Wiltjer expected to go Kentucky; Zags move to plan B
by Zach Bell on Aug 28, 2010 11:49 AM PDT
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PrintSources tell The Slipper Still Fits that prized 2011 power forward Kyle Wiltjer has made his decision and he will take his game to Lexington and play for John Calipari and the Kentucky Wildcats.
That was tough to write.
Wiltjer, along with Gary Bell, was Gonzaga's #1 target for the class and is someone Mark Few and co. invested a lot of time in. For the past few months, we have thought that the leaders from Kyle were Gonzaga, Cal, and Kansas. This all changed when Kentucky got seriously involved and they recently had come through with an offer that was too much for Wiltjer to resist.
Whether you agree or disagree with Kyle's choice, we wish him nothing but the best with Kentucky. It's a tremendous opportunity for him.
As for Gonzaga, this is not the end of the world. Already in the fold are Gary Bell and Kyle Dranginis and there are a number of other prospects on the radar including Ryan Spangler, Antwan Space, and Carlos Emory. All three are good looking prospects that obviously don't have the allure of a Wiltjer but would be excellent additions.
The thread is yours to discuss the decision by Wiltjer but, please, remember we're dealing with a high school kid. Keep things classy.
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I feel sorry for the kid
Just a matter of time before that program goes down in flames.
Yup
I hope he gets out/goes pro before Calipari does his usual hatchet job on the program.
CLT_ZagsFan
My previous post is for you also and just check the NCAA violations record books, Coach Cal has"NO" violations recorded on him. All you HATERS want for something to try and get him and KY on probation. WHY, because your lousy programs can’t keep up with him and UK. if you could you wouldn’t be crying about Cal & KY all the time. Spend more time with your own programs and maybe they would get better.
by Brenda Lollar Slaughter on Aug 28, 2010 6:50 PM PDT up reply actions
SeattleZag44
Are you a unhappy loser ? Don’t blame UK because the young man decided on a better program and more exposure. When the Zags win one Nat. Champ. it will help their recruiting and & 7 helps ours a lot. Just keep on wishing that one day your program gets to the level of the KENTUCKY WILDCATS……………..GO BIG BLUE
by Brenda Lollar Slaughter on Aug 28, 2010 6:40 PM PDT up reply actions
Bummer...
Really bummed out about this. I thought I hated Kentucky before, now there is no word for it. I can feel Calipari’s greazy hair dripping off my monitor right now.
All the courting and hard work and effort and hopes dashed by a Johnny come lately. A last second deal from a coach who spits out players in one year. A Run for the riches.
I should have seen this coming when suddenly Kyle’s biggest wants were how he would be developed and that it was not important to stay locally.
Good luck Kyle. We coulda ruled the world.
Oh well, Now I don’t have to sit through tonight’s game for nothing. Zags will be fine…
Its gonna be gLoRiOUS!!~
Classy I believe it said...
For all you Zag Fans that are being derogatory towards Coach Cal…. Get your facts right! This is a 17 yr old HS kid… Either program would have been a great choice!
Coach Cal is more than just a Coach, He is a Great roll model for the kids and our community here in Lexington as is your coach is also. We all have strong ties to our teams, but for me to start bashing your coach would be stupid and classless. For the Zags to go beyond just another team… they need to be role models for their community. Follow there lead Zag Fans… You guys have a great Coach and some awesome Players and I’ll be watching as many Zag games as I can!
Cal is quite a role model...point taken
Yes, Kyle Wiltjer is a high school kid. And a very good basketball player whom I would have loved to come to Gonzaga. And IMO Gonzaga woulsd have been a much better choice.
As far as coach Cal?……point taken. He is such a grrreat role model for kids. What planet are you from?!
Its gonna be gLoRiOUS!!~
I didnt know that guiding TWO teams into probation and having post-season accomplishments stripped qualified a coach as a great role model. Coach Cal is great at getting top notch recruits, but the way he does it is NOT classy.
by SeattleZag14 on Aug 28, 2010 12:57 PM PDT up reply actions
Couldn't agree more
Coach Cal is a proven cheater and is anything BUT a role model.
by Portland-Zag on Aug 28, 2010 1:07 PM PDT up reply actions
Proven cheater?
Perhaps you can specify. Because NCAA has never so much as implicated him in a possible infraction. Ask Jay Bilas or Mike DeCourcy. But please, if you would, give us the proof.
I didn’t think so. opooos is right, we get a little defensive when people assassinate our coach’s character. But what are we supposed to do, just bend over and take it? You don’t have to like the guy, for goodness sake, I have my own issues with him. But that shouldn’t keep you from being a decent human being. For the sake of his family in particular, don’t repeat smears you read somewhere on a message board or innuendo dealt by some sportswriter. Treat others with respect and keep an open mind.
To be candid, I didn’t particularly like the guy when we were looking for a new coach. But all I knew about him was what I had heard. Since then, so much has been written, both pro and con, and I’ve had a chance to read the NCAA investigative findings for myself. And you know what? Not only is his record spotless (no, Zagnificent, Cal didn’t have two Final Fours stricken from the record, Camby and Rose did), he turns out to be quite a decent guy. It’s fascinating how people find it so easy to rape his reputation. It’s an ugly phenomenon, one you should be trying to distance yourself from.
Wheatgerm
Don’t you know by now that you can’t reason with people who have been hurt. KY or Cal didn’t hold a gun to Wiltjet head and make him say he wanted to come to KY. He just felt like it was best for him. All these HATERS who blame Cal for UMass and Memphis don’t know one thing about what really happened, just what they have read on some sites or some hear-say. I live outside Memphis and have been a UM fan for 40yrs and I know a lot about what happened at UM. My husband bleeds KY blue so I’m happy for the commit
by Brenda Lollar Slaughter on Aug 28, 2010 7:02 PM PDT up reply actions
It took me 10 seconds...
1) In 2001, Calipari successfully recruited Dajuan Wagner, the Naismith Prep Player of the Year, to the University of Memphis. Soon after, Dajuan’s father Milt Wagner was hired as Coordinator of Basketball Operations.[New York Times] Dajuan declared for the NBA draft after his freshman year
2) Calipari also hired McDonalds’ All-American game MVP and Memphis recruit Tyreke Evans’ personal strength coach as his administrative assistant. Source: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/columns/story?id=3710807
3) There’s the minor issue of Derrick Rose’s fraudulent SAT scores and the fact that his brother was allowed to travel with the team for free (a clear NCAA violation).
I’m not saying he’s a bad guy, in fact he seems like a great one. But the fact remains that he is shady.
CLY_ZagsFan
If you would take time and read the violation you would have said that the Compliance Dept at Memphis forgot to collect the payment from Rose’s brother flying on the team plane. That is their responsibility not the Coach and that is why Cal wasn’t charged. So the next time get your story right before you say something. That is what is wrong with these site now, people like you who quote hear-say before they have the truth. All you want to do is drag someone in the mud because you are hurt that a kid didn’t choose your program. Well get over it .
by Brenda Lollar Slaughter on Aug 30, 2010 6:27 AM PDT up reply actions
1) Not illegal, and in case you were wondering, Dajuan was at Memphis 1 year, but his father was at Memphis 6 years and left on his own terms. Doesn’t mean his hire wasn’t in part to lure Dajuan, but it rebuts the idea that was all it was about.
2) Not illegal, but not a story I’m familar with.
3) This story has a number of issues, but none of them link to Cal. The evidence showed that Rose’s brother did pay for other flights but the compliance office failed to charge him for 1 or 2. The SAT story happened in high school, and Rose never responded to the charges thus leading to the presumption he cheated (and maybe he did – but lots of schools could have been in this situation – everyone wanted Rose).
Cal lead the Haiti relief fund raiser during the season. Cal had his team washing the feet of Detroit kids last month on the way to Canadian exhibition games. Cal prepares kids to make riches in the NBA or get a degree. In fact, his APR, including his time at Memphis, is quite high.
His reputation is much worse than the reality of the facts. Don’t hate him for being dirty. Just hate him, if you must, for being the coach of team that isn’t your team.
lets just take it easy
The big blue nation is very defensive by nature. Just because this guy is trolling doesn’t mean we have to bite.
by opooos on Aug 28, 2010 1:21 PM PDT via mobile up reply actions
I guess I should say just because these guys are trolling . . . .
by opooos on Aug 28, 2010 7:05 PM PDT via mobile up reply actions
Great "roll" model
Of course he is…that’s why he has had two final-four seasons stricken from the record books. Only a coach truly characterized by his integrity could develop a record like Calipari’s. I don’t blame Wiltjer for his decision. If I were in his shoes, I’d probably do the same thing. Calipari is wonderful at streamlining kids into the NBA, whether they are ready or not. Orton proved this year that all you need to do is be recruited by Calipari to have a shot at being taken in the first round of the draft. Ultimately, an NBA career is the goal for Wiltjer. Considering that aim, I fully appreciate his reasons for committing to Kentucky. However, I will continue to despise Calipari and the shady ways in which he operates.
Zagnificent - GU Class of 2010
Calipari did not recruit Orton! What are you saying the NBA scouts and GM’s are drafting Calipari players in first round to make Cal look good? WTF are you smoking! Most NBA executive like their high playing job and draft the best player available.
Not at all...
Drafting Kentucky players to make Calipari look good? I don’t recall saying anything close to that. I think that NBA scouts simply see Calipari as an excellent judge of talent and assume that his roster will only contain NBA talent, which as he showed us last year, is pretty close to accurate.
Zagnificent - GU Class of 2010
Calipari has been coaching for 20 or so years and only once did he have a draft like last year. Before he got to UK, he had maybe 10 player get drafted out of 100s he recruited. Now that the greatest recruiter has joined forces with the greatest program…. well, I feel bad for the rest of college BB. This is why I understand why every opposing fan want Calipari to go down. Once this thing gets rolling we could be watching the next great dynasty!!!!
Or not
If his teams are a bunch of one and done’s I can see where his teams will do well but never well enough. Basketball isn’t always about the best players. Its about the best teams — and more to the point, the teams that play the best.
mjc
A very good point....
…that evun the ardent Kentucky fans among us are slightly concerned about. I do think the 5 in the first round was a bit of an anomoly (Patterson was a Jr who already has his degree and Orton was a Gillispie recruit who is not ready for the NBA (a project if you will). We will see what this bold experiment will produce. It is also interesting to mull over the potential of the NBA changing it’s one year rule, then things would get much more interesting for the Cats.
Unfortunate....
The bad thing about recruiting is that there is no prize for second place. All the time over the past few years put into this recruiting this kid only to have it taken from us as soon as Calipari shows a fleeting interest. Can’t blame Wiltjer, he’s made it clear from the start that he wants to play with good players and Kentucky certainly brings in good players. But still… did it have to be Kentucky?
Soo...
… any prospects of playing Kentucky in the near future?
We could have this year but we didn’t want to play in portland.
Now there is a possibility that kentucky and uw will play each other in the maui invitational . . . Who do we root for?
by opooos on Aug 28, 2010 1:35 PM PDT via mobile up reply actions
sorry zach i couldnt resist
I knew they would end up getting deleted anyways
by opooos on Aug 28, 2010 2:16 PM PDT via mobile reply actions
It's fine
Just trying (as much as possible) to get personal digs off the site. We can talk about Calipari all we want since we are obviously an upset fanbase but any person person remarks will result in banning. No point in them.
The Slipper Still Fits - SB Nation's home for the Gonzaga Bulldogs!
Question
What is your source on this? I have been looking on the internet and the only links I can find come back to SSF.
We have our sources
which we are extremely confident in.
The Slipper Still Fits - SB Nation's home for the Gonzaga Bulldogs!
I wish the sources were wrong
I pray they are. I’ll take all the heat…but I do trust them very much.
The Slipper Still Fits - SB Nation's home for the Gonzaga Bulldogs!
Wiltjer's dad
Cats Pause just spoke to Wiltjer’s father who stated his final 3 were UK, Cal, and Wake Forest. And Wiltjer wanted to go somewhere with a great recruiting class. So I think this clears it up.
by athletesnaction on Aug 28, 2010 4:10 PM PDT reply actions
Not in the Top 3
Hard to take. While we’ve made great strides, we’ve got more to go.
Fair to say KW will have a shot at the Champianship every year he’s there. Don’t like it but can understand.
Spudzag
Coach Cal
Cal may or may not be a good role model. That is a matter of opinion. UMass and Memphis were NOT put on probation at any time. To those who say Cal is a “proven cheater”, what proof is there he cheated? What are you calling cheating?
Ummm.
I don’t think anyone has called him a “proven cheater,” he’s just one of those coaches that makes his living operating in the gray-areas of college basketball. I don’t find that particularly admirable.
Zagnificent - GU Class of 2010
ummm
portland zag in one of the above comments called him exactly that
by athletesnaction on Aug 28, 2010 5:19 PM PDT up reply actions
It has since been deleted...
I really don’t think his comment is reflective of the frequenters of SSF. Clearly Calipari is not a “proven cheater,” but his track record (often due to the sort of players he recruits) isn’t quite blemish-free.
Zagnificent - GU Class of 2010
Its still up on here
I am looking at it as we speak..But your point is well taken
by athletesnaction on Aug 28, 2010 5:23 PM PDT up reply actions
The Slipper Still Fits
has just shown me why it’s such a great blog with this early announcement proven true. Certainly worth every penny I’ve spent to join!
On a side note… this is hard news but Gonzaga basketball still has a great class coming in and, if nothing else, maybe it will ensure the Cinderella references. After all, this ain’t the “Diabolic Dynastic Uber Team” blog.
"Be smooth, like me!"
Great point!
We have been motoring along, consistantly winning and shocking the world with mostly under the radar players.
I was watching the announcement of K.W. at half time of the Boost Mobile Elite 24 game, hoping that he would change his mind and I realized that Gonzaga never has any players commit that play in these kind of games. We can win w/out them. Thanks to a great coaching staff.
Its gonna be gLoRiOUS!!~
We'll never lead ya'll astray
We report on what we know and the sources we have are legit. Thanks to everyone here.
Can’t wait until the season begins!
The Slipper Still Fits - SB Nation's home for the Gonzaga Bulldogs!
Best of luck KU
honest, gracious fans… hope Cal changes his colors, and doesnt leave you on probation. Memphis and Umass had to forfeit wins immediately following Cals departure…parse it how you want… wish for the best… I would too… Thank God for Coach Few
by mattzag72 on Aug 28, 2010 6:23 PM PDT reply actions 1 recs
U of K, NOT KU
gotta dot the t’s and cross the i’s, thanks… as my friend Bill Raftery says, that way “a little bit of the vino talkin!”
There's still a chance...
Only a matter of time until Cal’s next NCAA violation. That’s not derogatory, it’s a fact. He’s gone 2 for 2 with his former schools. Maybe Kyle will want to transfer if another one comes down the pipe.
don't worry it will be sooner than later
http://www.tmz.com/2010/07/02/university-of-kentucky-basketball-sec-ncaa-probe/
The question is where is cal going after this goes down?
Maybe he'll pull a Pete Caroll after this year.
Get out while the getting’s good. And hopefully be replaced by a bigger d-bag so no one really blames you. It’s worked wonders for Pete so far.
Unbelievable....
I live in and grew up in Kentucky and I DESPISE UK. Aside from the Tubby/Pitino era, that program has done nothing but cheat. 7 championships and 7 probations. How many of those championships came in the modern era? 3 I believe and one during the “hundred dollar handshake” period. The other four came when the N.I.T. was actually a more prestigious tournament than the NCAA tournament. Everyone around me “bleeds blue” and that is all they see as well. Gonzaga is a class program and to come on here and talk smack is pretty much what I’d expect from UK fans.
by tolstoy527 on Aug 28, 2010 8:27 PM PDT reply actions 2 recs
I believe UK has been on probation 2 times, not 7, in basketball. One of those was for point shaving, which is hardly cheating to win games. The one under Sutton was very ugly though. Sending players money and cheating on tests.
only twice . . . and one of those was for point shaving . . .
I mean come on! who hasn’t? . . . .
Chris 74, of all the blue nation folks you seem the most sincere one over here, so I will at least give you some credit as being the least annoying of the trolls.
If you don't like the Wildcats, I beleive we could do without you here in the great state of Kentucky. I don't have anything against Gonzaga, but I'm blue to the bone and proud of it. So why don't you pack your bags and move.
by mountain cat on Aug 28, 2010 9:40 PM PDT up reply actions
thats downright inhospitable!
Don’t you eat possum and poke salad like your other uk friends from above?
by opooos on Aug 28, 2010 10:05 PM PDT via mobile up reply actions
Wow
Wiltjer to Kentucky….Kasen Williams to Washington…excuse me while I go shoot myself.
Why is God cursing my sports life? Why are Kentucky fans on here boasting after they already had like 3 top 10 players commited? Idiots…
I must admit
I am very disappointed, this sucks. Plain and simple no other way around it. Back to the drawing board, unfortunately this kind of puts things back in perspective again and brings me back down to earth.
To all the Kentucky fans congratulations and best of luck in this coming season. Please try to respect our site though and have a little courtesy. I can understand defending your program and being fans trust me but this is a Gonzaga blog and like Zach said we’re talking about a 17 year old kid here. No reason we can’t all get along and talk some hoops!!!
by coltinjespersen on Aug 28, 2010 10:57 PM PDT reply actions
coltinjespersen...
Thank you. Yes, it is tough to have all the hard work come to naught but that’s recruiting. We feel very fortunate to be experiencing this period of recruiting success. Kentucky has taken similar past blows to our basketball egos and it’s never an easy experience. Particularly during the Tubby Smith-Billy Gillispie era we would seemingly see recruit after recruit commit elsewhere to the likes of Duke, North Carolina, Florida, etc. It’s a deflating experience, but we fought through that time and the Zags will too. We’re very pleased to have Kyle come to Kentucky, he seems to be a great kid. Hang in there, you’re going to have a great season.
FIBA
Meanwhile, FIBA is not looking too good for the Bulldogs who are playing in it. Sacre started for the losing Canadian team (lost to Lebanon) and it took him just SIX minutes to pick up FOUR fouls. Olynyk’s stat line was 1 minute and 1 rebound.
Harris did a little better for Germany with 18 minutes off the bench and six points but Germany lost to Argentina. JP Batista is also playing for Brazil.
Thats my main problem with Rob
His Basketball IQ just isnt where it needs to be. It seems he is always picking up early ticky tack fouls and he puts himself out of games.
Reguardless of how KO, Roba and Elias are doing international mens level play is good in the long run.
FIBA
Im still trying to figure out how it’s called. There seems to be a lot of holding/hacking/pushing that isn’t called. I actually like it, it’s more like a pickup game and kind of reminds me of the way the NBA used to be.
I hate the “dribble before you step” rule though, it’s killing our guys.
Does it really matter
In 2006 and 2008, Memphis earned a #1 seed in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament. In 2008, Calipari’s Tigers advanced to the national championship game, their first under his leadership. They also won 38 games, the most regular-season wins in NCAA history. His team, however, would lose to the Kansas Jayhawks 75–68 in overtime. This team would later have its entire season record vacated by the NCAA due to several violations regarding Derrick Rose’s SAT and travel expenses for his brother that were paid for.[
Bob Knight took some shots at Kentucky coach John Calipari while giving a speech at a fundraiser on Thursday, saying:
We’ve gotten into this situation where integrity is really lacking and that’s why I’m glad I’m not coaching. You see we’ve got a coach at Kentucky who put two schools on probation and he’s still coaching. I really don’t understand that.
Jim Calhoun can’t be touched for something he should have known about. Calipari hasn’t been touched, even though both UMass and Memphis have been forced to vacate a Final Four appearance thanks to violations that occurred under his less-than-watchful eye.
That brings us to the weakest argument of all: John Calipari had no idea rules violations were happening all around him.
Evidently Derrick Rose’s surprisingly respectable SAT score and odd high school transcript didn’t raise any red flags around Memphis.
Eric Bledsoe’s sudden academic success should have also been looked at with some degree of skepticism. Marcus Camby’s bling and shiny new rides should have raised some eyebrows.
But they didn’t.
If Calipari isn’t guilty of knowingly covering up multiple rules violations, he is without question guilty of extreme negligence. He continues to cement his legacy as a winner—and a cheat.
Some things never change.
by sereguy on Aug 29, 2010 10:23 AM PDT reply actions 1 recs
Calipari had to take chances on academic risk while coaching at outposts Memphis and Umass. Now that he is at UK he get kids who are great basketball players who also are solid academically and stay out of trouble. i.e. Brandon Knight 4.0+ gpa at one of the best private schools in Florida.
“Calipari has a dubious history of running programs accused of recruiting violations. During his tenure as Head basketball coach at the University of Massachusetts, he also jumped ship to another program just one step ahead of NCAA recruiting allegations.
The U Mass program was ultimately forced to vacate its Final Four appearance, when Calipari had since moved on to the NBA with the New Jersey Nets.
To add insult to injury, Calipari is busy developing a powerhouse new program at Kentucky, by raiding talent from Memphis, such as DeMarcus Cousins and Darnell Dodson”
Its gonna be gLoRiOUS!!~
Cousins and Dodson had no interest in going to Memphis after Calipari took a better job. If Calipari doesn’t take these guys they go somewhere else (not Memphis) and potentially beat UK.
Calipari has had ZERO RECRUITING violations. Yes a player took money from an agent and a player cheated on his SAT (under Calipari’s watch) but that has nothing to do with recruiting. Rick Pitino and Roy Williams have been name in NCAA investigation of recruiting violations and/or allowing boosters to give illegal benifits to players. Much worse than what happened to Calipari.
Calipari’s biggest fault is his troubles happened to have happened with his two best teams. Several coaches have had multiple seasons vacated for simalar or worse things but they happened during non-final fours seasons.
His second biggest fault is he is so good at what he does the rest of college basketball has to wait till he picks his guys and they get to fight over the leftovers, haha, just kidding, sort of!
Be careful when you say Derrick Rose Cheated on his SAT
After being cleared to play by the NCAA, a handwriting analyst reviewing the Rose SAT scores “suspected” that the signatures were not the same and sent a letter to Rose asking for samples, clarification. The letter was sent to an old address for Rose and he did not receive it. Based on the fact that Rose did not respond, the SAT then invalidated the score pending a response. After the season was over, the NCAA clearinghouse revoked their prior clearance to play based solely on the SATs invalidation pending a response. Rose, who was now a NBA lottery pick, showed no interest to clear his name (either couldn’t because he did indeed have someone take a test for him or didn’t feel the need to since he was now a multi-millionaire and this no affected him…either is an indicator of his personal character, but I digress!)
So now this assumption that Rose cheated on his SATs is promulgated as fact in blogs and the press. It is either laziness on the part of journalists or an agenda they have to create a story out of something that may or may not be correct.
Just a couple of comments from a Kentucky Fan
1. Congratulations to your team on its continued rise in NCAA basketball prominence. The name “The Slipper Still Fits” is starting to not be applicable to the Zags any longer, as no right minded opponent would see you as a Cinderella in any sense of the word. The fact that you are being considered on equal grounds with a team like Kentucky (or UNC or Kansas, etc.) in recruiting is an incredible progression from where you were years ago.
2. Your thesis above that Calipari is guilty by lack of oversight is faulty, in that Calipari actually reported Marcus Camby’s association with the agent to the NCAA.
3. You are correct that he lacked oversight of several hundred dollars of expense reimbursements in Memphis’ multimillion dollar basketball program.
Respectfully, a Cat fan.
You are sure correct about that
I guess that is why we UK fans so fervently defend our coach in these darn blogs…and usuallly come off sounding kind of like jerks. It is selective reputation. Have you heard about the telethon he held in January of 2010, the weekend after the Haiti earthquake, to raise funds to send to Haiti…over $1Million dollars was raised by the people of Kentucky to send to Haiti. He visited Haiti again this summer to take shoes to children in an orphanage there….before giving the children their shoes, they washed each of the children’s feet. On a recent trip to Detroit, Coach Callipari took the UK team to an urban Detroit YMCA and did the same thing as in Haiti. The team and coach washed the feet of the children (an act of Christian humility), gave them new gym shoes, and then led some basketball drills. He also continues to personally fund a Memphis charity (to the tune of around $1M/year). Did this part of his reputation also get passed along? Just wanted to set some things straight.
the probelm...
Here is the problem that every fan that is not an UK fan has. When Cal was at Memphis…all anyone heard out of UK fans mouths was how much a schmuck Cal was. That is not an overstatement. So please do excuse the rest of the basketball world if we find it funny that the same “true blue” fans suddenly want to defend him.
Also…this was not directed at you cpacat….Just all the UK comments in general.
Yes, I agree because I was one of those...
Initially I was very concerned because I had heard all the same stories and innuendos that the typical “Cal Hate” bloggers/columnists push. Remember one of UK’s 2 losses in 1996 was to a Cal coached UMass team early in the year, so we had no love lost on the guy for strictly basketball reasons to begin with. Also, remember this is not just an internet blog phenomem. So-called journalists religiously drink the “Cal Hate” kool-aid without doing even simple, readily available fact checking.
As part of the vetting process, our outstanding SB Nation UK blog “A Sea of Blue” did a voluminous amount of research on the actual issues. For example, I never knew that Marcus Camby was taking cash from a pro agent and that Calipari turned him in to the NCAA vs. keeping it under his hat and keeping the Final Four season at UMass, etc. etc. The Derrick Rose story has so many NCAA Clearinghouse SNAFUs in it, that it is almost comical. They don’t translate in a soundbyte or a “blogbyte”…(did I just coin a new word!!), but if one bothers to research them, you see that basically Cal played a player that had been cleared by the appropriate channels, i.e. the NCAA Clearinghouse to play. What would you have done.
Something else I wanted to point out
When he was hired by UK, he traversed the Commonwealth, went to about every KY county (there are 120 of them BTW, third in number behind Texas and Georgia….little KY trivia for you!) He is so down to earth. While I like Rick Pitino, I always felt he was decending from on high to speak AT the little people in Kentucky. Calipari acts like one of us. He is a little more blue collar guy who has hit it big time. From small town PA. Went to a small college, played smalll college basketball, etc. Just turns out that he is really likeable and seems to be an honest, caring (about his players, about others, etc.) He regularly pontificates that “to whom much is given, much is expected” and that his players should take this seriously. That the way they act is watched very closely (and believe me that is SO TRUE here) and that the way they treat someone can make or break that person’s day, etc. Not exactly slime ball words there.
Following is a post from TMZ
http://www.tmz.com/2010/03/19/kentucky-wildcats-birthday-cake-signed-basketball/
Not the best reference, but best I could find. Cats had just won the SEC tournament and were at a Lexington restaraunt for dinner after arriving back from Nashville. A girl recognized Patrick Patterson and asked him to come over and wish her sister a happy birthday. Patterson obliged, but also went out, got the whole team to come back in, got everyone to sign a basketball, the team sang “Happy Birthday” to the teen, and they they gave her a cake someone had made for the team in celebration of winning the SEC. Don’t see character issues here.
and yet for all of that...
Under two different programs he has been at the helm when things were shaddy….he may be Ghandi of Kentucky but the rest of the basketball nation sees him as slippery…and I think how things go at UK will determine what we think of him…. If he leaves or has anymore shaddy biz happen…it will be near impossible for any of us to think he is anything but slippery.
underratting him comparing him to Oregonian Blue Devil
Wiltjer is longer, beautiful in the post, feather soft touch… best description I heard was Kevin Mchale with a great outside shot. My goodness, we missed. Sorry UofK, excuse our sour grapes, can’t help it, this kid is the real deal. I think people who pooh pooh his game haven’t watched him. Pictures do him no justice.
Not that...
I was comparing his role within the program. The fact that Singler has stayed around long-enough to win a championship is something that Wiltjer might accomplish. I wasn’t trying to compare their playing styles. My favorite part about Wiltjer was that he would be a focal-point of our offense for a few solid years… Ahh, Would that it were.
Zagnificent - GU Class of 2010
You know, he might have done us all a favor
I keep telling you that guys come to Gonzaga because they want to be here. The want to be part of what we are — not just the team — not just the university — but the entire community that will be with them for the rest of their life.
I dunno about most places. I do know you don’t see this at Oklahoma — nuthin like we have here at Gonzaga.
Tell the truth, if Ronny Turiaff left after a year or two, would you have the same attachment to him? Would he have the same attachment to us? There’s a lot more to Gonzaga than Basketball.
Let this guy go and let’s move on. He ain’t the only fish in the sea. Might not even be the ‘big fish’ we thought he was. Time will tell and there’s no use in crying about it.
mjc
Completely what we were missing in 2010
An outside shot. Bledsoe was inconsistant. Darius Miller was good for about 2-3 a game, but had some confidence issues as a Frosh and Soph. Darnell Dodson, was completely hot OR cold. Some nights he couldn’t throw it in the ocean. Basically what got us beat in the WVU game, About 3 or 4 first half treys and we would have most probably won that game.
I hope you're right.
And I have little doubt that Few will bring a tourney ready team to the Big Dance again next year.
no sour grapes...just a couple comments.....
First…It is tough to compete with recruiting prowess of UK. Right now, they appear to be the express way to the NBA…why would Kyle say no to that?
Second…It would have been great to have him come to GU and I think that he would have been more of an impact player in our system….I am afraid that at UK he will be surrounded by players who are the the BBD. Bigger better deal…But that was his choice. I wish him the best!
Lastly…I think it great that we remained in the final list….meaning to some degree…he gave us a pretty good look…that speaks to our growth as a program…Happy to see that. as well…
K.W. may be a great guy and a terrific basketball player but...
I have been looking at things in a slightly different perpective.
So Kyle wants to be on a team with the best players. Ok, Kentucky has or probably will end up with perhaps 1/2 dozen of the top 20 rated players in the nation when he arrives.
Maybe he is not, and feels like he is not, as good or fast as everyone thinks he is.
If he went to a school like Gonzaga he would get found out. Double teams would come, opposing teams would game plan against him and all of the pressure to be the man would show him to be a lesser player than thought.
But at a Kentucky surrounded by the nations best, he would have all of the pressure off of him and be able to shine, shine, shine. As one of the lesser players on a hugely talented team he would be able to still stand out, and get a rich N.B.A. contract soon enough.
My point is is that I did not want to say anything to dissaude him in his decision to come to Gonzaga. And knowing that he follows this site on his Twitter account I did not bring this up. I could be wrong but he may not have been nearly as good as we hoped.
Good luck to him at Kentucky though and we will see what the future holds for him.
Its gonna be gLoRiOUS!!~
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