UK guard Jodie Meeks, it seems, has decided he will stay in the NBA draft meaning John Calipari’s first team in Lexington will still be plenty talented but also very young. Meeks decision to remain in the draft is interesting for a variety of reasons the primary one being the fact he is projected for the middle of the 2nd round. Staying in the draft without any kind of guarantee for a 1st round slot is a tad foolhardy especially given that a Meeks return would put Kentucky on the inside track for a national title. Take what you want away from this decision but for me it seems to indicate that Meeks either did not want to play for John Calipari or did not want to deal with so many talented guards taking a bite out of his playing time.
As for favorites next season, I still think the safe bet is Kansas who has all five starters back, brings in Xavier Henry and possesses the right combination of balance, talent and experience to win it all.
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I actually think this helps Kentuck (assuming Wall and Cousins qualify, all bets are off, otherwise). I thought they were going to have an issue of not enough touches, as both Wall and Meeks like to dominate with the ball in there hands. I wouldn’t be surprised if Calipari gave Meeks a little nudge.
I think Meeks may be thinking that even if he doesn’t get drafted, or get drafted in the first round and get a guaranteed contract, that he can still go play in Europe and make a good deal of money. personally I think even if he were to get picked in the second round he is going to make and contribute to an NBA team.
So without Meeks, what would make Kentucky better than Carolina? Both are front court heavy and can’t shoot, but Carolina is deeper and more experienced.
Kansas is the clear favorite in 2009/10.
If you love college basketball as all of us here do, you have to relish what is about to happen with the basketball program at Kentucky. If you do not “appreciate” the make-up of the fan base at Kentucky and its expectations (even after the lynching of Gillespie) watch Calipari as he enters years two and three with no national titles and the pressure mounting!
We are so very fortunate to have Roy Williams at the helm with his very level head and his extraordinary ability to recruit superb young talent embued with loads of character.
Ahhhh…it’s been awhile. The fam and I were out of town, away from the internet for nearly two weeks on our annual trip to the Great White Wilderness.
About the Meeks situation…I don’t see this being more of a positive than negative (for Kentucky). Meeks would have lost about 1.5-2 ppg, but the exposure on a national title-contending team would have supplimented the production tail off. I’m still shaking my head at everyone who is gitty over the Wildcats before the first tipoff. You know what would really scare me? If Sean Miller had gotten the job and began filling up the roster with hard-nosed four star recruits, and then a couple years down the line, he would land a couple of five stars to mesh with the existing talent. That is precisely what Rick Pitino did, although it should be noted that UK were stripped of a few scholarships due to the Chris Mills scandal (I think) and so it wasn’t entirely Pitino’s choice not to fill the cupboard immediately.
Kentucky fans are in for a wild ride. While it’s true that Cal brings a lot of attention and fanfare, he also leaves programs in heaps of trouble.
Great to be back!