Why you are wrong about OAD's

[brianpoe]

(Repeating much of this from my response in another post)

I agree that we should have more than one title since Cal arrived, I think he does as well.

The OAD strategy Cal implemented has done the job superbly.

All you can ask for in a recruiting strategy is to be competitive enough to win a title.

No recruiting strategy guarantees a title.


The OAD strategy also brought collateral damage Cal didnt expect:

- Players leaving early that Cal did not recommend they go, nor anyone else, other than their friends and family.
- The culture in which players, and fans, now view a highly ranked kid who stays longer than one season as a failure.


So, why do we only have one title?


The same reasons every other team has for losing in the tournament.

1. Lost to a better team.
2. Injuries
3. Poor execution by the players in big time games
4. Poor execution by the coach in big time games
5. Terrible referees in big time games


My opinion

2010 - Players kept chucking 3's and Cal didnt call one or more TO's to stop this. I dont care about Huggy's vaunted 1-3-1. We had Wall who could penetrate any zone, as well as Boogie and PPat who could score with players draped on them.

OAD had no effect on that game - we had better players, who didnt play better and coach didnt take control.


2011 - Players didnt perform - T Jones 0-5 at the the line, Knight 6-23, 3-11 from 3.

OAD had no effect on that game - we had better players, who couldn't make shots, it happens.


2012 - Champs


2013 - Teague and Lamb expected to return, star player tore ACL, team just wasnt talented enough.

OAD had an effect due to players leaving unexpectedly. Not Cal's plan.



2014 - Cal did a great job turning the season around, I would like to have seen him zone UConn earlier in the game.

Harrisons couldn't handle Napier and Boatright

50% on free throws as a team

WCS injured. Randle Injured.

OAD had no effect on that game.



2015 - Cal should have called a timeout and set up our offense in final minutes of UW game.

Cal and his stall ball.

Guards did not feed the post.

Poor defense by multiple players on switches.

Poythress injury.

Bad referees

OAD had no effect on that game.



2016 - Booker and Dakari expected to return prior to the season, affected recruiting for the following season.

Team just wasnt talented enough.

OAD had an effect due to players leaving unexpectedly. Not Cal's plan.



2017 - Referees killed our first half.

We did not shoot the ball well enough. Willis and Mulder missed way too many open 3's.

Bam, although beaten to death, did not provide an inside game.

Cal should have called a TO after Monk's shot - he has said himself that he doesnt want the defense to get set up when the tables are turned and his team is going for last shot, so he doesnt call a TO with the ball... bad coaching move.

Last second shot to higher seed.

OAD had no effect on that game.



So, other than those leaving that were not expected to, the OAD has been fine.

We have lost for the same reasons everyone else has:

poor play, poor coaching, poor refereeing, injuries, beaten by a better team

 

[Jazzycat]

Good post. Calipari has control over #3 and #4. To that end, he needs to do everything that he can to prepare his teams to be able to effectively run plays and defend in such a way that it puts his teams in a position to win every game, including, calling necessary time outs and making the guys shoot free throws. The other elements are beyond his control - so revamping some of his in game and pregame strategies may pay dividends, if he chooses to make some changes. I think this loss was a very difficult one for the players and coaches. I expect that we will see some shifts in Cal's methodology for next season - just a hunch.

 

[morgousky]

I have no problem with OAD's. They are the most talented and we are adding more history to our resume while cal thrusts UK into lore yet again for a new generation. Can't argue with that.

If I were to get more detailed, I'd say perhaps we shouldn't have gone so hard on the subject and the beast would have been easier to tame. Guys like Briscoe, Bam, Teague etc shouldn't leave after one. Really wish Cal could get a handle on that. Aside from officiating costing us, this has as well.

My main gripe is Cal allowing negative recruiting kill us with talented freshman who aren't sure if they're OAD. Cal has been beaten to a pulp trying to land these. Guys like Kennard can still come here and play multiple years. For some reason Cal can't get that message through. He needs to try harder. It's not going to hurt recruiting to have blues return.

 

[Elliott Tim]

(Repeating much of this from my response in another post)

I agree that we should have more than one title since Cal arrived, I think he does as well.

The OAD strategy Cal implemented has done the job superbly.

All you can ask for in a recruiting strategy is to be competitive enough to win a title.

No recruiting strategy guarantees a title.


The OAD strategy also brought collateral damage Cal didnt expect:

- Players leaving early that Cal did not recommend they go, nor anyone else, other than their friends and family.
- The culture in which players, and fans, now view a highly ranked kid who stays longer than one season as a failure.


So, why do we only have one title?


The same reasons every other team has for losing in the tournament.

1. Lost to a better team.
2. Injuries
3. Poor execution by the players in big time games
4. Poor execution by the coach in big time games
5. Terrible referees in big time games


My opinion

2010 - Players kept chucking 3's and Cal didnt call one or more TO's to stop this. I dont care about Huggy's vaunted 1-3-1. We had Wall who could penetrate any zone, as well as Boogie and PPat who could score with players draped on them.

OAD had no effect on that game - we had better players, who didnt play better and coach didnt take control.


2011 - Players didnt perform - T Jones 0-5 at the the line, Knight 6-23, 3-11 from 3.

OAD had no effect on that game - we had better players, who couldn't make shots, it happens.


2012 - Champs


2013 - Teague and Lamb expected to return, star player tore ACL, team just wasnt talented enough.

OAD had an effect due to players leaving unexpectedly. Not Cal's plan.



2014 - Cal did a great job turning the season around, I would like to have seen him zone UConn earlier in the game.

Harrisons couldn't handle Napier and Boatright

50% on free throws as a team

WCS injured. Randle Injured.

OAD had no effect on that game.



2015 - Cal should have called a timeout and set up our offense in final minutes of UW game.

Cal and his stall ball.

Guards did not feed the post.

Poor defense by multiple players on switches.

Poythress injury.

Bad referees

OAD had no effect on that game.



2016 - Booker and Dakari expected to return prior to the season, affected recruiting for the following season.

Team just wasnt talented enough.

OAD had an effect due to players leaving unexpectedly. Not Cal's plan.



2017 - Referees killed our first half.

We did not shoot the ball well enough. Willis and Mulder missed way too many open 3's.

Bam, although beaten to death, did not provide an inside game.

Cal should have called a TO after Monk's shot - he has said himself that he doesnt want the defense to get set up when the tables are turned and his team is going for last shot, so he doesnt call a TO with the ball... bad coaching move.

Last second shot to higher seed.

OAD had no effect on that game.



So, other than those leaving that were not expected to, the OAD has been fine.

We have lost for the same reasons everyone else has:

poor play, poor coaching, poor refereeing, injuries, beaten by a better team

The detailed poster of the year goes to you. You beat Gary4uk by an eyelash.

 

[Chuckinden]

My reason for not liking OAD's has nothing to do with winning and losing.

 

[true-blue1]

(Repeating much of this from my response in another post)

I agree that we should have more than one title since Cal arrived, I think he does as well.

The OAD strategy Cal implemented has done the job superbly.

All you can ask for in a recruiting strategy is to be competitive enough to win a title.

No recruiting strategy guarantees a title.


The OAD strategy also brought collateral damage Cal didnt expect:

- Players leaving early that Cal did not recommend they go, nor anyone else, other than their friends and family.
- The culture in which players, and fans, now view a highly ranked kid who stays longer than one season as a failure.


So, why do we only have one title?


The same reasons every other team has for losing in the tournament.

1. Lost to a better team.
2. Injuries
3. Poor execution by the players in big time games
4. Poor execution by the coach in big time games
5. Terrible referees in big time games


My opinion

2010 - Players kept chucking 3's and Cal didnt call one or more TO's to stop this. I dont care about Huggy's vaunted 1-3-1. We had Wall who could penetrate any zone, as well as Boogie and PPat who could score with players draped on them.

OAD had no effect on that game - we had better players, who didnt play better and coach didnt take control.


2011 - Players didnt perform - T Jones 0-5 at the the line, Knight 6-23, 3-11 from 3.

OAD had no effect on that game - we had better players, who couldn't make shots, it happens.


2012 - Champs


2013 - Teague and Lamb expected to return, star player tore ACL, team just wasnt talented enough.

OAD had an effect due to players leaving unexpectedly. Not Cal's plan.



2014 - Cal did a great job turning the season around, I would like to have seen him zone UConn earlier in the game.

Harrisons couldn't handle Napier and Boatright

50% on free throws as a team

WCS injured. Randle Injured.

OAD had no effect on that game.



2015 - Cal should have called a timeout and set up our offense in final minutes of UW game.

Cal and his stall ball.

Guards did not feed the post.

Poor defense by multiple players on switches.

Poythress injury.

Bad referees

OAD had no effect on that game.



2016 - Booker and Dakari expected to return prior to the season, affected recruiting for the following season.

Team just wasnt talented enough.

OAD had an effect due to players leaving unexpectedly. Not Cal's plan.



2017 - Referees killed our first half.

We did not shoot the ball well enough. Willis and Mulder missed way too many open 3's.

Bam, although beaten to death, did not provide an inside game.

Cal should have called a TO after Monk's shot - he has said himself that he doesnt want the defense to get set up when the tables are turned and his team is going for last shot, so he doesnt call a TO with the ball... bad coaching move.

Last second shot to higher seed.

OAD had no effect on that game.



So, other than those leaving that were not expected to, the OAD has been fine.

We have lost for the same reasons everyone else has:

poor play, poor coaching, poor refereeing, injuries, beaten by a better team

Excellent Post!

 

[3rex]

lol... "OAD had no effect on that game..."

ok, if you say so

 

[poppycat]

Excellent Post!

I wouldn't know, gonna wait for the movie to come out.

 

[TNCatfanforever]

(Repeating much of this from my response in another post)

I agree that we should have more than one title since Cal arrived, I think he does as well.

The OAD strategy Cal implemented has done the job superbly.

All you can ask for in a recruiting strategy is to be competitive enough to win a title.

No recruiting strategy guarantees a title.


The OAD strategy also brought collateral damage Cal didnt expect:

- Players leaving early that Cal did not recommend they go, nor anyone else, other than their friends and family.
- The culture in which players, and fans, now view a highly ranked kid who stays longer than one season as a failure.


So, why do we only have one title?


The same reasons every other team has for losing in the tournament.

1. Lost to a better team.
2. Injuries
3. Poor execution by the players in big time games
4. Poor execution by the coach in big time games
5. Terrible referees in big time games


My opinion

2010 - Players kept chucking 3's and Cal didnt call one or more TO's to stop this. I dont care about Huggy's vaunted 1-3-1. We had Wall who could penetrate any zone, as well as Boogie and PPat who could score with players draped on them.

OAD had no effect on that game - we had better players, who didnt play better and coach didnt take control.


2011 - Players didnt perform - T Jones 0-5 at the the line, Knight 6-23, 3-11 from 3.

OAD had no effect on that game - we had better players, who couldn't make shots, it happens.


2012 - Champs


2013 - Teague and Lamb expected to return, star player tore ACL, team just wasnt talented enough.

OAD had an effect due to players leaving unexpectedly. Not Cal's plan.



2014 - Cal did a great job turning the season around, I would like to have seen him zone UConn earlier in the game.

Harrisons couldn't handle Napier and Boatright

50% on free throws as a team

WCS injured. Randle Injured.

OAD had no effect on that game.



2015 - Cal should have called a timeout and set up our offense in final minutes of UW game.

Cal and his stall ball.

Guards did not feed the post.

Poor defense by multiple players on switches.

Poythress injury.

Bad referees

OAD had no effect on that game.



2016 - Booker and Dakari expected to return prior to the season, affected recruiting for the following season.

Team just wasnt talented enough.

OAD had an effect due to players leaving unexpectedly. Not Cal's plan.



2017 - Referees killed our first half.

We did not shoot the ball well enough. Willis and Mulder missed way too many open 3's.

Bam, although beaten to death, did not provide an inside game.

Cal should have called a TO after Monk's shot - he has said himself that he doesnt want the defense to get set up when the tables are turned and his team is going for last shot, so he doesnt call a TO with the ball... bad coaching move.

Last second shot to higher seed.

OAD had no effect on that game.



So, other than those leaving that were not expected to, the OAD has been fine.

We have lost for the same reasons everyone else has:

poor play, poor coaching, poor refereeing, injuries, beaten by a better team

Excellent work here....one more title would be nice but being 62 and knowing how rare a title is I just live being in the discussion every year. Cal has done that. There are about 30-40 great high schoo players each year and great coaches also. Thus a lot of parity...

 

[thebluestripes]

Cals best teams have had a mixture of oad's and some solid veterans. A team of only one and dones will win you many games, but they arent going to win many championships.

 

[chroix]

Great post OP. Cal keeps us in the hunt almost every year. Only a handful of teams, if that, can say the same.

 

[anon_013cn8yrfncx2]

"We did not shoot the ball well enough. Willis and Mulder missed way too many open 3's."

OAD did affect this. Mulder was recruited from JUCO to be our shooting guard last year. Then Murray reclassified, was signed, and Mulder sat on the pine. He also sat on the pine this year instead of getting 15 minutes a game which might have made a difference. Expecting him to save our *** yesterday is ridiculous.

Willis got a lot of run this year late but only because WG, who was given a long lease, (in order for him to be a OAD) failed. Willis should have started from day 1 and not been jerked out at every mistake. A more confident DW also might have made a difference yesterday.

You way over-simplified everything.

 

[TheWyldKat_rivals45219]

(Repeating much of this from my response in another post)

I agree that we should have more than one title since Cal arrived, I think he does as well.

The OAD strategy Cal implemented has done the job superbly.

All you can ask for in a recruiting strategy is to be competitive enough to win a title.

No recruiting strategy guarantees a title.


The OAD strategy also brought collateral damage Cal didnt expect:

- Players leaving early that Cal did not recommend they go, nor anyone else, other than their friends and family.
- The culture in which players, and fans, now view a highly ranked kid who stays longer than one season as a failure.


So, why do we only have one title?


The same reasons every other team has for losing in the tournament.

1. Lost to a better team.
2. Injuries
3. Poor execution by the players in big time games
4. Poor execution by the coach in big time games
5. Terrible referees in big time games


My opinion

2010 - Players kept chucking 3's and Cal didnt call one or more TO's to stop this. I dont care about Huggy's vaunted 1-3-1. We had Wall who could penetrate any zone, as well as Boogie and PPat who could score with players draped on them.

OAD had no effect on that game - we had better players, who didnt play better and coach didnt take control.


2011 - Players didnt perform - T Jones 0-5 at the the line, Knight 6-23, 3-11 from 3.

OAD had no effect on that game - we had better players, who couldn't make shots, it happens.


2012 - Champs


2013 - Teague and Lamb expected to return, star player tore ACL, team just wasnt talented enough.

OAD had an effect due to players leaving unexpectedly. Not Cal's plan.



2014 - Cal did a great job turning the season around, I would like to have seen him zone UConn earlier in the game.

Harrisons couldn't handle Napier and Boatright

50% on free throws as a team

WCS injured. Randle Injured.

OAD had no effect on that game.



2015 - Cal should have called a timeout and set up our offense in final minutes of UW game.

Cal and his stall ball.

Guards did not feed the post.

Poor defense by multiple players on switches.

Poythress injury.

Bad referees

OAD had no effect on that game.



2016 - Booker and Dakari expected to return prior to the season, affected recruiting for the following season.

Team just wasnt talented enough.

OAD had an effect due to players leaving unexpectedly. Not Cal's plan.



2017 - Referees killed our first half.

We did not shoot the ball well enough. Willis and Mulder missed way too many open 3's.

Bam, although beaten to death, did not provide an inside game.

Cal should have called a TO after Monk's shot - he has said himself that he doesnt want the defense to get set up when the tables are turned and his team is going for last shot, so he doesnt call a TO with the ball... bad coaching move.

Last second shot to higher seed.

OAD had no effect on that game.



So, other than those leaving that were not expected to, the OAD has been fine.

We have lost for the same reasons everyone else has:

poor play, poor coaching, poor refereeing, injuries, beaten by a better team

Well said!!

 

[gossie21_rivals69805]

I wouldn't know, gonna wait for the movie to come out.

Oh, you've seen the movies. The 3rd movie is the best in the series.

 

[KyFaninNC]

My reason for not liking OAD's has nothing to do with winning and losing.

This.

 

[Montana81]

I didn't always but I think I now agree with you. We had the pieces to get it done this year, 2014, 2010, 2011 and 2015. It wasn't the personnel. It just wasn't our year.

 

[dstroya]

Good breakdown Brian but to say OADS had no effect the first 2 years is incorrect IMO. Experienced talent t [know advantage of our inexperienced better talent. I know they had a whole year of experience by that time but the tourney is a different animal. PAT had experience but thanks to BCG not tourney experience really or Darius either. In 11 same situation just later in tourney as they did go on a good run but still inexperience reared it's ugly head against a more experienced team. That's why we finally broke thru in 12, 3 frosh with 2 sophs with FF experience plus Sr Miller.

 

[brianpoe]

"We did not shoot the ball well enough. Willis and Mulder missed way too many open 3's."

OAD did affect this. Mulder was recruited from JUCO to be our shooting guard last year. Then Murray reclassified, was signed, and Mulder sat on the pine. He also sat on the pine this year instead of getting 15 minutes a game which might have made a difference. Expecting him to save our *** yesterday is ridiculous.

Willis got a lot of run this year late but only because WG, who was given a long lease, (in order for him to be a OAD) failed. Willis should have started from day 1 and not been jerked out at every mistake. A more confident DW also might have made a difference yesterday.

You way over-simplified everything.

You keep repeating this false narrative.

Mulder was never recruited to be a primary option. He was always a last chance safety valve if all else failed measure.

Pretty well known fact.

Booker leaving was unexpected as was missing on Newman.

 

[brianpoe]

lol... "OAD had no effect on that game..."

ok, if you say so

Which game are you referencing?

 

[brianpoe]

Good breakdown Brian but to say OADS had no effect the first 2 years is incorrect IMO. Experienced talent t [know advantage of our inexperienced better talent. I know they had a whole year of experience by that time but the tourney is a different animal. PAT had experience but thanks to BCG not tourney experience really or Darius either. In 11 same situation just later in tourney as they did go on a good run but still inexperience reared it's ugly head against a more experienced team. That's why we finally broke thru in 12, 3 frosh with 2 sophs with FF experience plus Sr Miller.

Respectfully disagree, we didn't go 0 for 50 from 3 vs WV because we were freshmen.

Had Cal forced the swinging the ball side to side or penetration it would be a totally different game.

Our youth didn't hurt us nearly as bad as poor shooting in 10 or 11.

We hit a few 3s and Huggy comes out of Zone. Knight makes a couple shots or Jones hits the gimmies we win both.

We missed free throws in 97 too...

 

[d2atTech]

"We did not shoot the ball well enough. Willis and Mulder missed way too many open 3's."

OAD did affect this. Mulder was recruited from JUCO to be our shooting guard last year. Then Murray reclassified, was signed, and Mulder sat on the pine. He also sat on the pine this year instead of getting 15 minutes a game which might have made a difference. Expecting him to save our *** yesterday is ridiculous.

Willis got a lot of run this year late but only because WG, who was given a long lease, (in order for him to be a OAD) failed. Willis should have started from day 1 and not been jerked out at every mistake. A more confident DW also might have made a difference yesterday.

You way over-simplified everything.

This is Cal's one big weakness. He has to find a way to empower OADs, while enabling multi-year players. With that said, it's on the players to be dominant. Just imagine TJ when he came back for his sophomore year. He abused everyone including davis, and that's how he became the team leader.

 

[brianpoe]

Cals best teams have had a mixture of oad's and some solid veterans. A team of only one and dones will win you many games, but they arent going to win many championships.

Our championship team had 3 OADs, 2 sophs and 1 senior.

I guess Sophs are now considered solid vets?

 

[anon_013cn8yrfncx2]

You keep repeating this false narrative.

Mulder was never recruited to be a primary option. He was always a last chance safety valve if all else failed measure.

Pretty well known fact.

Booker leaving was unexpected as was missing on Newman.

Maybe well known to you. I'm not buying

he was signed to play behind two guys just in case. Heck, he didn't play being behind just one. The point is, he was not used, and now folks expected him to perform yesterday. OAD affected that he didn't get time on the court and was eventually thrust into a high level of play when another failed OAD had to sit.

 

[JohnnyGentle]

most inconsistent, unreliable, undisciplined player this year was a senior

 

[BigBlueFanGA]

(Repeating much of this from my response in another post)

I agree that we should have more than one title since Cal arrived, I think he does as well.

The OAD strategy Cal implemented has done the job superbly.

All you can ask for in a recruiting strategy is to be competitive enough to win a title.

No recruiting strategy guarantees a title.


The OAD strategy also brought collateral damage Cal didnt expect:

- Players leaving early that Cal did not recommend they go, nor anyone else, other than their friends and family.
- The culture in which players, and fans, now view a highly ranked kid who stays longer than one season as a failure.


So, why do we only have one title?


The same reasons every other team has for losing in the tournament.

1. Lost to a better team.
2. Injuries
3. Poor execution by the players in big time games
4. Poor execution by the coach in big time games
5. Terrible referees in big time games


My opinion

2010 - Players kept chucking 3's and Cal didnt call one or more TO's to stop this. I dont care about Huggy's vaunted 1-3-1. We had Wall who could penetrate any zone, as well as Boogie and PPat who could score with players draped on them.

OAD had no effect on that game - we had better players, who didnt play better and coach didnt take control.


2011 - Players didnt perform - T Jones 0-5 at the the line, Knight 6-23, 3-11 from 3.

OAD had no effect on that game - we had better players, who couldn't make shots, it happens.


2012 - Champs


2013 - Teague and Lamb expected to return, star player tore ACL, team just wasnt talented enough.

OAD had an effect due to players leaving unexpectedly. Not Cal's plan.



2014 - Cal did a great job turning the season around, I would like to have seen him zone UConn earlier in the game.

Harrisons couldn't handle Napier and Boatright

50% on free throws as a team

WCS injured. Randle Injured.

OAD had no effect on that game.



2015 - Cal should have called a timeout and set up our offense in final minutes of UW game.

Cal and his stall ball.

Guards did not feed the post.

Poor defense by multiple players on switches.

Poythress injury.

Bad referees

OAD had no effect on that game.



2016 - Booker and Dakari expected to return prior to the season, affected recruiting for the following season.

Team just wasnt talented enough.

OAD had an effect due to players leaving unexpectedly. Not Cal's plan.



2017 - Referees killed our first half.

We did not shoot the ball well enough. Willis and Mulder missed way too many open 3's.

Bam, although beaten to death, did not provide an inside game.

Cal should have called a TO after Monk's shot - he has said himself that he doesnt want the defense to get set up when the tables are turned and his team is going for last shot, so he doesnt call a TO with the ball... bad coaching move.

Last second shot to higher seed.

OAD had no effect on that game.



So, other than those leaving that were not expected to, the OAD has been fine.

We have lost for the same reasons everyone else has:

poor play, poor coaching, poor refereeing, injuries, beaten by a better team

Nice post Brian. I think Cal has tried to build more of a longterm foundation but the collateral damage keeps ruining it. I still think we need some experienced talent to get over the hump but I could just as easily be dead wrong.

There is no denying Cal has put us in the position to win a title almost every year.

 

[brianpoe]

Maybe well known to you. I'm not buying

he was signed to play behind two guys just in case. Heck, he didn't play being behind just one. The point is, he was not used, and now folks expected him to perform yesterday. OAD affected that he didn't get time on the court and was eventually thrust into a high level of play when another failed OAD had to sit.

He obviously wasnt good enough to play last year.

His defense wasnt good at all, nor was his shooting. In 20 games last year he hit 20% from the field and 16% from 3.

He was always an emergency backup in case we didnt find another player. Which we did.

Tyler was always going to play almost every minute.

Murray was our scorer and we had Briscoe.

We also had Dom.

We cant play everyone just because they are on the bench.

Sounds like you bought the juco hype, which rarely translates.

 

[brianpoe]

Nice post Brian. I think Cal has tried to build more of a longterm foundation but the collateral damage keeps ruining it. I still think we need some experienced talent to get over the hump but I could just as easily be dead wrong.

There is no denying Cal has put us in the position to win a title almost every year.

You are absolutely correct, but that experience needs to come from highly ranked kids who are not yet ready to go pro and decide to stay like at every other program.

 

[BoxterS]

I have no problem with OAD's. They are the most talented and we are adding more history to our resume while cal thrusts UK into lore yet again for a new generation. Can't argue with that.

If I were to get more detailed, I'd say perhaps we shouldn't have gone so hard on the subject and the beast would have been easier to tame. Guys like Briscoe, Bam, Teague etc shouldn't leave after one. Really wish Cal could get a handle on that. Aside from officiating costing us, this has as well.

My main gripe is Cal allowing negative recruiting kill us with talented freshman who aren't sure if they're OAD. Cal has been beaten to a pulp trying to land these. Guys like Kennard can still come here and play multiple years. For some reason Cal can't get that message through. He needs to try harder. It's not going to hurt recruiting to have blues return.

Great post

 

[JohnnyGentle]

Willis should have started from day 1 and not been jerked out at every mistake.

he made enough mistakes yesterday to make it pretty plain why they gave gabriel a chance

when diallo came in i hoped they were going to try him there

 

[mash_24]

I agree with the majority of the op. One of the small quibbles I have with Cal. He limits his bench by not giving them more time in the early season games. Before you tell me he is using that time for the freshman one and doners, save it. They aren't learning much in a 40 pt blowout except bad habits. He's the greatest recruiter in the history of the game. He should be using all his resources each year. No reason why UNC was considered to be deeper than us. That being said none of that cost us yesterday. Our bench was great. We just got beat. First half officiating got us off rythem and we could not find the groove we had against. UCLA. I love Cal. Hope he stays another 10-12 yrs. just wish he would change a few small things.

 

[Elliott Tim]

I have no problem with OAD's. They are the most talented and we are adding more history to our resume while cal thrusts UK into lore yet again for a new generation. Can't argue with that.

If I were to get more detailed, I'd say perhaps we shouldn't have gone so hard on the subject and the beast would have been easier to tame. Guys like Briscoe, Bam, Teague etc shouldn't leave after one. Really wish Cal could get a handle on that. Aside from officiating costing us, this has as well.

My main gripe is Cal allowing negative recruiting kill us with talented freshman who aren't sure if they're OAD. Cal has been beaten to a pulp trying to land these. Guys like Kennard can still come here and play multiple years. For some reason Cal can't get that message through. He needs to try harder. It's not going to hurt recruiting to have blues return.

You can't force kids to stay against their will. Even if they're told to stay, they still may or may not go
Hopefully (I really doubt it) the NBA and players will negotiate a better plan in the future.
I won't hold my breath.

 

[Blueaz]

Good post. Calipari has control over #3 and #4. To that end, he needs to do everything that he can to prepare his teams to be able to effectively run plays and defend in such a way that it puts his teams in a position to win every game, including, calling necessary time outs and making the guys shoot free throws. The other elements are beyond his control - so revamping some of his in game and pregame strategies may pay dividends, if he chooses to make some changes. I think this loss was a very difficult one for the players and coaches. I expect that we will see some shifts in Cal's methodology for next season - just a hunch.

I agree. I think he made changes throughout the season that he normally wouldn't. Everyone always has room to improve, no matter their profession.

 

[Blueaz]

he made enough mistakes yesterday to make it pretty plain why they gave gabriel a chance

when diallo came in i hoped they were going to try him there

Unfortunately correct. I was hoping for Willis to be a UK legend.

 

[Blueaz]

Btw great thread with respectful, mostly thoughtful responses... without name calling.

 

[BillyD614]

The one is done is good for the rest of college basketball.........cause if not for that Cal would have a title every other year. He works with a different team every year....NO other coach does that and can get the results he does......

 

[morgousky]

You can't force kids to stay against their will. Even if they're told to stay, they still may or may not go
Hopefully (I really doubt it) the NBA and players will negotiate a better plan in the future.
I won't hold my breath.

That's not my point. Kentucky is the only program where freshman go almost yearly that shouldn't. It's a problem special to us because Cal went 0-100 trying to implement this system to get the nost talented recruits. I think we could be just as good or better had we pumped the breaks a tad on our message. For whatever reason, our recruiting pitch has become interpreted at 2 year blues are failures. It's been used against us by coaches like Howard and Capel, and it's worked. A bit self inflicted imo but in fairness Cal probably didn't know people would fully buy in to the extremes of that image.

 

[Elliott Tim]

That's not my point. Kentucky is the only program where freshman go almost yearly that shouldn't. It's a problem special to us because Cal went 0-100 trying to implement this system to get the nost talented recruits. I think we could be just as good or better had we pumped the breaks a tad on our message. For whatever reason, our recruiting pitch has become interpreted at 2 year blues are failures. It's been used against us by coaches like Howard and Capel, and it's worked. A bit self inflicted imo but in fairness Cal probably didn't know people would fully buy in to the extremes of that image.

Forgive my dumbness, but can you expound on 0-100?

 

[Mike-D]

(Repeating much of this from my response in another post)

I agree that we should have more than one title since Cal arrived, I think he does as well.

The OAD strategy Cal implemented has done the job superbly.

All you can ask for in a recruiting strategy is to be competitive enough to win a title.

No recruiting strategy guarantees a title.


The OAD strategy also brought collateral damage Cal didnt expect:

- Players leaving early that Cal did not recommend they go, nor anyone else, other than their friends and family.
- The culture in which players, and fans, now view a highly ranked kid who stays longer than one season as a failure.


So, why do we only have one title?


The same reasons every other team has for losing in the tournament.

1. Lost to a better team.
2. Injuries
3. Poor execution by the players in big time games
4. Poor execution by the coach in big time games
5. Terrible referees in big time games


My opinion

2010 - Players kept chucking 3's and Cal didnt call one or more TO's to stop this. I dont care about Huggy's vaunted 1-3-1. We had Wall who could penetrate any zone, as well as Boogie and PPat who could score with players draped on them.

OAD had no effect on that game - we had better players, who didnt play better and coach didnt take control.


2011 - Players didnt perform - T Jones 0-5 at the the line, Knight 6-23, 3-11 from 3.

OAD had no effect on that game - we had better players, who couldn't make shots, it happens.


2012 - Champs


2013 - Teague and Lamb expected to return, star player tore ACL, team just wasnt talented enough.

OAD had an effect due to players leaving unexpectedly. Not Cal's plan.



2014 - Cal did a great job turning the season around, I would like to have seen him zone UConn earlier in the game.

Harrisons couldn't handle Napier and Boatright

50% on free throws as a team

WCS injured. Randle Injured.

OAD had no effect on that game.



2015 - Cal should have called a timeout and set up our offense in final minutes of UW game.

Cal and his stall ball.

Guards did not feed the post.

Poor defense by multiple players on switches.

Poythress injury.

Bad referees

OAD had no effect on that game.



2016 - Booker and Dakari expected to return prior to the season, affected recruiting for the following season.

Team just wasnt talented enough.

OAD had an effect due to players leaving unexpectedly. Not Cal's plan.



2017 - Referees killed our first half.

We did not shoot the ball well enough. Willis and Mulder missed way too many open 3's.

Bam, although beaten to death, did not provide an inside game.

Cal should have called a TO after Monk's shot - he has said himself that he doesnt want the defense to get set up when the tables are turned and his team is going for last shot, so he doesnt call a TO with the ball... bad coaching move.

Last second shot to higher seed.

OAD had no effect on that game.



So, other than those leaving that were not expected to, the OAD has been fine.

We have lost for the same reasons everyone else has:

poor play, poor coaching, poor refereeing, injuries, beaten by a better team

You're one of the best here.

 

[Mike-D]

I agree we should have another title. Or two. That's why we have some going insane. Still, even so, Cal has been the first or second best coach in college basketball since he's been here. I think our return rate is way too low from transfers or guys that leave too early for the NBA. That has really hurt us, IMO.

Players first program is great for recruiting, but at times I think it also gives us fits. There is no reason why our only 4 year players are from Kentucky. Plenty of good players out there we could sprinkle in for 4 years outside this state. Problem is, they all think they're one and done when recruited. Double edged sword.

 

[TnRustyCAT]

"We did not shoot the ball well enough. Willis and Mulder missed way too many open 3's."

OAD did affect this. Mulder was recruited from JUCO to be our shooting guard last year. Then Murray reclassified, was signed, and Mulder sat on the pine. He also sat on the pine this year instead of getting 15 minutes a game which might have made a difference. Expecting him to save our *** yesterday is ridiculous.

Willis got a lot of run this year late but only because WG, who was given a long lease, (in order for him to be a OAD) failed. Willis should have started from day 1 and not been jerked out at every mistake. A more confident DW also might have made a difference yesterday.

You way over-simplified everything.

[thumb2]!!!