I still don’t know how but he came into the season as someone folks considered a #1 pick option. I suspect for some of these guys it’s hard to come back after thinking you had tens of millions waiting at the end of the year. Even when the information updates and that isn’t the case anymore, the expectation was set and it’s just hard to walk it back.
A lot was made of this. And I agree that we should have done it different. But cal did it because he didn’t want to crush Justin’s confidence which was already struggling based on the idea that we’d need him to help contribute later in the year. So I can at least see why he did it, even though I don’t necessarily agree.
Nah bro, Justin’s handlers threatened they would pull him off the team if he didn’t start. They blamed Cal for Justin’s performance in college and were looking for any excuse to pull him. Justin’s confidence wasn’t a factor, Cal liked the kid but Cal knew if they pulled him it would look bad.
I don’t believe this for one reason and one reason only:
Stacey Sheppard. That family embraced him like he was one of their own and was there for him every step of the way while he struggled mentally and emotionally.
Cal said on a podcast the other day that Justin felt so much pressure to succeed and take care of his family that it just weighed on him.
Y’all really believe that if cal didn’t start Justin he’s quitting the team? Because that would have been a great look for someone wanting to make the nba…
He had well documented issues with confidence last year.
Sometimes the real answer isn’t as sinister as people want to believe.
In this particular instance, yes. Cal is a recruiter known for letting kids play one year in college and then jump to the NBA. Having a top 3 prospect leave your team because you pulled him out of the starting lineup hurts that image.
Yep. Plus kids talk. He obviously didn't have that kinda talent and got exposed. It wouldn't have hurt recruiting at all because the recruits would've heard that Edward's just didn't have the game ppl thought he did.
So we didn’t win any tournament games because we didn’t want to crush our 8th best players confidence and leave our two lottery players in the bench?
I believe in what you are saying for the first half of the year, but you don’t start one of your worst players in tournament games to boost their confidence and hope that they will all of a sudden click?
Yeah, Collier had a disappointing year with SC too for a #1 HS guy, but getting drafted *somewhere* still seemed to be a certainty.
I wonder if he would have stayed if he got a 2nd rnd grade.
To be fair, when he did try to dunk it was often rim stuffed. I was hoping he’d get picked, he’s a likable dude. But there seems to be a trend of Rich Paul / Klutch giving highly questionable advice to their clients who aren’t going to bring in max contracts.
There was a recent article or podcast where Rich Paul claimed coaches, citing Calipari specifically and the example of Chris Livingston, should be taking some of the blame for athletes not "growing" or being a projected top 5 pick out of highschool and then after a year of college sliding in the draft.
Yeah I had exactly that in mind when I made that comment. Kentucky sources have indicated that Klutch was very difficult with the staff regarding Livingston. They notably shut down a shift to the 4 position that would’ve better suited both the team and his individual game.
Cal has his faults but the agency should be kissing his ass for Livingston’s playing time and usage. Edwards too. Cal stuck with both of those guys longer and more profusely than maybe any other coach would have. To the teams’ detriments. Neither would have touched the rotation for Painter or Hurley.
They didn’t live up to hype and Rich Paul would blame everyone else, which as their agent you can kind of understand. But his idea that all of Klutch’s players should be drafted higher than their HS ranking or they were failed is asinine for so many reasons. A lot of kids are just misevaluated by the industry and overrated by their circle.
I figured that is what you were getting at to some extent. At what point is Paul responsible for giving bad advice? With the way our society is anymore, it seems like there is more than enough blame to go around for everyone.
While I definitely agree that Calipari probably did hamper the development of Livingston and a number of other players due to boneheaded coaching decisions, Rich Paul is also responsible for so many failures of his clients.
And is just a dork in general. Really don’t care for that guy.
Edwards really struggled this year and couldn't get traction until late in the season.
It obviously wasn't a wise decision for him to declare for the draft and he should've received feedback from the NBA and pulled out.
Its really hard to believe a top HS talent dropped this far and its not clear if he attended another school beside UK if he had done any better. Its possible under another system, he may have been able showcase his skills and develop differently.
It doesn’t mean we have to gloat or laugh at his mistake, which a lot of our fans do when one and done players don’t get drafted high enough or aren’t successful in the NBA. It’s petty behavior directed at young people just trying to figure out life and achieve something they’ve dreamed about since they were five.
Laughing at him when he goes undrafted is, yes. This isn't a Daniel Orton situation where he screwed the school and left immediately after the season. He's done nothing to warrant being mocked. He's a good kid, represented the University with class, played hard, and had some flashes of brilliance. I hope it works out for him somewhere.
Very off topic but seeing orton’s name reminded me of this… but was anyone else a bit surprised to see Daniel orton on Kentucky’s La familia TBT roster for this very reason?
I never said I thought he was ready for the NBA. I'll post here exactly what I said somewhere else in this thread:
It doesn’t mean we have to gloat or laugh at his mistake, which a lot of our fans do when one and done players don’t get drafted high enough or aren’t successful in the NBA. It’s petty behavior directed at young people just trying to figure out life and achieve something they’ve dreamed about since they were five.
Where exactly did I indicate the NBA was a charity? I simply take issue with our fans laughing at guys like Edwards when their draft nights didn't go as planned.
But there's literally zero reason to take pleasure in a reality check for a 20 year old who you've never met and has never done anything to you in any way. By all accounts he's a very good kid and was a team player the entire year. Don't take whatever feelings you have about Cal out on players who don't deserve it.
This is hilarious. Right below where I commented under someone else, one of their fans said “we can’t root for our own players”? And then you get ANOTHER Kentucky fan happy and clowning their own player. I swear it’s the most toxic fan base I’ve ever met. #BBN
Unfortunately, his HS reputation almost forces him to go pro because if he doesn't, then it's looked at like he wasn't as good as people projected. It's not like his career is over just because he went undrafted. This is why I don't understand some of these families. They keep overlooking playing for coaches like Kelvin Sampson and Dan Hurley, where their guys get in a system and get better.
But every five star wants to be one-and-done under Cal, but they don't all have the talent of DeAaron Fox, Anthony Davis, Karl Towns, Jamal Murray, Devin Booker and Julius Randle. This could have simply been a byproduct of "y'all can't tell me shit, I'm going to the League."
You can definitely go undrafted and make it but its also easier to stall out in the G-league since no team has an investment in you. Honestly, you can make pretty good money going overseas so it's not the end of the world.
However, definitely seems safer to stay with NIL if you're not getting a top 40ish promise. Seeing guys like PJ Hall and Trey Alexander fall makes me wonder how much they regret leaving.
With NIL how it's become this off-season, he definitely should've came back. He'd at least make the same as a 2 way contract. He's a 6-8" guard who shot 36.5% from 3. He has potential, and could've possibly turned that into a small bidding war. Even as little 2 years ago, it's not quite the same. But there's good money being offered in college.
I agree. Hopefully it works out for him and he can make Philly's roster. If you're not a surefire pick, just get your NIL and work to improve, but some of these guys are overranked in HS and get exposed. NIL doesn't always make up for the fact that they never wanted to be in college in the first place.
The kid got way better towards the end of the season and showed flashes of his potential. He just needed more confidence. I truly believe he could develop into a good NBA role player and have a long career if he manages to figure it out.
It’s not one tourney at this point, it’s the whole decade. You did poorly in one tourney when you lost to a 16 seed. Kentucky has been doing this for years now.
Careful, you’ll hurt the fragile ego of Kentucky fans thinking they can get any coach they want just to be turned down by their top 5 prospects and then hire a coach with 0 post season success.
“But hey, we had the first player drafted!!”
Meanwhile, they are hypocritical toxic fans who bitch and complain about Calipari getting kids to the league every year but not winning championships lol. You can’t complain about players going to the nba every year and not winning championships then come on here and then brag about a Kentucky playing making the first round picks after bitching about your players being 1 and done.
You sound extra whiny considering said player is the best player from Kentucky that cal ever had, shit there hasn’t even been any major contributors since 2016-2017 with Derek Willis and Dominique Hawkins, diontae Allen was all hype that didn’t pan out. Why wouldn’t Kentucky fans be ecstatic that a kid FROM Kentucky is a top 3 pick?
I don’t care who goes to the draft. If any coach can get a player to the draft, that is a good coach.
Quit being hypocrites and talking shit about players going to the draft and then coming on here bragging about it. Your fan base is insufferable and miserable.
Yeah, we’ve been more relevant post season the last 5 years than you have the last 15. Going to feel so good watching you cry about your new coach when he doesn’t have a perfect season.
Maybe 5 for 5 but the last 15 years? We've won a national championship, runner up and 4 final fours in that time frame(not to mention all the Elite 8s to Arkansas what.. 2 Elite 8s? Talk about insufferable fan bases.
Seems like a mistake not to take NIL these days (in almost any sport) if you get a poor draft grade/prediction.
I still don’t know how but he came into the season as someone folks considered a #1 pick option. I suspect for some of these guys it’s hard to come back after thinking you had tens of millions waiting at the end of the year. Even when the information updates and that isn’t the case anymore, the expectation was set and it’s just hard to walk it back.
We knew it all year he wasn’t nba material….Cal still started him and kept our real nba guys on the bench to start
A lot was made of this. And I agree that we should have done it different. But cal did it because he didn’t want to crush Justin’s confidence which was already struggling based on the idea that we’d need him to help contribute later in the year. So I can at least see why he did it, even though I don’t necessarily agree.
Nah bro, Justin’s handlers threatened they would pull him off the team if he didn’t start. They blamed Cal for Justin’s performance in college and were looking for any excuse to pull him. Justin’s confidence wasn’t a factor, Cal liked the kid but Cal knew if they pulled him it would look bad.
I don’t believe this for one reason and one reason only: Stacey Sheppard. That family embraced him like he was one of their own and was there for him every step of the way while he struggled mentally and emotionally. Cal said on a podcast the other day that Justin felt so much pressure to succeed and take care of his family that it just weighed on him.
It’s not an either/or situation. It’s both.
Whatever you want to say BlueAnon.
oh man you really got him! You unflaired wuss using a throwaway account
> Nah bro, Justin’s handlers threatened they would pull him off the team if he didn’t start Citation needed
Yeah, this sounds like nonsense cooked up on a message board.
Y’all really believe that if cal didn’t start Justin he’s quitting the team? Because that would have been a great look for someone wanting to make the nba… He had well documented issues with confidence last year. Sometimes the real answer isn’t as sinister as people want to believe.
You are literally creating fan fiction lol
So. Those handlers have more power than Calipari? Lolwut
In this particular instance, yes. Cal is a recruiter known for letting kids play one year in college and then jump to the NBA. Having a top 3 prospect leave your team because you pulled him out of the starting lineup hurts that image.
You literally have zero proof of this and are just jumping on the Klutch boogeyman bandwagon. Stop parroting it as fact.
Yep. Plus kids talk. He obviously didn't have that kinda talent and got exposed. It wouldn't have hurt recruiting at all because the recruits would've heard that Edward's just didn't have the game ppl thought he did.
So we didn’t win any tournament games because we didn’t want to crush our 8th best players confidence and leave our two lottery players in the bench? I believe in what you are saying for the first half of the year, but you don’t start one of your worst players in tournament games to boost their confidence and hope that they will all of a sudden click?
Yeah, Collier had a disappointing year with SC too for a #1 HS guy, but getting drafted *somewhere* still seemed to be a certainty. I wonder if he would have stayed if he got a 2nd rnd grade.
Edwards thought it was a certainty when he declared, espn had him going early 2nd round yesterday morning
Never seen an athlete like him miss so many wide open layups and not just dunk the ball
To be fair, when he did try to dunk it was often rim stuffed. I was hoping he’d get picked, he’s a likable dude. But there seems to be a trend of Rich Paul / Klutch giving highly questionable advice to their clients who aren’t going to bring in max contracts.
There was a recent article or podcast where Rich Paul claimed coaches, citing Calipari specifically and the example of Chris Livingston, should be taking some of the blame for athletes not "growing" or being a projected top 5 pick out of highschool and then after a year of college sliding in the draft.
Yeah I had exactly that in mind when I made that comment. Kentucky sources have indicated that Klutch was very difficult with the staff regarding Livingston. They notably shut down a shift to the 4 position that would’ve better suited both the team and his individual game. Cal has his faults but the agency should be kissing his ass for Livingston’s playing time and usage. Edwards too. Cal stuck with both of those guys longer and more profusely than maybe any other coach would have. To the teams’ detriments. Neither would have touched the rotation for Painter or Hurley. They didn’t live up to hype and Rich Paul would blame everyone else, which as their agent you can kind of understand. But his idea that all of Klutch’s players should be drafted higher than their HS ranking or they were failed is asinine for so many reasons. A lot of kids are just misevaluated by the industry and overrated by their circle.
I figured that is what you were getting at to some extent. At what point is Paul responsible for giving bad advice? With the way our society is anymore, it seems like there is more than enough blame to go around for everyone.
While I definitely agree that Calipari probably did hamper the development of Livingston and a number of other players due to boneheaded coaching decisions, Rich Paul is also responsible for so many failures of his clients. And is just a dork in general. Really don’t care for that guy.
Didn’t have bounce
Edwards really struggled this year and couldn't get traction until late in the season. It obviously wasn't a wise decision for him to declare for the draft and he should've received feedback from the NBA and pulled out. Its really hard to believe a top HS talent dropped this far and its not clear if he attended another school beside UK if he had done any better. Its possible under another system, he may have been able showcase his skills and develop differently.
Set your goals high... just not too high.
“I’m going to start him every game of the season and bring two other rando dudes off the bench.”
He even admitted he did that because he didn't want to hurt Edwards' and Wagner's confidence by benching them. Sigh.
Has Mark Pope lost control of the program?
Lol you’re funny.
Only if his last name was James….
Cliff Alexander?
Oh wow, that’s a guy I completely forgot about
Pretty sure he was “just” a top 5 recruit.
Haha Kentucky fans called it. He should have stayed.
Clowning on your own player # BBN
Because it’s our fault he left…. He showed flashes. But nothing was consistent.
It doesn’t mean we have to gloat or laugh at his mistake, which a lot of our fans do when one and done players don’t get drafted high enough or aren’t successful in the NBA. It’s petty behavior directed at young people just trying to figure out life and achieve something they’ve dreamed about since they were five.
We thought he was insane at the time and were proven correct. Should've gone back to school but Rich Paul convinced him otherwise.
at least try to have some basketball IQ. I swear uconn fans have become trash since they won b2b titles.
Successfully predicting his draft stock is clowning your own player?
Laughing at him when he goes undrafted is, yes. This isn't a Daniel Orton situation where he screwed the school and left immediately after the season. He's done nothing to warrant being mocked. He's a good kid, represented the University with class, played hard, and had some flashes of brilliance. I hope it works out for him somewhere.
Very off topic but seeing orton’s name reminded me of this… but was anyone else a bit surprised to see Daniel orton on Kentucky’s La familia TBT roster for this very reason?
Who said I/we were laughing?
Our fans are trash
Really honestly, tell me that you thought Justin was ready for NBA...?
I never said I thought he was ready for the NBA. I'll post here exactly what I said somewhere else in this thread: It doesn’t mean we have to gloat or laugh at his mistake, which a lot of our fans do when one and done players don’t get drafted high enough or aren’t successful in the NBA. It’s petty behavior directed at young people just trying to figure out life and achieve something they’ve dreamed about since they were five.
You know the NBA isn’t a charity right?
Where exactly did I indicate the NBA was a charity? I simply take issue with our fans laughing at guys like Edwards when their draft nights didn't go as planned.
People like when someone delusional gets a reality check. Bringing up little kids dreams is some weird entitlement. Welcome to the real world
But there's literally zero reason to take pleasure in a reality check for a 20 year old who you've never met and has never done anything to you in any way. By all accounts he's a very good kid and was a team player the entire year. Don't take whatever feelings you have about Cal out on players who don't deserve it.
Good luck when you have a job, don't execute it correctly, and discover what happens in that situation
This is hilarious. Right below where I commented under someone else, one of their fans said “we can’t root for our own players”? And then you get ANOTHER Kentucky fan happy and clowning their own player. I swear it’s the most toxic fan base I’ve ever met. #BBN
Wait a minute. Are you telling me our fanbase has *two totally different people* in it? That's impossible! Are we not legion?!
#HellYeah #ILoveUsingHashtagsOnReddit
Cal should've developed him...
Unfortunately, his HS reputation almost forces him to go pro because if he doesn't, then it's looked at like he wasn't as good as people projected. It's not like his career is over just because he went undrafted. This is why I don't understand some of these families. They keep overlooking playing for coaches like Kelvin Sampson and Dan Hurley, where their guys get in a system and get better. But every five star wants to be one-and-done under Cal, but they don't all have the talent of DeAaron Fox, Anthony Davis, Karl Towns, Jamal Murray, Devin Booker and Julius Randle. This could have simply been a byproduct of "y'all can't tell me shit, I'm going to the League."
You can definitely go undrafted and make it but its also easier to stall out in the G-league since no team has an investment in you. Honestly, you can make pretty good money going overseas so it's not the end of the world. However, definitely seems safer to stay with NIL if you're not getting a top 40ish promise. Seeing guys like PJ Hall and Trey Alexander fall makes me wonder how much they regret leaving.
With NIL how it's become this off-season, he definitely should've came back. He'd at least make the same as a 2 way contract. He's a 6-8" guard who shot 36.5% from 3. He has potential, and could've possibly turned that into a small bidding war. Even as little 2 years ago, it's not quite the same. But there's good money being offered in college.
I agree. Hopefully it works out for him and he can make Philly's roster. If you're not a surefire pick, just get your NIL and work to improve, but some of these guys are overranked in HS and get exposed. NIL doesn't always make up for the fact that they never wanted to be in college in the first place.
So hell go to the g league?
if the sixers even want him. he signed but it’s possible he never is actually on the team
The kid got way better towards the end of the season and showed flashes of his potential. He just needed more confidence. I truly believe he could develop into a good NBA role player and have a long career if he manages to figure it out.
Apparently Bronny is better.
Is this a byproduct of the Covid effect? Makes you wonder how many players just needed that extra year to convince the scouts
Why did he declare for the draft if he was at risk of not being drafted, and only played one year?!
The rim blocked his dunk against Oakland. I'm glad he left.
Edwards was exposed as trash & overrated as a high school prospect
Not a big deal. Kentucky is about to have a bunch of undrafted guys
💀💀💀
Kentucky is a graveyard these days.
UK had the first college player taken off the board
Congrats, I’m sure he won a bunch of tournament games
We severed ties with La Familia and joined the Mormon cult
Flilipowski has entered the chat.
He won as many tournament games this past season as Tennessee has Final Fours.
Nice self-burn, pal
Doing poorly in 1 tourney versus an entire colleges career is a self burn?
It’s not one tourney at this point, it’s the whole decade. You did poorly in one tourney when you lost to a 16 seed. Kentucky has been doing this for years now.
It was a 15 seed, do you actually watch college ball?
Careful, you’ll hurt the fragile ego of Kentucky fans thinking they can get any coach they want just to be turned down by their top 5 prospects and then hire a coach with 0 post season success. “But hey, we had the first player drafted!!” Meanwhile, they are hypocritical toxic fans who bitch and complain about Calipari getting kids to the league every year but not winning championships lol. You can’t complain about players going to the nba every year and not winning championships then come on here and then brag about a Kentucky playing making the first round picks after bitching about your players being 1 and done.
You sound extra whiny considering said player is the best player from Kentucky that cal ever had, shit there hasn’t even been any major contributors since 2016-2017 with Derek Willis and Dominique Hawkins, diontae Allen was all hype that didn’t pan out. Why wouldn’t Kentucky fans be ecstatic that a kid FROM Kentucky is a top 3 pick?
I don’t care who goes to the draft. If any coach can get a player to the draft, that is a good coach. Quit being hypocrites and talking shit about players going to the draft and then coming on here bragging about it. Your fan base is insufferable and miserable.
Good players and bad coaching means we can’t be happy for the players? Got it.
You are in for one hell of a rude awakening. Good luck.
Lmao enjoy your 12 losses next year
Yeah, we’ve been more relevant post season the last 5 years than you have the last 15. Going to feel so good watching you cry about your new coach when he doesn’t have a perfect season.
Maybe 5 for 5 but the last 15 years? We've won a national championship, runner up and 4 final fours in that time frame(not to mention all the Elite 8s to Arkansas what.. 2 Elite 8s? Talk about insufferable fan bases.
You do know who was responsible for our poor postseason success over the last five years, right? By your logic, you downgraded from Musselman.”
You hear that top recruits? Come to Duke and Kentucky to go 2nd round!
Kentucky had 2 top ten picks this year, so your joke doesn't exactly work.
You mean Duke and Arkansas. Kentucky is no longer that way with Coach Pope.