Courtside with the Kentucky Wildcats

Kentucky Coach John Calipari expressed hope that sophomore Darius Miller will gain confidence while playing for the U.S. team in the Under-19 international competition this summer.
“What I’m hoping through that experience is he builds his confidence in his ability to (play in UK’s dribble-drive offense),” Calipari said on a SEC coaches teleconference on Monday. “That’s what I’ll be trying to build (next season).”

As a high school player, Miller starred for Mason County. He led the team to the state championship as a senior and was named Kentucky’s Mr. Basketball.
Calipari saluted Miller’s work ethic. The UK coach noted times he’s been in the office at 11 p.m. and noticed Miller turning on the lights to begin a workout.
“I had six workouts with Darius,” Calipari said. “I was as excited about him as anyone on the team.
“He has a knack for getting the ball in the basket. He’s a good athlete. Not a great, great athlete. But a very good athlete. He can shoot the runner. He scores the ball well enough from the perimeter you have to guard him.
“But it’s confidence (that must be strengthened).”

Kentucky basketball led by John Calipari will make success more difficult to achieve in the Southeastern Conference, Tennessee Coach Bruce Pearl said on Monday.

“John raised the bar tremendously for all of us,” Pearl said on a SEC coaches’ teleconference. “. . . He is a big thinker.”

While saying that Calipari brings “great credibility” to the SEC, Pearl said that Kentucky will be more difficult to surpass.

“John in the league is going to make us all better,” he said. “It’s going to be more difficult to win a championship and more difficult to finish ahead of Kentucky.”

In what he called a 90-day “whirlwind” on the job, Calipari recruited the nation’s best class of freshmen. With that comes great expectations.

Arkansas Coach John Pelphrey, who played for UK in the late 1980s and early 1990s, noted how Kentucky is synonymous with basketball success.

“It’s what they’re going to do,” Pelphrey said. “With Cal there, they’re going to do it very, very quickly.”

When a reporter asked about the impact Calipari’s made, Mississippi State Coach Rick Stansbury said, “It’s very obvious the impact he’s had. He’s got you asking me about him in June. That tells you the impact he’s ad on you guys already.”

The SEC is coming off a sub-par season. The league received only three bids to the NCAA Tournament, its fewest since expanding to 12 teams in 1991-92. That’s also the fewest since 1990 when Kentucky was on probation and ineligible for post-season play.

Several coaches suggested that fewer bids and a perception problem for SEC basketball comes when Kentucky endures a poor season. UK failed to make the NCAA Tournament this past season for the first time since 1991.

“From that standpoint, I think the higher ups would tell you it’s better when Kentucky is good,” Vanderbilt Coach Kevin Stallings said. “But I don’t want Kentucky to be good. We have enough good teams.”

Stallings chuckled and added that the SEC “higher ups” would get their wish.

“That place has always been good,” he said of UK. “And they will continue to be good. . . .

“John has had success everywhere he’s been. To think he would not have success at Kentucky would be foolish.”

LSU Coach Trent Johnson downplayed the importance of Kentucky to the SEC’s basketball profile.

“It doesn’t really matter,” he said. “It’s what you do in late February and March. That’s what’s going to benefit your league.”

Pelphrey offered a personal reason for another SEC coach wanting Kentucky to win. As a UK graduate, he wants Kentucky basketball to succeed in order to stay ahead of North Carolina in terms of all-time victories. Going into next season, Kentucky leads with 1,988 victories. North Carolina has 1,984.

During his playing days, Kentucky slipped to second place before re-claiming first place in all-time victories.

“If you had a bad week, you fell behind,” Pelphrey said.

During an appearance on Monday’s SEC coaches’ teleconference, John Calipari spoke of possible neutral site games for Kentucky in future seasons.

He noted the consideration given games in dome stadiums in Indianapolis, St. Louis and Atlanta. Plus he talked about neutral site games in Nashville, Louisville and New York.

Here are the particulars Calipari mentioned:

– Possible games against Indiana alternating in Louisville and Indianapolis.

– A game against Memphis in Nashville.

– Games against Ohio State alternating in Louisville and Cincinnati.

– A game against Kansas in St. Louis.

– A game against “some of the best teams” in either New York or Atlanta.

To play such a schedule requires a strong roster, Calipari said. The UK coach suggested that the incoming freshman class will not have any academic problems and will be eligible.

Calipari noted how point guards John Wall and Eric Bledsoe, whose competition for playing time could potentially cause a problem, were getting along well. Big man DeMarcus Cousins was a “big teddy bear,” the UK coach said.

Kentucky Mr. Basketball Jon Hood had become a popular figure among his teammates.

“I love the attitude,” Calipari said of the freshmen. ” ‘Let’s try to win all the games.’ “

During his appearance on a SEC coaches’ teleconference on Monday, John Calipari acknowledged that losing Jodie Meeks will hurt Kentucky next season.

“No way we can be the shooting team we’d be if he was here,” Calipari said.

The new UK coach wished Meeks well.

“You can’t hold these kids back,” Calipari said. “At the end of the day, it was a great choice because that’s what he truly wanted to do.”

Meeks led UK and the SEC in scoring last season with an average of 23.7 points a game. He also set the school record for points in a game by scoring 54 at Tennessee.

Meeks, who would have been a senior next season, was drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks in the second round of last week’s NBA Draft.

Calipari noted that Meeks’ absence will create opportunities for others. He mentioned such players as sophomoe Darius Miller and incoming freshman Darnell Dodson.

Calipari also spoke again of having the two highly regarded freshmen point guards, John Wall and Eric Bledsoe, playing together.

The new UK coach noted how well the heralded freshmen are meshing.

“The best thing I like is they like each other,” he said. “. . . They’re like four brothers.”

But South Carolina Coach (and Lexington native) Darrin Horn noted how a player of Meeks’ experience is difficult to replace.

“You don’t replace what a guy (like Meeks) has just with talent,” Horn said. “He was a high producer on a very consistent basis. You don’t replace that level of experience. . . .

“Experience is so important. Look at every sport on every level. You know what to expect and understand the commitment it takes.”

Former Kentucky guard Jodie Meeks expects to begin his pro career within days of being taken by the Milwaukee Bucks in the second round of Thursday’s NBA Draft.

Meeks plans to travel to Milwaukee on Sunday to participate in the Bucks’ rookie camp next week.

Then the week after that, Meeks expects to play for the Bucks’ entry in the Las Vegas Summer League, which gives rookies and free agents a taste of NBA play.

Meeks led UK and the Southeastern Conference in scoring last season. His scoring average of 23.7 ppg ranked among the nation’s top five and marked Kentucky’s best since Dan Issel in 1969-70.

Meeks’ prolific scoring included a school record 54 points at Tennessee. That broke Issel’s 39-year-old school record and marked the most by any player in Tennessee’s Thompson-Boling Arena.

Meeks later set the scoring record for Bud Walton Arena when he scored 45 points at Arkansas. His 46 points against Appalachian State was the most by a UK player in Freedom Hall.

By keeping his name in the NBA Draft, Meeks chose not to return to Kentucky for his senior season. Thus ended a tumultuous three seasons for UK that included a promising freshman season (a then career-high 18 at Louisville helped UK beat its arch rival). Injuries marred his sophomore season.

Then Meeks made up for lost time as a junior by becoming a SEC and national player of the year candidate.

By staying in the draft, Meeks ignored projections of being taken in the second round or not at all. He also chose to bypass the opportunity to play for John Calipari and the new Kentucky coach’s much-ballyhooed dribble-drive offense.

Calipari suggested that Meeks could elevate his draft status into the first round by playing in the pro-friendly dribble-drive offense.

For what it’s worth, two Memphis seniors did not reap such a benefit. Robert Dozier was the 60th and last player chosen in the two-round draft. Antonio Anderson was not drafted.

One Memphis player, freshman Tyreke Evans, was taken in the first round on Thursday. Much like Derrick Rose the year before, Evans came to Memphis as a heralded prospect and turned pro after one season.

Former Kentucky guard Jodie Meeks did not say exactly why he decided to stay in this year’s NBA Draft rather than return to UK for his senior season.

ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas wondered if part of the reason was the prospect of playing for a third new coach in four college seasons. Meeks played for Tubby Smith as a freshman, then played for Billy Gillispie as a sophomore and junior. John Calipari would have been Meeks’ third UK coach.

“I played for three coaches in four years of high school,” Bilas said. “I didn’t particularly like it. I can understand why that might be a factor.”

Bilas had not spoken to Meeks about the decision. The ESPN analyst simply considered the chore of re-introducing yourself to a new coach and again going through the unknowns that  come with a new personality in the coach-player relationship.

It was no secret that Meeks had a less-than-ideal relationship with Gillispie. Nothing illustrated that problematic coexistence better than the now famous (or is that infamous?) T-shirt story. Nike produced a T-shirt for the team commemorating Meeks’ school record 54-point performance at Tennessee in mid-January. But Gilispie chose not to distribute the T-shirts to the players.

The T-shirts sat in a box in UK’s Craft Center for more than two months before Calipari became coach and OK’d the distribution of said shirts.

But back to the dynamic of a new coach, Bilas said, “Having to prove yourself all over again for a new coach is not always something guys want to do.”

Lexington native Shelvin Mack is one of three players added to the list of invitees to the USA 19-and-under national team trials.

Mack, who attended Bryan Station High, started as a freshman for Butler last season.

He’ll join such earlier invitees as Kentucky wing Darius Miller, plus three other players with Southeastern Conference ties: Ole Miss guard Terrico White, Georgia forward Howard Thompkins and incoming Florida freshman Kenny Boynton.

The trials, which will be held at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo., are scheduled for Tuesday through Thursday of this week.

Kentucky guard Jodie Meeks and other underclassmen face a deadline of 5 p.m. EDT Monday to withdraw from this year’s NBA Draft.

As of this posting at 6 p.m. EDT Sunday, there was no word of Meeks withdrawing his name.

If Meeks waits until Monday afternoon to decide, he would fit the typical profile of a NBA prospect who waits until the final few hours.

NBA consultant Chris Ekstrand said Sunday that the league typically receives notice of about half the withdrawals on the day of the deadline.

This year saw 105 underclassmen enter the draft, Ekstrand said. Of those early entries, Ekstrand said the NBA would expect about 50 to withdraw. Only about 25 had withdrawn as of Sunday afternoon.

Ekstrand said that a handful of the last-minute withdrawals come players harboring a fantasy wish that, say, the Lakers will belatedly come begging for their services. Another 20 simply hold out a realistic hope that late word will come of being projected as a first rounder.

Meeks is seen as a possible selection in the second half of the first round.

“Some guys wouldn’t get drafted in a 10-round draft,” Ekstrand said. “They haven’t withdrawn yet.”

Meeks, who would be a senior next season, was named to the all-Southeastern Conference team last season. He led UK in scoring. On more than one occasion, he almost single-handedly either won games or kept Kentucky competitive.

At Tennessee, he broke UK’s 39-year-old school record for points in a game by scoring 54.

That 5 p.m. EDT Monday deadline to withdraw is a “hard” and fixed time, Ekstrand said. The league must receive written notification of a withdrawal by that time. The notification can come via fax if the NBA has been notified that a withdrawal will come from that particular fax number.

Maybe having already played for three college teams, basketball nomad Kevin Galloway could sense his days as a Kentucky Wildcat were numbered.
So when new UK Coach John Calipari told him earlier this week that his basketball future would be best served elsewhere, Galloway was ready to accept that advice.
“I was already getting mentally ready for it when the coaching change was made,” Galloway said on Saturday. “I got mentally prepared for the worst. I’m not frustrated.”
After becoming a star for Sacramento (Calif.) High, Galloway played 13 games for Southern California (2.8 ppg and 2.0 rpg). Then he went to the College of Southern Idado for a season (8.4 ppg and 8.4 apg) before coming to Kentucky last year as part of then coach Billy Gillispie’s roster alterations.
But when UK fired Gillispie and hired Calipari this spring, Galloway knew it might be time for his gym shoes to be wandering.
“From Day One,” he said. “With Coach Cal, I knew he’d bring in a lot of players. I prepared for the worst.”
When it came to new players, Calipari brought in quality as well as quantity. Most recruiting observers rated UK’s incoming class the nation’s best. However, Kentucky needed to drop several players to fit its roster within the NCAA’s 13-scholarship limit. Earlier this spring, it became known that Donald Williams, A.J. Stewart and Jared Carter would not be returning next season.
Then last week, two more players — Matt Pilgrim and Galloway — headed for the exit.
Galloway expressed appreciation for how Calipari let him know it was best to leave. The UK coach mixed sober assessment with big-picture rationality.
“He didn’t actually kick me off,” Galloway said. “He was just really real with me.”
Calipari wrapped reality around Galloway’s NBA aspirations. Galloway had a chance to make a NBA roster some day, the UK coach told him. But he’d have to play a lot to maximize those chances.
Galloway averaged 10 minutes (and 1.9 points) per game last season for Kentucky. A load of minutes next season seemed unlikely.
“He felt I wasn’t going to play 30, 35, 40 minutes a game,” Galloway said. “Instead of sitting there in January and February thinking Cal (screwed) me, he didn’t want that.
“That’s man talk. I can respect that.”
As for the future, Galloway is not picky about a destination nor in any hurry to make a decision.
His first priority is to return to Sacramento to be with his family. A brother recently received a 10-year prison sentence, Galloway said, so he wants to comfort his mother.
His landing spot in basketball could be practically anywhere.
“I’m wide open,” he said, meaning that more literally than most prospects. “Division I. Division II. NAIA. Overseas. D-league.”
Galloway simply wants to play.
But, he added, no matter where he goes and how much he plays, he’ll miss the support of Kentucky fans.
“Make sure you say the Kentucky fans are the greatest of all time,” Galloway said. “Because every day I saw fans, they were always telling me they loved the way I played and they wanted me to stay.”
The love affair of seldom used player and devoted fan base began in the days leading up to Big Blue Madness, Galloway said. That’s when he visited with fans waiting for tickets and played games like corn hole with them.
Now, he’ll pack those memories and carry them to the next basketball stop.

Kentucky basketball announced that its satellite camps throughout the state will take place Aug. 14-17, while the annual Women’s Clinic will be held on Oct. 7.

The satellite camps will include stops in Maysville (Aug. 14, 4-7 p.m.), Ashland (Aug. 15, 8:30-11:30 a.m.), Pikeville (Aug. 15, 4-7 p.m.), Hazard (Aug. 16, 2-5 p.m.) and Madisonville (Aug. 17 4-7 p.m.).

The women’s clinic is designed for women with all levels of basketball knowledge.

More information is available by calling 800-825-2875 or 859-257-1916.