Wall, Bledsoe to double UK’s pleasure?

With his belated college debut at hand, Kentucky freshman John Wall expects to feel butterflies Monday night against Miami (Ohio).
“If you don’t have jitters, you’re not a basketball player,” he said on Sunday.
Wall’s return figures to cause the Kentucky camp to feel other emotions: elation, reassurance, anticipation.
But Coach John Calipari downplayed this first time to see his star freshman guards, Eric Bledsoe and Wall, on the court together against outside competition.
When asked what he expected Wall’s addition to mean Monday, Calipari said, “I don’t know. Hopefully, less turnovers. But maybe not.”
Wall sat out the opener against Morehead State on Friday as part of the punishment for allowing an agent, his AAU coach Brian Clifton, to pay some of the recruiting expenses.
That made Miami Coach Charlie Coles re-think his schedule.
“We should have scheduled this game on Friday,” he quipped. “Oh, man, he’s going to play Monday, buddy.”
Coles saluted the speed and assertiveness that Wall can bring.
“I like him because he can go from one end of the court to the other,” the Miami coach said. “That’s the best weapon a point guard can have. Because what that does (is) it never lets you set your defense. When you don’t set your defense, that means dunks, open three-pointers, fouls, offensive rebounds.”
For a while in the recruiting process, it appeared Wall and Bledsoe would go to different programs to ensure each a starring role.
Calipari sold them, especially Bledsoe, who committed first, on the idea of playing together.
What sounded to some like a recruiting pitch has become reality. Calipari has spoken often how each plays better in tandem.
By following through on his recruiting pitch to play Bledsoe and Wall together, Calipari said he was acting like any coach on any level.
“If your best two players are at the same position, play them both,” he said.