ESPN College GameDay debates what must change for Kentucky, John Calipari
There are plenty of opinions about what is wrong with Kentucky and John Calipari after the Wildcats were once again upset in the NCAA Tournament on Thursday.
ESPN College GameDay analysts Seth Greenberg and Jay Bilas shared their thoughts on the issues on GameDay Saturday morning.
Greenberg started, stating that the biggest issue is youth and the type of players John Calipari is bringing in.
“To me, he’s gotta adjust his model. His model’s always been to recruit the best players in the country, freshmen, and then go out and compete,” Seth Greenberg said. “Well, you know what — the model of college basketball today is not to be that young. You’ve got to get old and stay old. So continue to recruit elite freshmen. Retain the right players, because you have to have culture created within your program.
“And then go into the portal and do what you do with one-and-dones, because the portal is the new one-and-done. Go into the portal and get toughness, winning players, guys that fit roles, so that you can put a team together.”
While Greenberg feels that it is imperative that John Calipari start bringing in older players, Jay Bilas disagrees. Bilas feels that Kentucky can win and win big with elite freshmen, they just need to play better in the postseason.
“The answer is play better when you get into the tournament. This is the same team that went to Auburn and was the only team in the country to beat Auburn at Auburn this year,” Bilas said. “They went to Mississippi State, and they executed late under really difficult situations. And then they go into the tournament and they lay an egg. I don’t think it’s just because they’re young, because Auburn is an old team. They lost to Yale. They didn’t execute down the stretch.”
As Bilas pointed out, Kentucky handled tough environments well all year, earning some hard-fought road victories. But for whatever reason, they struggled in single elimination games in the SEC Tournament and NCAA Tournament.
Bilas added that Calipari and the Wildcats don’t need to make any huge changes.
“You hear things like, ‘Well, the moment was too big for them.’ Well, the moment was too big for a lot of teams that lost in the first round. That happens every year,” Bilas said. “The moment was too big for Purdue last year. Look, they just need to play better. It’s not a freshmen versus senior thing. It’s just not.”
Greenberg has one other theory that he believes could help Kentucky get back on track, and it has to do with the way John Calipari coaches.
“Go back to old school Cal,” Greenberg said. “Cal was his best when he was tough and his teams rebounded, defended. They were physical and had an arrogance. Get rid of swaggy Cal and go back to old school Cal where they were the toughest team, and when they walked in the gym, people said, ‘I don’t want to play against those dudes.’ To me, that’s the solution.
“And that’s what he will do. Cal’s one of the smartest people I’ve ever been around in my lifetime. … He will figure this out, and Kentucky will be back with the elite of the elite.”