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Tennessee, Arkansas, S. Carolina & Kentucky

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So you disagree that this is Cal's weakest roster? I've asked you to tell me what UK roster was weaker. I'm still waiting. Seems like you painted yourself into a corner here.

When it’s said and done, it’ll probably at least be better than 2021 and 2013. Hell, I’d take the 7 players they have right now over 2013. It’ll probably be better than a bunch of his Memphis teams too.

Notice that I've never said I expect Arkansas to go to the Final Four or win the SEC, etc. I've said he has several nice pieces so far and that I think he'll ultimately end up with a roster that's better on paper than Kentucky's. I said last year going into the season that I thought he had one of, if not the best roster in the country. Unlike you, I don't change my philosophy to whatever's convenient for the argument.


Davis is a great player and I've said that, but the rest of the transfers are role players and the 3 freshmen are 4* projects. This is going to be Cal's least talented team since his early Memphis days.

Four potential first rounders are all just role players, but a guy who averaged 9 per game in the Mountain West is a machine. And the #1 rated PG in the class is a project.

It's pretty funny that you dismiss every analyst opinion because "nobody knows shit," while pretending you have the answers (and no bias). 🤣
 
When it’s said and done, it’ll probably at least be better than 2021 and 2013. Hell, I’d take the 7 players they have right now over 2013. It’ll probably be better than a bunch of his Memphis teams too.
Then take the bet.
Notice that I've never said I expect Arkansas to go to the Final Four or win the SEC, etc. I've said he has several nice pieces so far and that I think he'll ultimately end up with a roster that's better on paper than Kentucky's. I said last year going into the season that I thought he had one of, if not the best roster in the country. Unlike you, I don't change my philosophy to whatever's convenient for the argument.
"Better on paper than" LOL, that’s every year with Calipari. He had the most talent last season, both on paper, in the court and in the upcoming draft and look what he did with it.
Four potential first rounders are all just role players, but a guy who averaged 9 per game in the Mountain West is a machine. And the #1 rated PG in the class is a project.
4 potential 1st rounders??? Who? You think Fland, Knox and Richmond are going first round? You're joking, right? And since when does "potential" trump accomplishments? Butler was the starting pg on a team that played in the title game 2 years ago, hit the shot that beat FAU in the FF. Williams is the best defensive center in the portal, his numbers are better than any frontcourt player Arkansas has. Brea is the best shooter in the country, Garrison was a McDonalds AA, Andrew Carr is better than any PF Arkansas can put out there. The only guys I would take from Arkansas are Davis, Z as a backup and Ado, other than that, UK has actual proven players at every position and if they get Lanier, it's not close.
Ado can't shoot, he’s a rebounder and a good defender. Check the shooting percentages on UK's guys, check the defensive stats.
You can go ahead and take that Arkansas roster all you want, but Cal is going to play those 3 freshmen endlessly and they are 4* kids, which means they are projects. This could be a disaster for hog nation, I'm just glad that's not who UK is rolling with this year. Davis is the only legit scorer they have and Cal is the coach. Good luck with that.
It's pretty funny that you dismiss every analyst opinion because "nobody knows shit," while pretending you have the answers (and no bias). 🤣
Yeah well all those same analysts said UK had the best talent every year, said UK had FF talent. They were right, but in the last 5 years, Cal has a very large amount of losses, 1 SECT win, 1 NCAAT win, the worst season in UK history, the worst 2 NCAAT losses in UK history and his W/L record vs ranked teams that is awful. Like I said, the talent on this roster is nowhere close to what he has had the last 4 years, so why the hell would I listen to ANYBODY that says Cal is going to do anything with this roster?

I could be wrong, sure, but I'll take proven senior transfers with experience and bet positive efficiency stats over unproven freshmen projects, a bunch of non scorers and only one player that can get his own.
 
Then take the bet.

Because I expect them to be better than a few teams that weren’t good?

Don’t worry, I probably will. While we’re at it, let’s bet on your prediction of KU finishing 3rd in the Big 12. You seem confident in that.

"Better on paper than" LOL, that’s every year with Calipari. He had the most talent last season, both on paper, in the court and in the upcoming draft and look what he did with it.

Well, he had most of you excited going into March. If he could beat Tennessee and Auburn on the road, he was obviously capable of beating Oakland. It just didn't happen. The players choked and didn't hit jumpers at anywhere close to the usual rate. Can't pile all that on the coach.

Calipari might be good at squandering talent, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to happen every time, and obviously it hasn’t.

4 potential 1st rounders??? Who? You think Fland, Knox and Richmond are going first round? You're joking, right?

We just talked about this a few posts back. Good example of why I don’t trust your recollection of something that happened a decade ago. 😆

The mock I saw had Fland, Knox, Thiero and Z in the first round.

And since when does "potential" trump accomplishments? Butler was the starting pg on a team that played in the title game 2 years ago, hit the shot that beat FAU in the FF. Williams is the best defensive center in the portal, his numbers are better than any frontcourt player Arkansas has. Brea is the best shooter in the country, Garrison was a McDonalds AA, Andrew Carr is better than any PF Arkansas can put out there. The only guys I would take from Arkansas are Davis, Z as a backup and Ado, other than that, UK has actual proven players at every position and if they get Lanier, it's not close.
Ado can't shoot, he’s a rebounder and a good defender. Check the shooting percentages on UK's guys, check the defensive stats.
You can go ahead and take that Arkansas roster all you want, but Cal is going to play those 3 freshmen endlessly and they are 4* kids, which means they are projects. This could be a disaster for hog nation, I'm just glad that's not who UK is rolling with this year. Davis is the only legit scorer they have and Cal is the coach. Good luck with that.

So every player who isn’t ranked in the top 20 in the USA is automatically a project? And what if he’s a 5 star by one service and not another? Dismissing a player based on a high school ranking is ridiculous enough, but recruits in the 10 to low 20s range? LMAO. The list of players outside the top 20 who contributed or even starred as freshmen is a mile long.

You can’t actually think you’re evaluating Kentucky’s commits by the same standards as Ark’s. Case in point: you hype Garrison as a McD’s AA (despite not putting up numbers on the worst team in the B12) but Arkansas’s two McD’s AAs are projects. And comparing the stats of a Drexel player to guys who played in the SEC? Seriously? 😆

Z’s potential is astronomically higher than Carr’s or any of the other bigs, and players tend to make the biggest jump between freshman and soph year.

Like I said, I’m not necessarily predicting big things for Arkansas, at least not yet, but I see no reason to expect more from Pope and his roster.

Why do you act like he’s an automatic upgrade over Calipari? I’m not knocking him, but if he were some kind of savant, he’d probably have won a tourney game by age 51. And there’s a lot of talk about his offense, but offense wasn’t exactly the problem. Kentucky had the best offense in the country and still lost to Oakland. Kentucky’s main problem in recent years has been defense, and Pope isn’t known for defensive prowess.
 
Because I expect them to be better than a few teams that weren’t good?
Not with that roster.
Don’t worry, I probably will. While we’re at it, let’s bet on your prediction of KU finishing 3rd in the Big 12. You seem confident in that.
Sure
Well, he had most of you excited going into March. If he could beat Tennessee and Auburn on the road, he was obviously capable of beating Oakland. It just didn't happen. The players choked and didn't hit jumpers at anywhere close to the usual rate. Can't pile all that on the coach.
You can pile it on the coach when it keeps happening. There's one common denominator and he refused to play his best lineup knowing how good it was.
Also, he did zero work to prepare his team to play that game, zero. The entire team was confused, they acted like they had no idea Oakland was going to play a 1-3-1 and had no idea how to defend Gulkhe. Dude ran right through the entire UK defense on every play and nobody put a body on him.
That’s the issue here, Cal is too lazy to put in the work and he makes promises to the wrong players, so better players sit.
Also, he doesn't coach to win games, he coaches for the draft. Talent mostly overcame that, but he doesn't have that overwhelming talent this year. This is going to end badly, trust me, this is not a good combination.
Calipari might be good at squandering talent, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to happen every time, and obviously it hasn’t.
He lost 10 games with last years team, lost 5 games at home and lost to Oakland. 2 lottery picks on the team.
Lost to Saint Peters 2 years ago with the NPOY/generational rebounder on his team.
Lost to Wva with an absolutely loaded roster in 2010, lost to Kansas state twice in the tournament. The first loss was in 2018, he had 7 NBA talents on his roster, including Shea Gilgeous Alexander and Bruce Weber didn’t even need to play his best player more than 10 minutes.
But you think he's going to all the sudden do better with a roster that has 1 good player and 3 lower rated freshmen??? I thought you were smarter than this.
Seems like you would have a different take if you didn't kniw UK was the competing roster.
We just talked about this a few posts back. Good example of why I don’t trust your recollection of something that happened a decade ago. 😆
Oh I know, I just can't believe you're this gullible and I can't believe you're relying on bullshit projections.
The mock I saw had Fland, Knox, Thiero and Z in the first round.
I have oceanfront property in Nebraska I can sell you, no doubt in my mind.
So every player who isn’t ranked in the top 20 in the USA is automatically a project? And what if he’s a 5 star by one service and not another? Dismissing a player based on a high school ranking is ridiculous enough, but recruits in the 10 to low 20s range? LMAO. The list of players outside the top 20 who contributed or even starred as freshmen is a mile long.
Pretty easy really, as a UK fan, it's been my reality for 15 years. Those dudes aren't first rounders. When I see some services putting Fland at 20th… a 4* and the other 2 are behind him, it should tip you off. They’ll play in the NBA, but to go from 4* to first round in 1 year, is a rare feat. Sheppard and SGA did it, but I don't know of anyone else off the top of my head.
If this team was being coached by Hurley, Sampson, Pitino or Oats, I would change my take, but Cal has been exposed. He’s lazy, he thinks he's God, he plays favorites, he coaches for the draft first, he plays an outdated offense, he plays a bland defense that struggles with PNR and he's just not a good game coach. But you go ahead and buy the bullshit even though all the proof you need is right in front of you.
You can’t actually think you’re evaluating Kentucky’s commits by the same standards as Ark’s. Case in point: you hype Garrison as a McD’s AA (despite not putting up numbers on the worst team in the B12) but Arkansas’s two McD’s AAs are projects. And comparing the stats of a Drexel player to guys who played in the SEC? Seriously? 😆
Garrison.us a backup to Williams, now go check Williams' stats. If Garrison was the primary pf, I wouldn't be happy with that.

Fland and Knox are going to be starters and relied on to be great in year 1.

See the difference, or nah?
Z’s potential is astronomically higher than Carr’s or any of the other bigs, and players tend to make the biggest jump between freshman and soph year.
Based on what? Carr has actual positive stats, Z had 1 good game znd again, Cal won't use him the way he should. Guaranteed he’s going to make Z play with his back to the basket. He does that with every center he’s ever had until last year. He’s not going to let Z shoot 3's, John Welch isn’t on the staff anymore.
Like I said, I’m not necessarily predicting big things for Arkansas, at least not yet, but I see no reason to expect more from Pope and his roster.
That’s fair
Why do you act like he’s an automatic upgrade over Calipari?
Because Cal didn't coach for UK. He made it to where he was bigger than UK and again, he coaches for the draft, not to win games. No other coach plays BJ Boston 35 minutes a game, no coach plays Wheeler over 2 first round draft picks 2 years in a row and no other coach plays Edwards and DJ in front of Reed and Rob. Cal had the data, he didn't care, he had to get Edwards and DJ drafted.
Also, damn man, look at the results. Keep in mind, Cal was at UK with ten times the talent, Pope had major recruiting limitations at BYU. There's no way Cal gets BYU to the tournament. Cal us a shit coach that needs extreme talent to win.
I’m not knocking him, but if he were some kind of savant, he’d probably have won a tourney game by age 51. And there’s a lot of talk about his offense, but offense wasn’t exactly the problem. Kentucky had the best offense in the country and still lost to Oakland. Kentucky’s main problem in recent years has been defense, and Pope isn’t known for defensive prowess.
Pope had the 60th ranked defense at BYU last year with a bunch of unathletic white dudes. UK, with all the athletesism and length in the world, finished 109th.
Pope played on one of the best defensive teams of all time, he knows what a good defensive team is. He’s a better actual preperation and game coach than Calipari is, but that isn't saying much.
 
He lost 10 games with last years team, lost 5 games at home and lost to Oakland. 2 lottery picks on the team.
Lost to Saint Peters 2 years ago with the NPOY/generational rebounder on his team.
Lost to Wva with an absolutely loaded roster in 2010, lost to Kansas state twice in the tournament. The first loss was in 2018, he had 7 NBA talents on his roster, including Shea Gilgeous Alexander and Bruce Weber didn’t even need to play his best player more than 10 minutes.
But you think he's going to all the sudden do better with a roster that has 1 good player and 3 lower rated freshmen??? I thought you were smarter than this.
Seems like you would have a different take if you didn't kniw UK was the competing roster.

Not sure what you think I'm arguing. It's not like I'm predicting a final four. That said, I'm also not going to pretend that a run isn't possible, especially if he adds another solid piece or two.

I can't fathom dismissing recruits in the 10-25 range. Not all of those dudes make an impact right away, but the ones who don't are usually considered disappointing.

Pretty easy really, as a UK fan, it's been my reality for 15 years. Those dudes aren't first rounders. When I see some services putting Fland at 20th… a 4* and the other 2 are behind him, it should tip you off. They’ll play in the NBA, but to go from 4* to first round in 1 year, is a rare feat. Sheppard and SGA did it, but I don't know of anyone else off the top of my head.

You keep calling Fland a 4 star, but I'm pretty sure he's a 5 in every ranking. Top 10 in most. Multiple services have him as the #1 PG in the class.

If this team was being coached by Hurley, Sampson, Pitino or Oats, I would change my take, but Cal has been exposed. He’s lazy, he thinks he's God, he plays favorites, he coaches for the draft first, he plays an outdated offense, he plays a bland defense that struggles with PNR and he's just not a good game coach. But you go ahead and buy the bullshit even though all the proof you need is right in front of you.

He's a human, not a robot. Effort and results aren't going to be exactly the same every year. He may have gotten complacent at Kentucky, but I could see him being more motivated now than he's been in a long time.


Based on what? Carr has actual positive stats, Z had 1 good game znd again, Cal won't use him the way he should. Guaranteed he’s going to make Z play with his back to the basket. He does that with every center he’s ever had until last year. He’s not going to let Z shoot 3's, John Welch isn’t on the staff anymore.

You're not being honest. You know Z has far more potential than Carr. He could be a monster with a little more experience.

That’s fair

Because Cal didn't coach for UK. He made it to where he was bigger than UK and again, he coaches for the draft, not to win games. No other coach plays BJ Boston 35 minutes a game, no coach plays Wheeler over 2 first round draft picks 2 years in a row and no other coach plays Edwards and DJ in front of Reed and Rob. Cal had the data, he didn't care, he had to get Edwards and DJ drafted.
Also, damn man, look at the results. Keep in mind, Cal was at UK with ten times the talent, Pope had major recruiting limitations at BYU. There's no way Cal gets BYU to the tournament. Cal us a shit coach that needs extreme talent to win.

Pope had the 60th ranked defense at BYU last year with a bunch of unathletic white dudes. UK, with all the athletesism and length in the world, finished 109th.
Pope played on one of the best defensive teams of all time, he knows what a good defensive team is. He’s a better actual preperation and game coach than Calipari is, but that isn't saying much.

I can understand thinking that Pope is a more creative offensive mind, but I don't see how you can call him a better all-around coach until he accomplishes something.
 
Not sure what you think I'm arguing. It's not like I'm predicting a final four. That said, I'm also not going to pretend that a run isn't possible, especially if he adds another solid piece or two.

I can't fathom dismissing recruits in the 10-25 range. Not all of those dudes make an impact right away, but the ones who don't are usually considered disappointing.



You keep calling Fland a 4 star, but I'm pretty sure he's a 5 in every ranking. Top 10 in most. Multiple services have him as the #1 PG in the class.



He's a human, not a robot. Effort and results aren't going to be exactly the same every year. He may have gotten complacent at Kentucky, but I could see him being more motivated now than he's been in a long time.




You're not being honest. You know Z has far more potential than Carr. He could be a monster with a little more experience.



I can understand thinking that Pope is a more creative offensive mind, but I don't see how you can call him a better all-around coach until he accomplishes something.
Since we're going in circles and making the thread unreadable, I'll end it with this:

Given the landscape of the current game, it's proven that experience wins and you have to be top 20 in offensive and defensive efficiency, I like UK's roster over Arkansas' by a mile, because Pope brought in a bunch of seniors and super seniors, most of which are proven elite defenders and most are 36% or better from outside the arch.

It looks to me like UK will easily have the better defensive team and Mark Pope coaches an offense that is extremely hard to guard. Calipari, without John Welch, is a mess on offense.

Arkansas is going to have to hope that all 3 freshmen are elite. But here's the thing, very few freshmen are elite defensively, very few freshmen are disciplined enough and VERY few 4* kids are polished enough to compete with seniors at this level.

If Arkansas rolls out Fland, Davis, Knox, Z and Aidoo, they have 1 shooter and a poor defense. UK would counter with Butler, Brea, Carr, Williams and Oweh. There are 3 proven shooters in that lineup, but all 5 of those guys are elite defenders. Brea is the best 3 point shooter in the country and a freshman will be guarding him.

Also, UK is going to add at least 1 of Robinson, Wooga and Lanier. If Pope gets any of those and Arkansas only gets Wagner, this isn’t close.

If the rosters were reversed, I would say Arkansas has the better roster and you know this, because you have seen me say time and time again that you can’t win with freshmen, experience wins.

I'm glad Pope is the coach, I'm glad Cal is gone, I'm glad the NBA first culture is gone and I'm ecstatic with who Pope has brought in.

Thee end!
 
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