The Kentucky Wildcats Won, Now What?

Calipari showed the country that young teams can win.

New Orleans was rocking on the evening of Monday, April 2. The most anticipated basketball game took place on this night and it was for the National Title, featuring the (1) Kentucky Wildcats and the (2) Kansas Jayhawks. The freshman clan of Kentucky not only won, but they overcame all the criticism of: being young, immature and also took on the hype of being the nation’s #1 team throughout the majority of the season. After assembling the best “team” in the nation, with a 67-59 win over Kansas, Coach John Calipari proved that he is amongst the country’s top coaches and that he is not just an NBA lottery pick generator.

Darius Miller, the lone senior, cuts down the net.

The Wildcats roster contained six freshmen, 3 of which were in the starting rotation (Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Marquis Teague); the additional two starters were sophomores (Terrence Jones and Doron Lamb). Not only was this team incredibly young, they did not get nearly enough credit for what they have accomplished this season. Yes, they are the best team, but they did it with young players who were used to being superstars in high school and on their AAU squads. John Calipari did a tremendous job getting these All-Americans to play as a team and to put their peers before themselves, something the Miami Heat, an NBA team can’t do.

One of the more notable growths on this Wildcat team was the maturity of sophomore forward, Terrence Jones. In his first year at Kentucky all people talked about was how he is potentially a #1 NBA draft pick and how elite he can be at the next level. Jones had some issues with not playing smart, holding the ball too much, and trying to takeover the game by himself. He and Calipari have had heated discussions resulting in benchings. Jones did not enter the draft and he went on to play another year under coach Cal. Calipari did not let up this year either; whenever Jones made a “bad” decision or wasn’t hustling, he would be sent to the bench. Terrence Jones started to come around this season and after he spent time on the bench, he became a man on a mission, exploding for crazy stat lines. Although being under an immense amount of scrutiny and getting benched and removed from games, Terrence Jones matured and came back strong; Calipari showed that he can get the best play out of his players and Terrence Jones proved that he could be a star.

The Wildcats will enjoy this win for the night, but Coach Cal has already said he will be recruiting on Friday. Assuming Anthony Davis, Marquis Teague, Terrence Jones, MKG and Doron Lamb announce whether they will be staying at Kentucky or heading to the draft. As of right now it seems as if Anthony Davis will be the #1 pick and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist could be lottery picks. Point guard Marquis Teague has a chance to get drafted as a late first round pick due to scarcity of point guards in this year’s draft and Doron Lamb will also be a late first/early second round pick.

I believe Kentucky has something up their sleeve and they will contend once again for a National Title in 2013 even though they will be losing players. It is virtually a given that Anthony Davis will be declaring for the draft within the next three days. I find it very odd that the top two high school recruits are both waiting until April 11 to announce where they will be attending.  Center, Nerlens Noel (1 on ESPNU’s 100) and Small Forward, Shabazz Muhammad (2) could very well be on their way to Lexington. With the likely departures of Terrence Jones and Davis, Noel and Muhhamad would be starting right away, not to mention Calipari is one of the best recruiters throughout college sports. Noel has made it known that he just wants to get ready to play in the NBA and with Calipari’s history of producing lottery picks (Derrick Rose, Tyreke Evans, John Wall, Demarcus Cousins and soon-to-be Anthony Davis) I see Noel going to play for Kentucky.

Whether all of the Wildcats stay for another year, or if Noel and Muhammad play for Kentucky, or if both happen, I feel very safe in saying the Kentucky Wildcats will repeat. They have all the components of a championship team. They recruit, they play as a team, they have a remarkable coach and they handle the hype extremely well. Although the players change, the caliber of play for Kentucky remains the same.

The “One and Dones” Need to Stop

The National Basketball Association Draft is a flawed system. Every year we have college underclassman whom get drafted then end up jobless by the All-Star break. Also, there are the international players that come in and take over the top 20 picks of the draft. There needs to be rules implemented in the NBA in order for the corporation to grow and improve. College basketball players are students first and athletes second; there should be a rule implemented that a student athlete must play at least 3 years before becoming draft eligible.

Considered the biggest draft bust in NBA history.

In last years draft alone there were 42 players that entered the draft. Of that 42, six freshmen were drafted, seven sophomores and 14 juniors… That does not add up to nearly 42. In the 2010 draft there were 12 freshmen selected. Nowadays the NBA Draft is based off of potential; that is not how it should be run. David Stern needs to create a stable environment and create rules where players who are ready for the NBA can play and athletes who are not ready stay in college develop. There are players like Kosta Koufos and Jerryd Bayless who enter the draft after their freshman season and now they barely see playing time 4 years later. Or you have Kyrie Irving who only played 8 collegiate games getting selected 1^st overall, nothing against Mr. Irving, but why is David Stern allowing these teams to take chances on players that may never pan out (Kwame Brown-high school) instead of improving the all-around competition of the NBA with the best, experienced players.

Imagine how good these players would be if they played at least 3 seasons in college.

Gerald Wallace- 1 year, Alabama
Josh Smith- Oak Hill Academy (HS)
Brandon Jennings- Oak Hill Academy, 1 year-Italy
J.R. Smith- St. Benedicts Prep School (HS)
John Wall-1 year, Kentucky
DeMar Derozan-1 year, USC
Demarcus Cousins-1 year, Kentucky

The NBA implemented a rule a few years back where players must be at least one year removed from high school in order to enter the draft. Although this rule has been enforced, players still find loopholes; they go to a good collegiate basketball program, eat up scholarships that four year players deserve and then enter the draft or they go over seas to play for a season and then come back to enter the draft (Brandon Jennings).

Here are some underclassmen that have ALREADY declared for the NBA Draft.

Royce White– Sophomore, Iowa State (Power Forward)
Thoughts: I believe Royce White is the most NBA-ready out of the prospects listed. He is in terrific shape, has a great ball-handling skill set for a big man (6’8, 270 lbs). White is also 3 years removed from high school, he committed to Minnesota but then sat out a season after he transferred to Iowa St. White will be a middle-to-late first round pick this year. I expect him to be a solid point-forward in the NBA. One thing he needs to get over is his fear of flying, NBA teams don’t want to hear about that and other off-the court issues.

Dion Waiters-Sophomore, Syracuse (Shooting Guard)
Thoughts: I do not blame Waiters for entering the NBA draft. He is projected as a late first round pick according to most scouts. Waiters will fit right in with NBA organizations because he will be playing the same role on their team as he did in college; the sixth man. Waiters is built like Dwayne Wade and was a key cog in the Syracuse offense. He can come off the bench and drop 20 points while snatching 4-5 steals whenever you need him to. This prospect will be a spark plug for on NBA franchise in the future and they will be glad they selected him.

Moe Harkless-Freshman, St. John’s (Power Forward)
Thoughts: Harkless was the sole bright spot for an atrocious St. John’s squad. Harkless is of good size and speed (6’8). He is very mobile and can get to the passing lanes quickly; his repertoire of offensive moves makes him an attractive prospect. He averaged 15 points, 8 rebounds and nearly 1^1/2 blocks a game, which is above-average in a tough Big East Conference. If Harkless stayed in school he could have worked on his low-post moves and his defensive skill set, he could have been a lottery pick in the future.

Austin Rivers-Freshman, Duke (Guard)
Thoughts: Austin Rivers was a top recruit coming out of high school, the kid has skill and can score at will. Staying at Duke for even one more season would help him out a ton. He is not a good defender by any stretch of the imagination and there is question as to if he will play shooting guard or point guard. One thing that Rivers benefits from is that his father (Doc) coaches the Celtics and there is a possibility they draft him or he could be taken late in the lottery based off of offensive potential.

Rivers showed poise against Duke's historic rival (UNC) by knocking down a buzzer-beater on the road.