"Will Cal win another Championship at UK?"

[irishcat1965]

They'll still ***** and moan. We're not dealing with logical human beings here. We're dealing with idiots.

This. What is mind boggling is UK has won 4 titles in 58 years. FOUR. Cal has one of them in six years. The stupidity that is exhibited here is astonishing.

 

[Aike]

The real key to 2012 was MKG and Davis- our two best player. Love Miller, but how was our fifth-best player the real key?

It's called moving the bar.

Used to be "couldn't win with freshman."

Now it's, "need an experienced guy like Miller."

Whatever good Cal ever does is some kind of fluke. Don't you know that?

 

[wcc31]

This. What is mind boggling is UK has won 4 titles in 58 years. FOUR. Cal has one of them in six years. The stupidity that is exhibited here is astonishing.

Maybe he should've taken the requisite 3-4 years for the post-Gillispie rebuilding process instead of 3 months.

 

[wcc31]

It's called moving the bar.

Used to be "couldn't win with freshman."

Now it's, "need an experienced guy like Miller."

Whatever good Cal ever does is some kind of fluke. Don't you know that?

Yep. Same "real key was Miller" guys are likely the ones also bitching about Humphries and Wynyard not being ready to help right now.

 

[JasonS.]

I'd vote yes. But I'd say it's close to a 50/50 proposition?

Tournament is such a fickle deal. History shows the "favorite" only has around a 20% chance of winning it all going into the first weekend, let alone the 67 other teams. Last year Nate Silver had Duke with a 6% chance. That's what makes it fun.

 

[OldEvilleCat]

Yes.... and we will go 40-0. WRITE IT DOWN!!

I have no idea, but I like to think Kentucky will win another one soon.

 

[ganner918_rivals60369]

Why is it that once Cal won his first title, the narrative changed from "it doesn't matter how much talent he gets, his inexperienced teams will never win" to "well he has all that talent, it's a failure if he doesn't win." We can't act like best talent = automatic win. Inexperience (individually and as a unit) is a negative. Every system any coach runs has flaws - there is no such thing as a perfect system. We have one of the best, but it has flaws, and it's ridiculous to act like it doesn't and that we should have 3 titles under Cal. Not only do you have to deal with the randomness of a 68 team 1-and-out tournament where the best team isn't always going to win, we have to acknowledge that there is an inherent weakness in our system. Not a crippling one - it puts us in contention almost every year, and no program is stronger than we are. But it's ridiculous and entitled to think we should be racking up titles when we've won 4 in the last 57 years.

 

[akaukswoosh]

Why not this question? Would Cal have more than one championship here if WCS and Poythress didn't have season ending injuries?

 

[brianpoe]

He was one of the only players on that team that could consistently make a perimeter shot

This guy says hi...

 

[wcc31]

Why is it that once Cal won his first title, the narrative changed from "it doesn't matter how much talent he gets, his inexperienced teams will never win" to "well he has all that talent, it's a failure if he doesn't win." We can't act like best talent = automatic win. Inexperience (individually and as a unit) is a negative. Every system any coach runs has flaws - there is no such thing as a perfect system. We have one of the best, but it has flaws, and it's ridiculous to act like it doesn't and that we should have 3 titles under Cal. Not only do you have to deal with the randomness of a 68 team 1-and-out tournament where the best team isn't always going to win, we have to acknowledge that there is an inherent weakness in our system. Not a crippling one - it puts us in contention almost every year, and no program is stronger than we are. But it's ridiculous and entitled to think we should be racking up titles when we've won 4 in the last 57 years.

Great post. I've been curious about the narrative change as well.

I'm also sitting here waiting for Pat Forde to write a "Coach K, you made your bed..." column this year, but that's another story altogether.

 

[ZenCatFan73]

I like the Adebayo "nuts-on-the-back-of-your-head" youtube dunk pic.

 

[wcc31]

Why not this question? Would Cal have more than one championship here if WCS and Poythress didn't have season ending injuries?

You never know, but you would think WCS's presence would have deterred UConn's constant drives to the paint in '14 and Poythress was definitely our only player suited to guard guys like ND's Connaghton and Wisconsin's Dekker. That's the only thing that team lacked after Poythress went down- a guy who could guard a true SF.

 

[Cats_2010]

They'll still ***** and moan. We're not dealing with logical human beings here. We're dealing with idiots.

Interesting that you failed to quote the next text of his post that said he choked last year, do you not take offense to that? He is not an idiot himself for even saying that?

I don't even know if I would use the word choke but he certainly did mismanage the game down the stretch.

To answer the question of the OP. I believe it will be tough for him to win another unless he adjusts his coaching style. All man all the time and the opposing coach knowing this puts us in a tougher position as coaches can gameplan and strategize how to attack us as a result. Imagine playing Bama in Football and knowing they will never pass, I mean ever, they run every single time regardless if it is being effective or not. Do you think they would be winning multiple championships.

Not sure why it is so hard for people to understand that making us one dimensional makes us easier to beat. Last years team was so good and so talented they could be one dimensional and still only lose one game, even though it was a game that mattered the most. Had that team not been as one dimensional as they were they were as close to being unbeatable as you will find in CBB. Look at the early part of our schedule when we killed everyone, WHY? No tape and tendencies of the team for coaches to plan around and exploit. Players still have to execute on the other team and knock down shots but as they year went along, we saw last years defense not be as dominate as the year progressed, even though they were still pretty darned good.

Cal is a phenomenal coach but he is cheating himself and his teams from reaching their maximum potential by not being more diverse with his strategies.

 

[The_Answer1313_rivals]

Will Cal ever win a 2nd here? I don't know

Will Cal have us in title contention the majority of the years he's here? Yep

That's all u can ask for

 

[WeWant9]

Sadly, some in our own fanbase are creating this narrative that will become fodder for the media. Cal is in his seventh season here, yet some people want to act like he's been here for three decades, like K.

Our fanbase gives dickhead media members plenty of ammo to make us look bad.

 

[ZenCatFan73]

Will Cal ever win a 2nd here? I don't know

Will Cal have us in title contention the majority of the years he's here? Yep

That's all u can ask for

You basically pulled this thought right outta my brain, like Charles Xavier.

 

[joe710]

I'm sure Cal will win another championship. He's one of the best coaches, and the best recruiter. I think the question should be does he need to win another championship, which I think the answer is also yes. Every great coach needs a 2nd title to solidify their legacy, without it their will always be doubters. At the same time, getting to the final four is nothing to scoff at. I think sometimes people forget that getting to the final four is winning something, that's why they hang banners.

 

[jwheat]

If Bam and Monk aren't enough.

 

[ganner918_rivals60369]

Will Cal ever win a 2nd here? I don't know

Will Cal have us in title contention the majority of the years he's here? Yep

That's all u can ask for

Exactly. We need to think back to our mindsets circa 2006. "We aren't asking to win titles all the time, we just want to be in the conversation on a regular basis." That was the consensus in our fanbase. We have that and more.

 

[LineSkiCat14]

If this was some sort of MLB/NBA format, with multi-game series.. Kentucky wins the title in 2010, 2012, 2014, and 2015. Can't give the nod to 2011 though, I think OSU beats us in a series, but you could definitely make the case for 2011.

3 game series, Cal takes home the hardware in 4 of 6 years.. That's all I need to know.

 

[The_Answer1313_rivals]

If this was some sort of MLB/NBA format, with multi-game series.. Kentucky wins the title in 2010, 2012, 2014, and 2015. Can't give the nod to 2011 though, I think OSU beats us in a series, but you could definitely make the case for 2011.

3 game series, Cal takes home the hardware in 4 of 6 years.. That's all I need to know.

We would have had a better chance most definitely.

2014.....probably not. I don't think we were close to the best team that year. We came on at the end but it did take clutch shot after clutch shot by Aaron to even get there.

2010.......the only reason I'm hesitate is because I'm not entirely sure we were the best team. We definitely weren't the clear cut favorite in either year.

But overall I agree with the point. More games = more talented teams win.

 

[BourbonBalz]

I don't think there's any doubt, assuming he doesn't leave any time in the next year or two. Hell, with a little luck he could have three more already. We were the best team in the country in 2010 and if we hadn't had a terrible shooting game against W. Virginia, we would've won it that year. We got beat by one point in the Final Four the following year and Butler would not have beaten us in the title game. We played in the title game in 2014 and then last year we definitely should've won it. My point is, we were a play away from already having multiple titles.

 

[Stenchymouse]

The only thing that would have helped us win that game was playing Booker and Ulis more. If that happens...we win. The last few minutes of that game were horrendous to watch. Cal had one plan....get the ball to Karl. When that fell through the Harrisons stood and passed the ball around until the shot clock ran out.

Okay, well, still...

Cal didn't try anything different.

That's my ONLY complaint about Cal.

He won't make "in game" adjustments.

 

[brianpoe]

If this was some sort of MLB/NBA format, with multi-game series.. Kentucky wins the title in 2010, 2012, 2014, and 2015. Can't give the nod to 2011 though, I think OSU beats us in a series, but you could definitely make the case for 2011.

3 game series, Cal takes home the hardware in 4 of 6 years.. That's all I need to know.

If the 3 game series were for the Final Four and Title games only... we would have won every year but 2013... just my opinion.

 

[wldktz1]

I don't think there's any doubt, assuming he doesn't leave any time in the next year or two. Hell, with a little luck he could have three more already. We were the best team in the country in 2010 and if we hadn't had a terrible shooting game against W. Virginia, we would've won it that year. We got beat by one point in the Final Four the following year and Butler would not have beaten us in the title game. We played in the title game in 2014 and then last year we definitely should've won it. My point is, we were a play away from already having multiple titles.

At the end of the day when we look back all that will matter is (insert team) won the title. It's not going to matter how close we were. To UK fans being in contention is a part of the conversation. However to the casual fan all they will care about is who won not who came close. If Cal doesn't win at least another one I believe that will somewhat cloud his legacy at UK. Why could teams like dUKe and UConn win multiple titles, but UK couldn't with loads of talent.

 

[LineSkiCat14]

That's what is so infuriating about College Ball and Cal's tenure here. People have now put a guy like Nick Saban a notch above Cal. Why? There's 4 teams a year that can beat Alabama.. that's it.

Even a super-team like 2015 Kentucky can STILL get beat by 25-30 teams.

 

[CUT-NETS]

He was one of the only players on that team that could consistently make a perimeter shot

@brianpoe notice it says "one of the only" not "the only"

 

[stuway]

Yes he will. And I hope when he does, he goes Matt Jones and calls out these posters who continue this idiocy!!

 

[wldktz1]

Yes he will. And I hope when he does, he goes Matt Jones and calls out these posters who continue this idiocy!!

Idiocy? Both UConn and dUKe have won multiple titles since Cal has been at UK. We coulda, shoulda, woulda doesn't count. If we keep going to the FF then yes there is a good chance, but it most certainly not guaranteed. Injuries have certainly played a major role in not finishing. Cal has been here 6 years. If Cal stayed here for 10 years an only had one title he really would have accomplished no more than Tubby or Pitino did according to UK standard which is hanging banners for championships.

 

[.S&C.]

Cal will be at UK another 6-10 years. Given how he recruits, it's highly likely he will win another one. To make others believe he didn't underachieve, he will need two more. Just the nature of the beast.

 

[king of cali]

Want an example of a favorable bracket? Look at Florida's run of Elite 8s a few year back. Look at Duke's bracket in '10.

To this day, people still whine about having to play WVU in Syracuse. I can only imagine the crying had UK had Dukes bracket and had to play Baylor in Texas to get to the Final 4.

 

[wldktz1]

Cal will be at UK another 6-10 years. Given how he recruits, it's highly likely he will win another one. To make others believe he didn't underachieve, he will need two more. Just the nature of the beast.

I think so too. However just think for a second. If we don't win in 2012 due to injury or bad game Cal is still searching for his first title and UK's 8th. I think everyone got excited when Cal said we are chasing UCLA. The way it looks now is that it will be several decades before we even possibly catch UCLA in titles.

 

[Xception]

Only if we get some of the experienced players to come back. I do not think a National Title can be won with strictly freshman and little used reserves that spent a year on the bench. Josh Harrellson was an exception but the real key to the 2012 team was Darius Miller and his senior leadership.

Miller played worse than anybody in the title game against Kansas , we were winning that with or without him . Davis shot poorly but otherwise dominated with a mop to prove it , Teague and MKG played very well as freshman . If what you said was correct then it would be the other way around , talent wins championships . Kansas had more seniority than UK but they lost .

 

[Xception]

First they swore you couldn't win it with so many fr. , then Cal won it with three fr. and two soph. starting . Then it was , you can't win it with only fr. and then Cal took an all fr. starting five within a couple of plays of the title . Then it was , why can't you win it with all that talent .

 

[brianpoe]

@brianpoe notice it says "one of the only" not "the only"

Well you went from 1/6th of the players who actually played to one third... just saying.

If anyone asks who the most consistent perimeter shooter on the team was the answer is Lamb.

But hey I love Miller too.

Just doing my job in helping you to become the most factual poster you can be!

 

[Cowtown Cat]

We were SO long that a zone COULD have absolutely helped against Wisconsin.

I can't imagine why anyone would not agree that at least TRYING different things couldn't have helped in some of those situations.

Because Wisconsin would have shot us out of a zone. Wisconsin wasn't a good driving team either. Our problem against them.was getting caught on switches. We won 38 games straight. Why fix something that wasn't broken?

 

[wyldcatsfan]

Sooner than later, i think. Next years squad along with what is gonna stay over should be a great shot. Then the crazies may be happy....who knows

 

[wldktz1]

First they swore you couldn't win it with so many fr. , then Cal won it with three fr. and two soph. starting . Then it was , you can't win it with only fr. and then Cal took an all fr. starting five within a couple of plays of the title . Then it was , why can't you win it with all that talent . I do think though that if we can get hot this year and win the tournament there is a really good chance to win back to back titles.

Syracuse did it before we did it. They had one senior and one junior. That team was lead by FR and SO. However Cal hasn't proven them wrong yet. Just getting to the FF and NC isn't enough. Nobody is going to look back and say "Hey look how many times UK went to the FF and NC games. They will say "dUKe won it twice, UConn won twice, but UK only won once."

 

[irishcat1965]

Well one thing is certain- the tards aren't winning it this year. [laughing]

 

[Stenchymouse]

Because Wisconsin would have shot us out of a zone. Wisconsin wasn't a good driving team either. Our problem against them.was getting caught on switches. We won 38 games straight. Why fix something that wasn't broken?

You must have seen a different game than I did.

Wisconsin didn't beat us by just hitting 3's.

They absolutely spread us out and drove the ball.

The Harrison's and Booker couldn't stay in front of opposing guards but it didn't matter with the rim protectors we had.

Once teams started pulling our bigs away from the basket, there was no rim protection.

Once they got us back on our heels, the 3's were wide open as well.

Ole Miss found the formula and several other teams tried it.

Notre Dame almost pulled it off!