Wheeler was incredible this weekend

[Cawood86_rivals]

Teams will force him to shoot. It's that simple. Some may not right away, but ultimately, they will. I'm hopeful, but caustiously so, that this will not be a problem.

Open court or fastbreak is not the problem. Never has been.

 

[anon1751545683]

Wheeler can't guard. Not in the open court. Not in the half court. Wheeler can be guarded in the half court. He's good in the open court. But he leaves the floor with no plan in mind. He drives the lane with no one at the top. If he misses his left handed lay up or gets it blocked the other team is off to the races with no one back.

Wheeler simply cannot run a half court set. Drive and kick, drive and kick, pass around the perimeter. Repeat.

Frederick made more entry passes in his 3 games than Wheeler has made in his UK career.

Wheeler is an entertaining player to watch in glorified pick up games like we saw in the Bahamas. In an organized game he is by far the weakest link.

If we get to January and Wheeler is our best option at point guard then we are just not a very good team.

 

[Wildcats1st]

John Wall didn't take more threes. He was a bad 3pt shooter, also. Wall averaged 1 for 3 on 3pt fgs during his one season at UK. Wheeler has a better assist to turnover ratio than Wall had and also more assists per game. We've had a few pgs who weren't good 3pt shooters.

Wayne Turner couldn't hit the broad side of a barn outside 10 feet. Wheeler's form is 10 times better. Turner cocked his wrist to one side and shot the ball across his body. He led UK to the 1998 title, with fewer assists per game and a worse a/to ratio.

Wall could get to the basket at will. Wall was 6’4” turner 6’2”.They couldn’t shoot but friggin John wall was an nba all star and turner our all time winningest player on two title teams and a team that went to the finals well he could get to the rack too. Both could dunk the stinkin ball and neither was limited by size or athleticism. Those are terrible comparisons to a guy who lost a ton of games at UGA and led us to our worst all time loss. A guy who wasn’t even looked at out of high school. Wheeler is in brandon Stockton territory. Hell ulis was wheelers height but was athletic and defenses had to respect him from the perimeter. Btw dearon fox wasn’t a great shooter either but you have to compensate some how and that trio had good height and athleticism for a college pg. I think comparing results has to be part of the equation and wheeler hasn’t proved much to deny a top 10 pick who will play nba pg the minutes.

Wheeler gets assists but that’s it. That’s like a qb who can complete 25 of 30 passes but then you find that none were over 10 yards. It’s why you will never see wheelers name on an nba roster. He can make a few layups too. Wheeler better a/t ratio but my man for real results are what matter. Uk rolls with wheeler all year then we go home ss or before. He has a very low ceiling. I pointed all this out last year, got raked over the coals and turned out to be too right. I’m saying the same thing today and I hope cal has the sense to see the limited ceiling with wheeler at the point. Not to mention. Wheeler is not a cal type pg. actually the last two cal has rode were not pgs to lead this program to championships. I mean hagans? Come on.

there is a long list of players who have started for uk that should have never. It’s not a slight to wheeler to say he isn’t starter caliber for UK. He can play a role. Hopefully when the time comes wheeler will accept his role. Until wheeler proves me wrong and he has a long way to go I’ll continue to question his usage.

 

[Wildcats1st]

Wheeler can't guard. Not in the open court. Not in the half court. Wheeler can be guarded in the half court. He's good in the open court. But he leaves the floor with no plan in mind. He drives the lane with no one at the top. If he misses his left handed lay up or gets it blocked the other team is off to the races with no one back.

Wheeler simply cannot run a half court set. Drive and kick, drive and kick, pass around the perimeter. Repeat.

Frederick made more entry passes in his 3 games than Wheeler has made in his UK career.

Wheeler is an entertaining player to watch in glorified pick up games like we saw in the Bahamas. In an organized game he is by far the weakest link.

If we get to January and Wheeler is our best option at point guard then we are just not a very good team.

Another good point wheelers defense is another liability. He can push play but te college game isn’t wide open. The other issue is wheeler struggles staying fit. When he plays at 100% he has shown to suffer injuries. Idk I’d love to cheer him on but it’s not happening with him running the team. Coming in off the bench in the tournament and making some big plays would win me over just like every other role player we’ve had at UK.

 

[UKWildcats1987]

This. Even though TyTy, Grady and Brooks laid massive eggs in that game... a point guard’s mantra in the waning minutes should be “first do no harm”. Wheeler absolutely killed us with poor decision making which allowed St. Pete to force overtime. In late game situations, the entire team needs to value each possession like it’s their proverbial life. Hopefully he has realized this. Of course the flip side is, you don’t want to play so tight that you run the shot clock down and either throw up a contested shot or don’t get one up at all. That has been a hallmark of Cal teams as well. Cal’s butt puckers up tighter than a snare drum at crunch time. So really we need a lot of trends to reverse for this team to reach its potential.

Who scored like 3 straight layups to get uk a 6 point lead? I'll wait.

 

[bucsrule8872]

Some posters on here act like Wheeler is flawless.

Some act like he is awful.

As usual, the truth lies somewhere in between.

Wheeler is going to be great against 90% of the teams we face. He will be able to force tempo. He will be able to penetrate the average defense.

But will he be able to be effective against the other 10%? Will he be able to handle elite defenses? Can he handle it when the best coaching minds in the country throw the kitchen sink at him?

I am hoping he destroys the competition and plays like an All-American, but anyone who doesn’t realize he has some big flaws to overcome needs to take off their blue tinted glasses.

 

[Wunky]

Who scored like 3 straight layups to get uk a 6 point lead? I'll wait.

He giveth and he taketh away.

You seem to think I’m unwilling to give Wheeler credit for anything. That’s not the case at all. But what good were the gains made with gutsy play if you turn right around and negate them with poor decisions? Perhaps fatigue was to blame. He’s obviously in better shape now, so that’s a plus.

 

[Wunky]

Wheeler is going to be great against 90% of the teams we face. He will be able to force tempo. He will be able to penetrate the average defense.

But will he be able to be effective against the other 10%? Will he be able to handle elite defenses? Can he handle it when the best coaching minds in the country throw the kitchen sink at him?

The bigger question is, if he can’t handle it, will Cal have a backup plan?

 

[revcort]

Wall could get to the basket at will. Wall was 6’4” turner 6’2”.They couldn’t shoot but friggin John wall was an nba all star and turner our all time winningest player on two title teams and a team that went to the finals well he could get to the rack too. Both could dunk the stinkin ball and neither was limited by size or athleticism. Those are terrible comparisons to a guy who lost a ton of games at UGA and led us to our worst all time loss. A guy who wasn’t even looked at out of high school. Wheeler is in brandon Stockton territory. Hell ulis was wheelers height but was athletic and defenses had to respect him from the perimeter. Btw dearon fox wasn’t a great shooter either but you have to compensate some how and that trio had good height and athleticism for a college pg. I think comparing results has to be part of the equation and wheeler hasn’t proved much to deny a top 10 pick who will play nba pg the minutes.

Wheeler gets assists but that’s it. That’s like a qb who can complete 25 of 30 passes but then you find that none were over 10 yards. It’s why you will never see wheelers name on an nba roster. He can make a few layups too. Wheeler better a/t ratio but my man for real results are what matter. Uk rolls with wheeler all year then we go home ss or before. He has a very low ceiling. I pointed all this out last year, got raked over the coals and turned out to be too right. I’m saying the same thing today and I hope cal has the sense to see the limited ceiling with wheeler at the point. Not to mention. Wheeler is not a cal type pg. actually the last two cal has rode were not pgs to lead this program to championships. I mean hagans? Come on.

there is a long list of players who have started for uk that should have never. It’s not a slight to wheeler to say he isn’t starter caliber for UK. He can play a role. Hopefully when the time comes wheeler will accept his role. Until wheeler proves me wrong and he has a long way to go I’ll continue to question his usage.

Of course it's a slight to Wheeler. Let me tell you what you're gonna have to deal with this season. Wheeler is going to lead this team to a Final Four, possibly a title. And he is also gonna be #1 in UK history in assists in a single season and #1 in assist to turnover ratio. This way, you can spend the rest of your life explaining how terrible he is because he's small and how that all these other point guards, who he proved he's better than, are actually better than him, despite the fact that he's the best statistically. He's already #2 in assists per game in a single season behind only Ulis.

Your opinion is completely out of touch with reality. No, he's not a flawless player. He has weaknesses and limitations, but despite those his numbers prove he's one of the best in UK history.

 

[Catlogic15]

Transition, yes. Half court ( which will make up majority of possessions) will not be our best option. That will go to Wallace I think.

 

[revcort]

Transition, yes. Half court ( which will make up majority of possessions) will not be our best option. That will go to Wallace I think.

No, I don't think so. Did you watch the exhibitions? Even in the half court, Wheeler makes the offense go. Wallace may have more NBA potential. He has the size, the leaping and athleticism, and he's a better shooter, but he's not even close to the same kind of playmaker. He was listed as a combo guard, not a true pg. Now, he may become a good pg this season, eventually, but he's not that guy today and won't be when the season begins. Wheeler will be the point guard against Mich St and he will be the pg against Gonzaga. Wallace will be in the game also, at the shooting guard position. And here's the question- how does Calipari feel about the situation? Wheeler is the point guard. Now, if Wheeler is struggling and having a bad game, Cal will probably give Wallace a chance, but will he permanently replace Wheeler as the starting pg? Unlikely. Message board posters' opinions are irrelevant.

 

[kelzer]

I expect no difference from last season, with Wallace playing the point when Wheeler's out, just like TyTy did last year. The only way I can see Wallace taking over the point (barring injury) is if Wheeler just completely loses confidence and plays much worse than last year.

 

[Kingslayer07]

Some of you are so miserable its hilarious. Cal will not bench Wheeler and give Wallace the pg duties..its just not going to happen. So either accept it or you're going to have a miserable season.

 

[Kingslayer07]

I almost agree but good teams will just back off of him. Clog the lane.

Doesn't matter, he gets into the lane at will and dishes to the open shooter, it happened constantly last season. We just need guys to make shots. Just like every other team in the country. Go watch the UNC game from last year, they sagged off him all game and he still torched them. There isn't anyone in the country that can guard him one on one.

 

[bassworship]

Wheeler can't guard. Not in the open court. Not in the half court. Wheeler can be guarded in the half court. He's good in the open court. But he leaves the floor with no plan in mind. He drives the lane with no one at the top. If he misses his left handed lay up or gets it blocked the other team is off to the races with no one back.

Wheeler simply cannot run a half court set. Drive and kick, drive and kick, pass around the perimeter. Repeat.

Frederick made more entry passes in his 3 games than Wheeler has made in his UK career.

Wheeler is an entertaining player to watch in glorified pick up games like we saw in the Bahamas. In an organized game he is by far the weakest link.

If we get to January and Wheeler is our best option at point guard then we are just not a very good team.

I'm wondering if your eyesight is good enough to even watch the games with analysis like that lol.

 

[DelkBowl]

Doesn't matter, he gets into the lane at will and dishes to the open shooter, it happened constantly last season. We just need guys to make shots. Just like every other team in the country. Go watch the UNC game from last year, they sagged off him all game and he still torched them. There isn't anyone in the country that can guard him one on one.

Disagree. I can matter against certain teams. Otherwise every team would go out and get small quick guards who can’t shoot.

 

[Anon1723990757]

0-9 from 3 but he was great? Listen a 5’7” pg needs to hit 3s period. In the college game they will sag and he needs to be able to take every open 3 with a solid chance of making them. Wheeler padded his stats last year against cup cake city. The man has to hit shots or he ll be on the bench come tournament time.

i think wheeler seems like a really good person. He’s very likeable. The problem is we have a top 10 pick who is likely a top 5 pick if he plays pg. Wallace is far more dynamic than wheeler. Wheeler will struggle against college teams who know his Achilles is his shooting.

btw wheeler does have some fitness issues and I don’t think he lost much weight. Wheeler is not a final four pg imo. A nice back up and change of pace but that’s it. A role player. He may be the best option to start the season but by mid December I expect Wallace to be the guy.

I agree. And he's overweight. Maybe you can't improve your shooting but you can loose weight

 

[reggis]

Wheeler made quite a few shots.

Tea

Hop on the bus Gus.

Hop on the bus Gus.

I agree with Heroes

Hop on the bus Gus.

 

[dc513]

No, I don't think so. Did you watch the exhibitions? Even in the half court, Wheeler makes the offense go. Wallace may have more NBA potential. He has the size, the leaping and athleticism, and he's a better shooter, but he's not even close to the same kind of playmaker. He was listed as a combo guard, not a true pg. Now, he may become a good pg this season, eventually, but he's not that guy today and won't be when the season begins. Wheeler will be the point guard against Mich St and he will be the pg against Gonzaga. Wallace will be in the game also, at the shooting guard position. And here's the question- how does Calipari feel about the situation? Wheeler is the point guard. Now, if Wheeler is struggling and having a bad game, Cal will probably give Wallace a chance, but will he permanently replace Wheeler as the starting pg? Unlikely. Message board posters' opinions are irrelevant.

Agree. When wheeler is out game slows down.