Pickup games fuel dreams of future

About 400 fans came to Memorial Coliseum on Saturday morning to watch pickup games involving Kentucky basketball players. The fans went away thinking of future conquests.

And I don’t mean UK’s football game against South Carolina, which was scheduled to start barely an hour after the pickup basketball ended. And I don’t mean basketball victories this coming season.

Prospects in town for UK’s Big Blue Madness stole the show. Center prospect Daniel Orton commanded the fans’ full attention. Other prospects who played in the pickup games included Russell Byrd, Dakotah Euton, Dominique Ferguson, G.J. Vilarino, Jon Hood and Vinny Zollo.

So the pickup games served as an ideal way for fans to think about future basketball possibilities for UK.

Here’s some observations:

1. Orton is the main focus of the fans. Fans applauded when veteran UK players appeared on the court for the pickup games. But Orton was the only one to rate a standing ovation.

He did not disappoint. Early on, he rebounded a Patrick Patterson miss, dribbled toward the left corner and swished a set shot. “He’s a beast,” one fan could be heard to say.

Later, Orton dunked over Euton and got into an interesting competitive exchange with transfer Matt Pilgrim. First, Orton posted up for a basket over Pilgrim, which drew cheers. Then Pilgrim answered with a rousing dunk. Then Orton dunked on Pilgrim.

Advantage, Orton, who looked completely comfortable on the court with college players. Kentucky and Kansas head his list. He’s scheduled to attend Kansas’s Midnight Madness next weekend.

2. Byrd stood out, in part, because of his red hair, yellow t-shirt and black shorts. When he hit a three-pointer, a fan yelled, “Where’s your blue at?”

Byrd, who is from Fort Wayne, Ind., has had being close to home a factor in his recruitment. But to hear his father on Wednesday night, Byrd will give UK serious consideration.

3. Ferguson fit in while not trying to impress. During warmups, I counted him making six of seven three-point shots (the Coliseum has the shorter women’s line). In the games, he showed plenty of perimeter skills.

4. Vilarino is an intriguing player. The recruiting analysts are not high on him. Yet, he shows a competitive spirit and a point guard mentality. He was strictly pass-first while also showing a willingness to be a scoring threat. He made a three-pointer off a nice in-and-out pass from Orton. He also gets up the down the court quickly.

5. Hood has a chance to be a fan favorite. He’s got a nice rotation on his jump shot and gets a lot done on the court without forcing anything.

6. With his shaggy blond hair, Euton is easy to pick out of crowd. He hit a three-pointer.

7. Of the players on UK’s team, two stood out for me. Junior Ramon Harris seems to be emerging (at least in the pickup games) as a scrappy player who can provide more scoring. He hit a few threes and drove for a dunk that punctuated the morning. I wouldn’t necessarily think of him as an all-conference player, but he’s been noticably productive in these pickup games.

Freshman Darius Miller looks more comfortable in each public workout. He drove the baseline for a reverse layup and scored on a putback of a Euton miss. He’s been economical in his movement, but increasingly effective.

8. There’s no off switch on passion from the fans. When Patrick Patterson missed a contested layup, and then missed a followup attempt, a fan could be heard to say, “Damn.”