that he is looking to transform his game. If so, Cal sticking him in the low post the entire game won't help him.
But maybe Blackshear has come to terms with that and just wants to win a title.
We just don't know.
I do think it's most likely that they will start together, though, if Blackshear comes here.
What their individual roles will be, none of us really knows.
Pure speculation at this point.
http://kentuckysportsradio.com/bask...-against-georgia-and-he-took-advantage-of-it/
https://twitter.com/WildcatDunks/status/1085376144910757888
EJ Montgomery Rises for a Massive Wildcat Dunk!!#BBN #KentuckyBasketball #WeAreUK
9
11:20 PM - Jan 15, 2019
"Against Georgia Montgomery helped the team do just that. But he wasn’t alone. Three out of the team’s four bigs had solid nights in Athens: Nick Richards stole the show (four points, seven rebounds, three blocks), while PJ Washington finally started to get back into his groove (ten points, six rebounds). Reid Travis still struggled a bit, but having Montgomery’s contributions to pick up the “slack” was huge for Kentucky.
“The advantage we have with the number we have [is] you’re not pressured to play great because if you just don’t play great, we’ll play somebody else and we’ll be fine,” Calipari said before the Georgia game. “So whether it’s Nick [Richards] playing instead of Reid [Travis], whether it’s EJ [Montgomery] playing in front of PJ [Washington]… They have to perform when they get their minutes and when they get in.”
EJ Montgomery got his minutes yesterday – in fact, he saw more minutes against Georgia than he’s seen against any SEC opponent so far. And he took advantage of it."
@MaggieDavisKSR
http://rfvtgb.novelodge.com/worldwi...us-safe-msn-1501&utm_term=kentuckysportsradio
http://trc.taboola.com/kentuckyspor...NvbTIId2F0ZXI4NzI4gIK51ARAkaQOSPvkDlCY5xdYkQQ
idk but if we get him, this will be the most confident I've felt about a championship run in a minute.
We have these problems every year, or at least we fans think they are problems.
Then we get into the season and we easily figure out that it's pretty clear cut and dry who should be playing.
Last year, we were trying to figure out how Cal was going to find enough minutes for PJ, RT, EJ & Sophomore NR. It became pretty obvious in short order that PJ and RT were going to get starters minutes and the other two would mix in. It would have been a head scratcher any other way.
It'll be the same thing this year. I suspect KB and EJ will start and Sestina and Junior NR will fill in.
Footnote: this is assuming KB commits to UK. I don't want anyone thinking I'm counting chickens we don't have. It's all speculation.
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Great post. I agree, I'm not sure how KB wants to be utilized, but I'm guessing since he has high interest in coming here, that he liked what Cal and Kenny did with PJ. He may want to play like a hybrid 4/5 that gets a lot of points with his back to the basket, but can also play from the outside in.
If I'm KB, that's what I want to be.
I agree its speculation , but I hope n pray Cal NEVER EVER cuts a deal with a player to benefit the players NBA position at the expense of the team .. If EJ needs to play the 4 and KB needs to be the five to make this team the best version of itself then KB needs to know that up front , get on board , and dont try to make any promises that are not best for the team .
Another way to state it , KB says " I need to be more of a perimeter player to get to the NBA and I want assurance I'm not going to a 5 in your system " I'd simply tell him thats not the way it works , you come here you do whats best for the team . That my 2 cents
I think Juzang will score a lot more than 2 a game. Kyle Tucker thinks he will start and he is on at least 2 mocks as a first round pick already.
Kinda odd that Juzang would crack the starting rotation. I just don't see Maxey, Hagans or Whitney coming off the bench for a 4* guy.
If that happens, that means JJ is lighting it up on both ends of the court.
I am interested to see if Hagans and Whitney can shoot well enough to play together. Could be some spacing issues there.
That was Tucker's concern and why he thought Juzang could start. I just have a feeling that IF we get Blackshear, Sestina will be the one that barely plays.
This is the wrong question IMO, and frankly indicative of what is wrong with the way a large number of UK fans look at these things.
To me the point of Kentucky recruiting a deep and talented team should be to gain an advantage over the numerous other schools who can’t attract the same level (or amount) of talent.
So the real question should be how can UK most effectively utilize the talent at their disposal to be the best team they possibly can?
There’s a lot that goes into that, more than just how many minutes a person plays. How can each player develop & be motivated to excel, how can they best be utilized in the floor, what combinations and schemes should be used, etc.?
Having a lot of talent is a luxury, but also a challenge. Maybe that means the pace needs to be increased, maybe the team defense can be extended, maybe the rotations can be optimized etc.
To me the worst thing to do is rather than figuring out the best way to take advantage of all the talent available, to instead automatically start looking for people to sit on the bench.
To me that not only doesn’t utilize your available talent effectively, it tends to create negativity which can negatively impact bench production, which effectively means you’re abandoning the biggest advantage you worked so hard to acquire in the first place.
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Lots of options for sure, could also put a shooter lineup out there: JJ, Quckley, Maxey, Sestina and MB. Chemistry would be the biggest concern but Cal is usually very good at managing. I would not also be surprised if NR transferred if Blackshear comes.
Think Juzang vs Whitney could be something to watch.
Remind me slightly of Herro and Johnson coming in last year except there’s a starting spot for only 1 of them.
If juzang plays defense better than we expect, or Whitney plays offense (namely shooting) better than projected. Think that’ll determine who plays more.
KJ wasn’t known for shooting but ended up hitting 38% so who knows. And we all know how Herro improved on defense, so should be interesting.
Gotta remember Juzang is definitely a 5 star talent. Only moved down when he reclassified and committed to us lol.
Remind me slightly of Herro and Johnson coming in last year except there’s a starting spot for only 1 of them.
If juzang plays defense better than we expect, or Whitney plays offense (namely shooting) better than projected. Think that’ll determine who plays more.
KJ wasn’t known for shooting but ended up hitting 38% so who knows. And we all know how Herro improved on defense, so should be interesting.
Gotta remember Juzang is definitely a 5 star talent. Only moved down when he reclassified and committed to us lol.
There should be a way to give more than one like per post. :fistbump:
Herro emerging basically forced Cal out of starting 2 PG's last year. I am sure when Cal put the team together he was thinking some combo of Quade, Quickly and Hagans starting at the 1 and 2 and Herro backing up the 2 and 3 (Keldon). Obviously when Quade saw the writing on the wall with Herro he was gone. Somebody will get squeezed out this year that is just the reality of it.
So do you think Juzang and Whitney both start??
I think Maxey is the one that makes it a little different than last year. He is more of game changer than quade or Quickley was. He and Hagans and pretty much penciled in.
I could see Whitney and Juzang getting similar minutes, but I doubt they both start unless something goes awry elsewhere.
I think Whitney's athleticism gets him the start. But we may ultimately need the shooting in the starting lineup and that could push Juzang in. It will definitely be interesting to see it play out.
If Hagans doesn't improve, I'd like to see this unit at times:
G Maxey
G Quickley
F Whitney
F Sestina
F Blackshear
Five players who can space the driving lanes with three guys who can rebound.
G Maxey
G Quickley
F Whitney
F Sestina
F Blackshear
Five players who can space the driving lanes with three guys who can rebound.
I like Cal think a rotation of 6 is best. But when you can take more you take it. 10 million in the lottery might be best and just fine, but I’ll still take 50 if it’s there.
Another reason and something else people fail to get about this topic is other rosters. When we landed EJ, we kept him off of Dukes roster. If we land Blackshear, we keep him off of Florida’s roster. When we land players that other big time programs are after, we keep them from making impacts on other rosters who are competing with us.
This is one of the main reasons K got involved so heavily in the OAD. she saw that as much as she needed those players he also needed to keep them off Kentucky’s rosters.
Also how do we use Brooks at this point?
If it’s,
Hagans
Maxey
Whitney
EJ
Blackshear
Is he our 6th man or is it Quickley off the bench first?
If it’s,
Hagans
Maxey
Whitney
EJ
Blackshear
Is he our 6th man or is it Quickley off the bench first?
I believe there is (possible bug).
Hit “like”, “unlike”, then “like” again. Repeat until necessary number of “likes” are achieved. Feel free to try it out on this post lol. TIA:sunglasses:
I'd like to see what that lineup could produce, and the same with Juzang in the Whitney slot.
Will be another remains to be seen thing.
Quickley is probably the backup PG, maybe sees some minutes at SG
Brooks will play some SF/PF. Just depends on where you need a sub.
I could see Whitney and Juzang starting without Blackshear. With Blackshear I think Cal starts EJ and Blackshear at the 4/5. If Brooks is a player you just can't keep off the Court Sestina and Richards are gonna be the one's to lose minutes in my opinion.
Okay, so here's what we do.
We substitute 2 or 3 at a time. Start the game with an "A" or "B" lineup, then sub in 2 front court guys, followed up by 3 backcourt guys at the next dead ball. We call it "the hybrid line change".
After the first few rotations, it morphs into single replacements based on mistakes made (it always does with Cal).
This way, he doesn't have to call it a platoon, but it sorta is.
Hopefully everyone has their joke meters on.
It's going to be hard to predict who starts this season. Even Hagans, a returning starter, is no lock.
Very few predicted that Herro would be a starter at this point in the offseason last year. Same with SGA the year before.
Juzang or Brooks could be this year's Herro/SGA. Both are in that 25-40 ranked range like SGA and Herro.
It's not out of the question that both start (if we don't get Blackshear).
I think the only guy guaranteed to start is Blackshear, if we get him.
Very few predicted that Herro would be a starter at this point in the offseason last year. Same with SGA the year before.
Juzang or Brooks could be this year's Herro/SGA. Both are in that 25-40 ranked range like SGA and Herro.
It's not out of the question that both start (if we don't get Blackshear).
I think the only guy guaranteed to start is Blackshear, if we get him.
I think Hagans is guaranteed to start. He is a second year, highly rated point guard, who showed the ability to be the best defensive guard Cal has had if he stays focused. Not to mention he showed to be a pretty reliabe FT shooter. All of those outweigh his lower shooting % and scoring numbers. The experience factor only heightens his chance at starting.
SGA and Herro surprised just about everyone. I'll go ahead and add another guy to the mix in Sestina who could sneak in and steal some candy this year. He's a very determined and all around skilled guy. EJ and NR better hit the ground W.F.O.
I agree John, there will be enough minutes for these three and the grad transfer because of officiating. It will be nice to replace talent for talent when this occurs.
SEC refs got in Hagans head last year. I don't think he lets that happen again. He's going to lead us to #9.
He kind of wore down late in the season last year. He should be in better shape and better stamina with an extra year of working out and some weight gain.
Hahahha You’re right, I guess that’s a really good problem to have. Who knows, you may even have to squeeze in Brooks or JJ! Happy to say I believe we are loaded.