The Culture Of Kentucky Basketball Is Changing

The culture of Kentucky basketball is slowly changing. However, anytime there is change it takes a while for it to fully take hold. Here is a look at the past four seasons: 2005-2006 (22 wins 13 losses), 2006-2007 (22 wins and 12 losses), 2007-2008 (18 wins and 13 losses), 2008-2009 (22 wins and 14 losses)......Four year total (84 wins and 52 losses, winning percentage: 62%).

As you can see, Kentucky basketball has fallen into obscurity over the past four seasons. With Calipari coming in, the transition to elite status is already being made. The results will soon follow. However, take him at his own words, he is not a miracle worker. Any Cat fan that believes the change will be instantaneous, has another thing coming. On this team we actually have two guys who have now played for three coaches. Those two Cats are Ramon Harris and Perry Stevenson. Talk about a mixture of coaching styles they have played under. One coach liked ball-line defense, another wasn't ever really sure what was happening, except for when we got whipped, and another coach is all about the dribble-drive motion offense.

Change won't happen very quickly when you have holdovers from previous coaches. It takes a while to work out the negativity and move on to new basketball philosophies. However, the process will complete itself relatively soon, and my guess is within the next three years. At that time you will truly see a John Calipari team on the floor. Now don't get me wrong, this year's team looks pretty solid. The point I am trying to make is that this is just the tip of the iceberg. Before you know it, all 10-12 guys will be his style of players. All 10-12 of those guys can come in at any one time and fit the system.

Cat fans must learn patience. This season will bring some bumps and bruises early on. There will be times after games that you will be left scratching your head. Just remember though, any process takes time. This will as well. You just have to stay calm and not light up the message boards and call-in shows whenever something doesn't go according to plan. We will get back to where we belong. A change of culture requires persistence and staying power. Let's not rush the results. It will be that much more rewarding when we're back on top.

What If Memphis Had Won The National Championship?

Would John Calipari be the head coach of the University of Kentucky Wildcats today if his Memphis Tigers had won the 2008 National Championship? A game the Tigers had in hand, which ultimately slipped through their fingers like sand through a crack. That crack would eventually turn into a canyon as the NCAA would vacate that entire season. That would be the 2nd Final Four of his career wiped from the books. There was no wrongdoing found on his part, but that legacy will haunt him forever. That's the worst part of being in the public eye.

The rumors swirled and many people labled Calipari as a cheater. Sadly, this was nothing but hearsay, and people like to come to conclusions without always knowing the facts. That is how life works. He was cleared by the NCAA, but still the asterisks in the record books will follow him. Wherever he goes it will always be a topic of conversation, staying alive in pieces like this. To me, Kentucky provides Coach Calipari the opportunity to in many ways create a new self. Maybe he can shake past allegations and prove that his real legacy as a coach is one of a national champion.

Nobody likes to be labled something they aren't, but when you are in the bright lights of major college basketball, sometimes people say things that just aren't accurate. So what are the facts? I'll lay them out for you.......

1.) John Calipari's 1996 UMass Final Four appearance was vacated.

2.) John Calipari's 2008 Memphis Final Four team had their season vacated.

3.) John Calipari was cleared of any wrongdoing in both cases.

4.) John Calipari is the head coach of Kentucky.

5.) Case closed.

******People can't let the asteriks go.********

6.) That is a shame.

So that leads me to wonder where Coach Calipari would be today if Memphis had indeed won that 2008 National Championship. What would have happened if that title had been stripped from the Tigers, if they hypothetically had won? Would he be the head coach of the Wildcats today? Would the fear of a similar fate here cause the university to shy away? Kentucky is known for hanging banners up, not taking them down.

With that said, I am Calipari's biggest fan. Why? I cheer for the underdog, and to me Calipari is the NCAA's underdog. One of the more brilliant basketball minds that has ever existed, his back often appears against the wall. Too many rumors, too many questions, and too many missed opportunities. He isn't one of the most winning active coaches for no reason at all. Everyone deserves a second chance, and in this case a third. If he wins a championship here, and proves highly successful which I know he will, I want all the people who hint at his 'questionable' coaching past to apologize. Nobody is perfect. We are all far from it. He is a great coach, and should be allowed to at some point reap the rewards. His rocky coaching career riddled with asteriks doesn't speak the truth about his basketball brilliance. That is a fact.

Under Calipari Is Sustainability Possible?

Before the bashing begins, hear me out. Kentucky basketball has been on the slide for about 4 years now. From the awkward last two years of Coach Smith, all the way through the Billy Gillispie nightmare. In a moment of confusion, Kentucky ran out and hired John Calipari. Before you get upset, please note that I think Coach Calipari is one of the great minds of college basketball. Of all active coaches, Coach Calipari is 3rd in winning percentage, behind only Roy Williams and Mark Few. In all-time winning percentage, Calipari ranks 13th at 76.1%.

There is no doubt that Calipari knows the game, and there is little room for concern that he will be a success at Kentucky. There is however, a lingering question in my mind whether his success will be sustainable. Remember, the game changes, and some coaches (Rick Pitino and Tubby Smith), are unable to effectively change with it. Players like certain styles, but over time those styles change. Remember, Coach Calipari isn't an old man, but he is past the midpoint of his coaching career. Even Coach Ron Righter of Clarion said "I hope you guys can keep him here for a year or two." I know this is just a vote of support for Calipari's coaching, but who knows exactly.

One thing that Cat fans must get used to is a revolving door of players. We will inevitably have the best of the best under Calipari, but you might as well forget those four-year heroes of days past. OK, maybe with the exception of a walk-on every now and again. So that fact alone will probably always leave us guessing about the next year in the offseason. We will always be searching for replacements, even before some players ever step on the court. A prime example would be John Wall. The rumor mill has already started as to who will replace him after he bolts for the NBA after this season. Well........he might be back. Realistically, he is all but a goner come April.

I suppose that leaves me as a basketball traditionalist. Maybe I am unable to adjust to the change in times. I prefer the hard-nosed 4 year players. I like to watch kids grow from their freshman season to their senior night festivities. Sustainability in this sense isn't solely about winning, as it is more about retaining players. Rebuilding every season seems exhausting to me. I am sure it has to be for him.

Patterson Might Get Lost In The Shuffle

Patrick Patterson has been a star for the University of Kentucky basketball team over the course of his first two seasons. Under Billy Gillispie he became the engine of a near broken down Kentucky ride. This season, Patterson comes in with enormous expectations. The preseason All-American who many believe will be a first round pick in next year's NBA draft, seems oddly off-kilter. Calipari believes that this will be Patterson's last season at UK, but judging by the first two exhibition games, that may be too bold of a statement. After last night's game against Clarion Calipari said "I've got to get Patrick more comfortable."

That statement says alot, but lets try not to read too deep into it. OK, let's do it anyway. Why is Patterson uncomfortable? Is it the new offensive system? Is it the adjustment that comes with a new coach? Is it the absence of his counterpart Jodie Meeks? Is it the ballyhooed freshmen that have come in? Is it all of the above? There is only one person who really knows the answer to that, and that is Patterson himself.

I will say this about him, he is a classy kid. He's a great basketball player on the court, but it is how he carries himself off the court that I admire. Questions, questions, questions. That is what he has heard after the first two exhibition games. Yet, so far, there seems to be no answers. Calipari said that "he's not even worried about it", when asked what Patrick thought about his play so far. If he's not, maybe we shouldn't be either.

However, I smell something borderline fishy. Patterson is undoubtedly a team first kind of player, which inevitably equates to him being too unselfish. His aggressiveness appears as if it left town with Gillispie. What Kentucky needs is for him to be the leader, to be the foundation of Calipari's Cats. Clarion head coach Ron Righter said he told Patterson after the game that he has to be the "leader of this young group of guys." He's right on the money. He hasn't scored 1,020 points and pulled down 508 rebounds in only two seasons for just being an average player.

I did notice something after the game though, and that is the media attention in regards to John Wall. Is it understandable? Absolutely. However, in the shadows of the press room is the man that saved Kentucky from possibly having losing seasons over the past two years. Let's hope that Patterson doesn't get lost in the shuffle of the John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins media hype. He's too great of a player to lose the spotlight. He's too nice of a person and teammate to be selfish, though a bit of selfishness might be just what the doctor ordered for a case of uncomfortability. He's earned it, and the team needs for him to be. What we accomplish this season will highly depend on him.

Much Improved Cats Claw Clarion 117-52

Calipari's alma mater came storming into Rupp Arena and then..........the storm ended quickly. Kentucky, with the absence of Eric Bledsoe, but with the services of John Wall, looked much better than their previous outing in the Campbellsville exhibition game. There is only one similarity in regards to the previous game, and that is Patrick Patterson. Calipari was quoted after the game saying "I've got to get Patrick more comfortable." The comment came after he was questioned about Patterson's inability to adjust to the new offensive system. Calipari noted that Patterson has to take more shots, especially from the perimeter. He said, "He has a feel for his team. He shoots as good from 3 as the guards." Right on coach, now we just have to feed him the ball.

Equally impressive in the game was the play of John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins. Wall finished the game with 27 points and 9 assists. Cousins pulled down 6 rebounds to go along with 20 points. In total, the Cats placed 6 players in double figures. It is hard to beat anyone when you get that kind of balanced scoring. From the field Kentucky shot 59.2%, 50% from behind the arc, and 83.3% from the foul line. Kentucky also improved in the assist to turnover category, as the Cats dished out 27 assists to only 12 turnovers.

One of the scarier moments in the game came when Daniel Orton took what appeared to be an elbow to the chest. He left the game with around 8 minutes to play in the first half. He would sit out the entire second half with soreness in his chest. After the game Coach Calipari said very little, but did mention that it was "Something with his chest. It was not a bone thing. It was a muscle thing." At the time of the press conference Orton was undergoing further evaluation.

Nearly all the Cats contributed in the game with the exception of DeAndre Liggins, who remained fastened to the last seat on the bench. UK's managers saw more action than him in the game, dishing out 6 towels, 87 cups of Gatorade, and 3 spin moves during seat placements. After the game Calipari wouldn't elaborate on Liggins' status. All that was said was "I'm gonna talk about the kids I'm playing. I'll never throw a kid under the bus." That little bit of a statement says a lot in my opinion. It appears that everything isn't rosy on the Liggins front.

As far as Clarion University is concerned, head coach Ron Righter said that his team had a great experience coming into Rupp Arena. As for the Cats, he said "I'm thoroughly impressed with John's ball club. That's as skilled of a team as I've seen." Those are good words which do hold some merit. This Kentucky squad has loads of talent. The biggest unknown is whether they will live up to their potential. My guess is yes. If anything, we are moving in the right direction. During the last exhibition game we looked like the Kentucky teams of the past few seasons. Tonight, we looked like the Cats of old.

Here is a look at UK's stats:

DeMarcus Cousins (20 points, 6 rebounds)
Patrick Patterson (14 points, 6 rebounds)
Darius Miller (11 points, 4 rebounds)
Darnell Dodson (11 points, 9 rebounds)
John Wall (27 points, 9 assists)
Jon Hood (7 points, 4 rebounds)
Ramon Harris (11 points, 7 rebounds)
Mark Krebs (5 points, 0 rebounds)
Perry Stevenson (8 points, 2 rebounds)
Daniel Orton (0 points, 1 rebound)
Josh Harrellson (3 points, 3 rebounds)
DeAndre Liggins (Did Not Play)

Cats Beat Clarion 117-52

Kentucky was much improved in their exhibition game against the Clarion University Golden Eagles tonight. The Cats won the game in a convincing manner, 117-52. Check back tonight for post-game press conference quotes and news, as well as a rundown of game stats. Talk to you in a bit. Go Cats!