Brunettes Get Better Grades

Here is a post by UK_Cats_Fan on the controversy in Birmingham on Bledsoe’s grades. She sums up the issue nicely.

This story has caused panic among the Big Blue Nation. When I take the emotion out of it and attempt to look at it objectively a few things come to mind…

*UK has a bullseye on them…I know it, you know it…everyone knows it! Cal has preached it over and over. In an interview a few weeks ago he said (paraphrasing, because I can’t remember word for word at this point) ‘I’m not going to address each story that comes out falsely accusing either myself or the University of wrongdoing. The bottom line is we are doing things the right way, period. There are those who hate me, who hate UK and there are always going to be stories filled with false allegations and speculation…blah, blah, blah…(you get the point…bottom line he strongly emphasized WE are doing things RIGHT!)

*The investigation into the eligibility of Bledsoe was thorough AND was conducted more than once by the NCAA! It has been stated that the due diligence on the Bledsoe eligibility was reviewed and reviewed again in order to make sure no one (NCAA Compliance or UK Compliance) missed anything. IF there ends up being a problem then…well, start by firing the yahoos at the NCAA who cannot do their job!

*The stories out there on this subject are filled with speculation and innuendo…panic has set in and people are declaring doom and gloom before the facts are all in….people are of the mindset that wins are vacated and UK is in trouble because an Alabama school is having this investigated. (Since the slime reporter Thamel broke this big “story” they had little choice really as far as I see it).

*This is a kid we are talking about…THAT is one of the most troubling things in this whole situation. SOMEONE has provided confidential information (false or not) about a kid’s high school grades….THIS IS WRONG, WRONG, WRONG!!! He played for our team, some may have liked him/some not…but bottom line is he was a KID, and a kid who had a hard life (one which most, if not all, of us have no concept of)…I’m not about to throw him under the bus and start slamming him on using this program as a stepping stone to the NBA. That kid worked his butt off on the court every single day while he wore “Kentucky” across his chest. At times he had a bit of a chip on his shoulder…but if I had walked a mile in that kid’s shoes I might have had the same…bottom line, it’s not my place (or anyone else’s) to judge him for that!

When this story fades, there will be another and another and another…every single one of us knows this to be a fact…after all, we have that big bullseye sitting right on our heads. It’s a waste of time to hit the panic button every time the negative story hits the headlines. After all, THAT is exactly what the writers such as Thamel, Forde, Tipton, etc are seeking…when the panic sets in the power of the BBN is massive…even where there isn’t a story, it becomes a story…and it doesn’t take a second for it to hit the national scene. We are Kentucky…everyone wants to see us take the fall!

I’m not discounting that there could be a problem with this Bledsoe situation…all I’m saying is that it is entirely too early to start marking those W’s off the record…I’m holding out to see the final report…and not one submitted by an Alabama school…the only one that means anything in the grand scheme of things is the one by the NCAA…and they haven’t even officially started ANOTHER one.

Another thing, Cal obviously has the dark clouds looming over his head because of UMass and Memphis…although we could argue endlessly that he was never implicated personally in those problems, he can’t shake the ill effects that has left behind on his reputation across the country. I find it impossible to imagine a scenario where he would take the chance on doing something wrong….he KNOWS all about the bullseye (both on himself and the one on the University). A scandal at UK would be devastating to his career. As hard as that man works…I can’t possibly imagine how he would take the risk of knowingly violating the NCAA rules and jeopardizing his livelihood.

All this rambling to say one basic thing…it’s way too early in the day to start declaring doom and gloom across the BBN! Time to take a deep breath and remember that not everything you read in the newspaper is completely factual…it’s business, and the best business generally comes when you tweak and mold things in a way that gives you the best result…in this case…pandemonium in Big Blue Land.

This has nothing to do with the nice piece UK_Cats_Fan wrote but BigBlueRules has just discovered something blonde’s have known forever, brunettes get better grades.

Climbing the Wall

I’m impressed.  And it takes a lot for a freshman to impress me.  But to have four of them impress me at one time is impossible.  Or at least it was.  The UK basketball team was on full display last night and the changes were monumental.  This has been the most horrid defensive fundamental team I have ever seen in blue until last night.  Last night they played like one of the best defensive fundamental teams that I have seen.  The stats do not always show what really happens in a game.  UK has won without playing very good defense largely based on the missed wide open shots of the other team.  UK has won big on the nights the other team missed most of the wide open shots and won close on the nights the other team made most of the wide open shots.  The key has been wide open shots.  The reasons for the wide open shots come down to a total lack of fundamentals that cause numerous breakdowns on any given play.  Many times, the guy who has scored wasn’t defended by the guy who started the breakdown with poor play.

All of that changed last night.  Wall and Bledsoe both played back court defense like seasoned veterans.  Off the ball they had one eye on their man and one eye on the ball, players communicated, switches were timely and seamless. 

 But that isn’t what impressed me.  Wall impressed me.  I’ve been fighting it tooth and nail but at some point you have to simply tip your hat to the kid.  He isn’t the best freshman in the land simply because he can run faster and jump higher.  He’s the best because he is always thinking and he is always, and I mean always, looking for ways to improve.  The knock on he and Bledsoe has been outside shooting, but they both seem to have very good form, rhythm and focus on their shots to me.  Both are a legitimate threat to score if you leave them open on the outside which is what this team needs.  It goes beyond basketball.  He is trying (and I assume he is on course) to make all A’s this semester.  That is NOT the sign of a one and done.  That is a sign of a kid who wants to do everything right.  Folks, getting all A’s and also carrying a top division one basketball load is very hard to do.  Let’s face it, the only stat that really showed all the mistakes he was making early on was his turnover stat.  He was not in control much at all.  Some were calling for him to go to the bench but he is much more of a learn on the fly type of player and it’s showing.  It sometimes takes kids three years to learn what they can and can not do when you go from a high school court to a division one court.  He is figuring it out in a hand full of games.

 Bledsoe Impressed me.  He was the absolute worst defender I have ever seen in the first few games.  I used to play with a guy like him.  Fast as lightening but didn’t think they were playing defense unless they were guarding the ball.  This guy frustrated the wholly crap out of me because he would leave his guy wide open under the basket to go guard the ball, which was already being guarded, at the top of the key.  Bledsoe wasn’t that bad but he was very close.  But there he was last night, one eye on his man and one eye on the ball.  Textbook defense and UK had very few breakdowns because of it.  But I think back to when he signed with UK.  I thought it was a load of blue crap when Cal convinced Bledsoe that he and Wall could play together.  Two point guards at one time?  That seemed quite stupid to me at the time.  But here we are and Bledsoe has been the consummate off guard/Combo guard.  It takes a lot of skill to be able to adjust to the change from high school to college, but to also have to adjust to a position change?

  Big Cuz impressed me.  The guy just plain looks mad when he plays.  And I, for one, am ok with that.  His issue has been HAVING a chip on his shoulder versus PLAYING with a chip on his shoulder.  His issue has been understanding what he can control versus what he can not control.  But I thought he went a long way in understanding those things last night.  He is probably the most gifted player in college basketball, when you consider his size, speed, quickness, touch and ball handling.  But he feels that playing basketball is like going to war and I, for one, can understand that mentality.  I also can understand that it’s the edge he has used to hone the skills that he possesses.  Playing sports is our modern day form of war games.  Maybe the world would be a much better place if conflicts were decided on the basketball court versus a battlefield, but that’s another topic for another day.

Orton Impressed me.  The guy has been a rock every time he has stepped on the court.  I get the sense that he goes to war when he steps on the court as well, but he does it in a more quite, subtle way.  He isn’t as quick as Big Cuz and he doesn’t have the refined skills but he is just as deadly around the basket.  I honestly think the team plays better with him in most of the time because he has been much more sound fundamentally from day one.  I haven’t seen a time where he wasn’t playing within himself. 

  Some might say that you can’t really tell much from the game because it was against UNC-Asheville.  But these are things that matter in any game.  Things get tougher now.  These kids will have to learn what they can and can not do all over again once the competition stiffens.  But to have already come as far as they have fundamentally goes along way in climbing that wall.  I am impressed, and you should be too.

Blue White Game

Boy was that fun. The blue white game just finished and a Realtor came to show the house I’m in to a nice couple. She is from Louisville and we had fun dissing each other. Next to the game and her nose ring it made my day.

How do you start to describe the potential this team has. I haven’t seen the final stats yet but #8 could happen this year if things go right.

Start with Patrick Patterson. If he isn’t first team All American this year there should be a lynching at some news outlet. He did everything in this game. Faced the basket, made the outside shot, rebounded, played with his back to the basket, ran the break and dunked for a total of 24 points.

The competition between Wall and Bledsoe was fun to watch. Both look to score or make sure someone scores every time they touch the ball. The only person thats gonna stop them is themselves.

Josh Harrellson prove again that the coach with no name was out of his frickin head not to use the kid. He made 3′s, rebounded on both boards and proved hes going to be an asset to this team. He simply plays the game the right way considering his physical abilities. He finished the game with 13 points and 14 rebounds and wont have to sit in the bathroom this year.

Darnell Dodson showed us he can shoot, run the floor and will thrive in coaches offense with 23 points. He needs to work a little more on his penetration but hes gonna score the points outside to keep teams honest.

Darius Miller was quiet in the first half but showed he will do what is needed on defense. He came alive at the start of the second half using his shot game well.

Jon Hood missed most of his 3′s but he sure has a beautiful floater on the drive and is gonna be hard to keep on the bench.

Harris shot his 3′s with confidence and played good defense. He still looks a little clumsy on his drives but will see some playing time.

Cousins and Orton can clog up the middle against big teams, have the ability to score on both the run and on the drive. They combined for 30 points and several nice passes. Both their weaknesses seem to be stopping Wall and Bledsoe on the drive but who’s gonna do that.

Mark Krebs showed he can shoot and looked a lot more comfortable than he did at midnight madness. Did Perry Stevenson play?

And finally DeAndre Liggins had to have fouled out twice but looked a lot more in control than last year.

Defensively this team is going to be real good with the press. The starting Blue team showed they will be the same in the half court game.

The second half showed that these players are able to play togeather no matter who is in the game.

John Wall and Eric Bledsoe are gonna be important to this team but the key player is still Patrick Patterson.

UK Goes to The Wall!

What does John Calipari do with his # 1 ranked class in the country to enhance his recruiting season? Well, he goes out and lures the #1 player in the class to UK. Late last night, Slam Magazine confirmed that John Wall had selected UK among Miami, Florida, and Duke.

I can’t begin to express how ecstatic the UK fan base is now, what with the job that Calipari has done already in recruiting, and now landing Wall. Described by Dave Telep as, “The nation’s single most unguardable player”, Wall joins a class already loaded with 5- star recruits, Eric Bledsoe, Daniel Orton and DeMarcus Cousins. I foresee us fans talking UK basketball all summer.

There were some who believed that our signing Eric Bledsoe recently would affect John’s decision. It appears it had nothing to do with it. ““I’ve been thinking about it for the last couple of weeks. I sat down and prayed and thought about it. Last night we had a meeting and I just came out and told Brian “(Clifton).

It hasn’t been that long since some of the SEC coaches have said that UK’s dominance of the league was over…Well, that is about to change and change very quickly.