Baker was never going to be more than an 8th man here. I conceded in my post that he COULD have improved and come up to UK standards by his third or fourth year. Did you miss that part?
My expectations have nothing to do with it. We're the gold standard in college basketball. You build every roster with as much talent and cohesion as possible. If a player like Baker isn't okay with primarily sitting on the bench for a year or two at a powerhouse like UK, with a possible opportunity at a bigger role his junior and senior year, that's on him. We don't need to be catering to our 8th-9th man. He had two options: Get better, or leave. He chose the second, and he had every right to do so and I wish him all the best.
If Baker has to go for a player like Juzang to come in you take that trade 10 times out of 10. You're insane if you wouldn't.
Geez, I wasnt attacking you. Relax.
You said that Juzang is a massive upgrade over Baker and that he is not UK material next year. I disagree. You realize that Juzang will take Baker's place in the rotation, right? He will be in the same spot that Baker was in. He isnt taking IQ or Maxey's minutes. I think you have extremely high expectations for a reclass freshman. Call me crazy but I dont see him giving us a ton more than Baker would have next year. Thats just how I see it. He is a great replacement for Baker, dont get me wrong and Im trilled to have him but I dont see him making the impact that you are implying simply based off opportunity. He is going to be in the exact spot that you were using for your argument on Baker. He is going to be our 8th-9th man, our last backcourt option just like Baker. Also, seems like he is set on being a OAD. In my opinion, Id take Baker plus 2 extra years of filling that Darius Miller role that wins championships. Thats just my opinion. Its ok if we disagree.
Being the gold standard is about championships, not just about accumulating the most talent. Talent does not automatically equal championships, as we have seen. There are alot more intangibles involved and the most talented team rarely wins the title. The best TEAM usually win the championship. We need players like Baker to stick around. We need Darius Miller glue guys.