‘As good as there is.’ Rivals expect Calipari to mesh Kentucky’s old and young.
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As every Kentucky fan seems to know by now, a highly ranked freshman class does not automatically mean a national championship the following spring. Each of John Calipari’s 10 Kentucky teams included a group of incoming recruits ranked first or second nationally. One championship — in 2012 — ensued.
Kentucky is not alone in this B-does-not-necessarily-follow-A history. In Calipari’s time as UK coach, as many teams with a freshman class ranked outside the top 50 nationally won NCAA Tournaments as teams with a No. 1-ranked freshman class. Kentucky in 2012 and Duke in 2015 were championship teams containing top-rated freshman classes. Yet Louisville in 2013 and Virginia last spring also won national titles with freshman classes ranked 58th- and 63rd-best nationally by 247 Sports.
Here’s something else to ponder: Of the 40 Final Four teams since 2009, nine had freshman classes ranked outside the top 50. That’s only one fewer than Final Four teams with freshman classes ranked in the top 10 in that time span.
Of course, who would argue against adding highly regarded players? The ideal team makeup is perceived to be a mix of freshman stars and experienced veterans. Going into the 2019-20 season, Kentucky seems to fit this description. The freshman class was ranked No. 2 (Rivals, Recruiting Services Consensus Index) or No. 3 (ESPN). Then there’s older players the program has dubbed the “core four”: junior Nick Richards and sophomores EJ Montgomery, Immanuel Quickley and Ashton Hagans.
“If you don’t play those four, we’re not ready,” Calipari said on the SEC Network’s telecast of UK’s so-called Pro Day. He set January or February as the time when old and young could effectively coalesce.
The “core four” totaled a collective 50 starts last season. That’s only the fifth most from the previous season by UK returnees in the Calipari era. The most were the 119 starts the season before 2014-15, which saw the Wildcats win their first 38 games. The second most — 86 — came the season before 2012’s national championship. Graduate transfer Nate Sestina started 31 games for Bucknell last season.
At the Southeastern Conference Media Day in mid-October, Auburn Coach Bruce Pearl colorfully explained the meshing he must orchestrate this season with a roster that includes five seniors and six freshmen.
“I’m coaching 40-year-olds and 10-year-olds,” he said of his seniors and freshmen. “My 40-year-olds can absorb anything and everything. They’ve got all kinds of experience. They understand where they’re supposed to be and why they’re supposed to be there.
“My 10-year-olds don’t even know where to be yet, and couldn’t even begin to understand why. So it’s a great challenge.”
A question about Kentucky needing to unite freshmen with its “core four” brought a knowing expression to Pearl’s face. To continue his analogy, he said that their five-star ratings made UK’s 10-year-old freshmen the equivalent of 50-year-old players.
“None of us coaches in the SEC feel badly for John Calipari and the fact he has to rebuild his roster every year,” Pearl said. “I’m certainly at the top of that list.”
Expecting setbacks
Pearl saluted Calipari’s track record of annually bridging the gap between star freshmen and savvy veterans.
“John does not get nearly enough credit for what kind of coach he is,” Pearl said. “He is an outstanding coach. And he gets great players to play hard and to play unselfishly and buy in.”
For instance, Pearl cited the 2018-19 season.
“Kentucky was the best team we played last year …,” he said before noting how the media picked the Wildcats to win the SEC championship this coming season. “They’re picked first for a reason. Got depth. Got unbelievable size. They’re extremely well coached. So I’d probably have them right there as well.”
Coaches and players described the flow of benefits in a mix of freshmen and veterans as a two-way street.
The veterans counsel the freshmen on what to expect and how to handle the inevitable adversity that comes with every season.
“You go through highs and lows,” said junior Riley Welch, the son of an NBA assistant coach. “It’s a long season. Obviously, in a perfect world, you go 40-0 and win a national championship. Everyone puts up the numbers they want.
“That’s just not life. We may have some setbacks. We may have losses. Guys may not be getting the shots they want (or) the minutes they want.”
Montgomery acknowledged how his freshman self had to learn this.
“I was definitely worrying a lot,” he said of the 2018-19 season. “Being a freshman coming in. Not knowing the system.”
The advice Montgomery said he’d given his former self? “Don’t worry about mistakes,” he said.
‘New energy’
The presence of veterans can ease anxiety. Injuries sometimes limiting UK practices to less than 10 players made Calipari fret. “I have two feet on the panic button,” he said at SEC Media Day.
Josh Nebo, a senior forward for Texas A&M, said veterans can benefit from freshmen.
“New guys bring that freshness,” he said. “New energy. Seeing them being so excited kind of gets our juices flowing.”
Texas A&M’s first-year coach, Buzz Williams, spoke confidently of Calipari again bringing Kentucky players together in a collective effort. In Calipari’s first 10 seasons, UK has played in seven Elite Eight games and advanced to four Final Fours.
Expect more of the same, Williams said.
“I think he’s as good as there is in the business,” Williams said of Calipari. “I think, historically, he’ll be compared to the greatest who ever coached, including Kentucky.
“You’ll look back as a Big Blue Nation member and go, ‘Wow, I can’t believe we were able to do all those things.’ And I don’t think it’s slowing down. It’s probably speeding up.”
This story was originally published November 1, 2019 at 10:20 AM.
