Michael Sophomore-Gilchrist

In regards to MKG's pronouncement that he intends to graduate from the University of Kentucky: I'm not exactly holding my breath.

Fact is, I believe "The Kidd" will be long gone by the time the draft rolls around this summer.

He's going to be projected top half of the first round-- and in that situation, I would advise anybody to take the money. That goes for Anthony Davis, Doron Lamb, The Kidd, or for that matter....one of my own kids.

You just about have to.

College is important. No question about that. Educating oneself is always a smart choice. It's one that I'm glad my parents encouraged, nay forced, me to undertake.

Book learnin': I'm a big believer.

But for a young man like MKG, a Wildcat that I am quite fond of, there's no mistaking that he has NBA-ready talent, and that his game should not have much trouble translating to the next level. He is not a finished product, and I would agree with the critics that point out the minor holes in his game. But they aren't gaping holes. Nothing that he can't work on while making some serious coin.

I figure that scouts and GMs would like to see Michael improve his outside shooting. And he could probably be a better ball-handler overall, although he's very tough in traffic... and hella strong getting to the rim. He's made his share of freshman turnovers and probably doesn't "bring it" as consistently on the offensive end as the NBA would like. (All things that I'm sure Coach Cal has him working on daily.)

But that doesn't change the fact that he's a sure-fire first rounder on just about everyone's board. It's an old cliche, but Michael's future career is professional basketball, not accounting or forestry. (I'm real big in the forestry set. What up y'all?)

Listen, I would love to see him back in the blue for a run at the 2013 championship. That goes for Teague, Wiltjer, every single one of those guys. Gillie's awesome and he can play on my team any old time he wants. But I'm not going to hold him to those post-game comments indicating that he would be a three or four-year player. I simply chalk that up to youthful exuberance.

I would absolutely love to be wrong about this. And as the man from Ashland pointed out...who really thought Terrence Jones would be back for another season? Stranger things have happened. But my gut tells me that MKG will be a "one and done"... so let's just hope that the "one" ends with something special... something that both he, and all of Big Blue Nation, will always cherish.

photo: Kentucky.com

Oh Lord

Kentucky 78
Florida 58

That's 49 home wins in a row.

Let's just enjoy some old Muppets footage, and a Mac Davis classic. (I'm a big Beaker fan myself.)

Try to stay humble...

A Piece of Pie?

Yes.

A piece of pie.

I chose pumpkin pie, shown at left, because it's my favorite. (Can you tell that I LOVE this picture? Makes me hungry).

You may have chosen apple pie, or pecan pie, or maybe Derby pie.

There's lots of good pies out there.

We're talking about pie this morning to make just a few points in advance of UK taking on Florida in Rupp Arena this evening.

The first pie related point is this: it's not cake. And Kentucky blowing through the remainder of its conference schedule, and the SEC tournament, and zipping right through the NCAAs to banner number eight.....all of that will most certainly not be a piece of cake.

The Cats dropped a nuclear bomb on South Carolina over the weekend. Made it look easy. Far too easy. So let's remind everyone that the Gamecocks are pretty bad right now. Pitiful bad. So assuming UK will continue to thrash everyone through the rest of February, and romp to a bunch of 30 point wins, is a foolish assumption.

I expect them to beat Florida tonight. Especially at home. And they ought to take care of business against Vandy on Saturday, which would be far more difficult in hostile Nashville. That should be a really good time, with College GameDay and all the buildup and hoopla. But I honestly do give Kentucky a decent shot at running the table with the way this team is executing right now.

It just won't be EASY. It's not a given. That's all I'm sayin'.

The second point re: pie would be that I think it's very important for UK to stay hungry at this stage of the season. When you've got that number one ranking, there's sometimes a tendency to coast. You can often beat people by just showing up. The friendly confines can do some of the work for you....a nice vocal crowd, you get a few favorable calls, no sweat.

But for Kentucky to get where they really want to go this year-- that second trip to New Orleans--they will have to stay hungry. Look for challenges in games where they already have a big lead. For instance, a coach like John Caliparli will often throw out the idea of, "Okay guys, I need to to win these last 5 minutes of the game by 8 points or more." Or "Listen, Michael, I want you to take this second half and make sure the guy that you're guarding doesn't get a single basket." Things like that. Motivators to stay hungry, to keep trying to improve.

And finally, the pie also represents the need to stay humble. You know, everybody's least favorite flavor: humble pie. Kentucky has been crowned #1, and deservedly so. The roster is stacked, and the Cats have continued to make strides as the freshmen develop and the chemistry strengthens. But they aren't the Miami Heat. Division I provides plenty of challengers this year. You can bet that Syracuse and Ohio State and a few others will be working their hardest to take that crown, and this young team may need a reminder to keep its collective feet on the ground. Big Blue hasn't really won anything yet this season.

Ask the Hoosiers if they think Kentucky can be beaten. They most certainly can. But as this season has played out, and as the Cats have gotten better defensively, better at shot selection, and gained more experience, that old maxim is starting to ring more true...the only team that can really beat Kentucky, is Kentucky. So stay humble. Nobody is going to just hand it to you.

Now who wants some coffee to go with that?

About the "Platinum" Uniforms

Weighing in on the silvery-hued unis that the Cats sported vs. Tennessee: not such a bad idea in my opinion, but let's not make it a habit.

We all understand that first and foremost, this is a Nike thing. And this is a money thing. So don't kid yourself. They definitely sell, and I'm guessing they sell pretty briskly, and they aren't all that cheap at something like 70-75 bucks a pop. (Kennedy's was asking $120 for pre-orders on the authentics.) So the profit motive is driving this deal from the get-go. Yay capitalism! No problem with that.

Recognize too that the idea of alternate uniforms is running all over the place from MLB, to the NFL, the NBA...it's everywhere. Hockey too, as far as I know. (Not a hockey guy. Sorry, eh... you hoser.) This is a widespread phenomenon and I'm pretty sure my son's youth league team will soon be clamoring for alternates when they take on their big rivals in the 8-9 year old division at the end of the month.

Consider: the local big leaguers, the Disastros, wear something called "brick red" on Sundays when they play at home. (It's some kind of a rusty/maroonish tone. Bricks come in all colors, you know.) The Texans likewise have a "battle red" home game every season. The Rockets? Well they even go so far as to break out a Hispanic-themed jersey annually...Los Rockets! Vamanos! So the train has long ago left the station when you could just figure on a basic "white at home / color on the road" set up. Again, there's too much money to be made.

So having said that, and with UK being in the Nike bed for a number of years now, I personally don't mind the idea of wearing a special jersey--only every now and then, especially if it's for what you might consider a rivalry game. Gives fans like us something to talk about, gives the players something different to look forward to, and hopefully it doesn't become THE story or outshine the athletes and the competition itself. Once a year? Fine with me. Might as well be the Tennessee game.

But let's also be clear that if you're gonna do something like this, it needs to be done right. Kentucky is absolutely BLUE to me. Through and through. That's the DNA. Blue and white. 100%.

Now I know the manufacturer rolled this out as a program, with several other schools involved, and used it to pimp whatever lighter, stronger, breathier technology that they've been working on. And sure, alternate jerseys probably call for an alternate color....I get that as well. I'm not even saying that the grayish tone was all that bad. Could have used a little more blue, that's all.

A bolder, bluer frame around the numbers for sure. Make 'em pop a little more. For visibility's sake. Or make the numbers themselves blue. Something. The whole setup just called for a little more contrast to my chemist-turned basketball blogger eyes. Even the "KENTUCKY" and player's names would have looked better in blue.

And really, other than that, I don't have too many complaints. Not that I'm going to rush out and buy one to wear myself. Heaven knows I already have more t-shirts, hats, sweatshirts, etc. than any reasonable UK fan needs.

So overall, I thought the unis were pretty well executed as these things go. Loved the shadowy interlocking "UK", and the championship years motif. They stuck with the Secretariat-inspired squares, which are okay I guess. And hey, it definitely wasn't like all the hot pink mess you see every October as the NFL does its best to fight breast cancer. They definitely could have been worse, if you consider what Nike does to Oregon's football team, or if you recall the Maryland/Under Armour disaster.

And supposedly, the kids seriously love them. The players, I mean. The recruits. And so it's one of those things where if you aren't trying to stay on top of the game, then you're falling behind. Kentucky should be on top of the game. So color us platinum. Just do it...rarely.

Smother Time

Kentucky has had a VERY solid season to date defensively. The multiple block parties that the Cats have thrown both in conference, and in early season games have been impressive. But the smothering act that UK put on Tennessee Tuesday night was some next-level stuff.

Granted, your boy Renaldo Woolridge kinda went off from three-point land in the first half, but that situation was quickly rectified. And even accounting for those deep bombs, the Vols were merely 9 of 32 for the half. It was interesting to me that they got up that many attempts (13 more shots than Kentucky, but 4 fewer makes). But frankly, a lot of those nasty-orange shots would have to be properly filed under the category of either "altered" or "ill-advised"....if not "downright desperate".

UK just has a way of making teams look terrible in the half-court. It's the athleticism of the team that gets a lot of credit for this, since I would say our "starting six" are built like basketball players ought to be built, straight from God's basketball player factory. Are they quick? Check. Long? Check. Are they in terrific shape? Check. Can they jump? Double check.

Perhaps somewhat overlooked is how well they help each other on drives....and I'm not strictly talking about shot-blocking here. The weak-side defender (unless he's Kyle Wiltjer *cough*) is almost always able to cheat over and protect the lane while still keeping an eye on his own man and protecting against the open jumper. Again, the quickness and the long arms help, but a lot of that is just good coaching and basketball smarts.

No they aren't perfect-- they still give up some open looks and the rare back door cut, but when you're holding teams in the 20s and 30s % range on FGAs, well, you're really doing something.

Consider me a BIG fan.

But really it's the effort and desire that have been more impressive. That's what truly stands out with a group of All-American types that would probably rather be catching their breath on the defensive end. Calipari has not allowed that from this bunch. They look like they are feeding off of the blocks, keeping their knees bent and sliding with their man, learning to communicate like they are all seniors....again, next-level stuff.

Admittedly, the competition hasn't been all that stellar recently, but that will quickly change throughout February. But Kentucky is a legit #1, and they are going to remain extra-tough to knock off when they throw that smother blanket out there.