John Calipari tightening rotation, scrimmaging more in hopes of building team chemistry

Not only is John Calipari being more deliberate with how Kentucky runs its offense, but he’s also being more deliberate with who is out there doing the job.

On Tuesday night — for the second game in a row — Calipari tightened up his rotation in a 74-71 win over LSU. Only seven Wildcats saw the floor against the Tigers, with five of them playing at least 29 minutes. Calipari rolled out a starting lineup consisting of Sahvir Wheeler (37 minutes), Cason Wallace (40), Chris Livingston (29), Jacob Toppin (31), and Oscar Tshiebwe (40). The only two Wildcats who came off the bench were Daimion Collins and Antonio Reeves, who played nine and 14 minutes, respectively.

In the second half, the starting five all played at least 18 out of a possible 20 minutes, with Wheeler, Wallace, and Tshiebwe playing every second. Calipari didn’t even make a substitution in the second half until the 7:45 mark. Collins and Reeves combined for just three minutes after the intermission.

This tightening of the rotation came right before Calipari played four guys at least 35 minutes in the 86-63 blowout win over Louisville this past weekend. Granted, Kentucky was without Lance Ware and CJ Fredrick against LSU — two guys who figure to fit into the rotation in some capacity moving forward — but Calipari is making it a point to play his best players the most minutes.

The idea is building more and more team chemistry on the floor, which appears to be at a high right now with the ‘Cats on a mini two-game win streak. More continuity often leads to more success.

“Did I play Cason 40 minutes? You have to understand, I’ve had teams where I’ve played five guys, and six and seven played nine minutes. I had guards that played 38 minutes a game at UMass,” Calipari said following Tuesday’s win. “I did it — I’ve done it that way, and here is what happens. You start seeing chemistry and them growing together because they are on the court a lot. And I thought that’s what this team needed.”

This approach isn’t unusual for Calipari during his time at Kentucky, either. Last season’s team rolled with a relatively strict seven-man rotation. The same can be said for the groups in 2016-17, 2013-14, 2011-12, and 2010-11 (which actually featured just a six-man rotation). This year’s team might elicit the same game plan, but Calipari can’t rely on playing four or five guys playing upwards of 37 minutes every night out. Someone else is still going to have to step up and help extend the rotation to at least six or seven.

“Antonio (Reeves) didn’t get a whole lot of minutes. Well, Chris (Livingston) was mixing it up and doing some good stuff. So I left him in there,” Calipari added. “But we need Antonio. We need CJ (Fredrick). We need one more guy that can go and stretch a game for us.”

Reeves and Fredrick are options 1A and 1B in terms of who can be that missing piece, but they simply haven’t played up to expectations as of late. Fredrick is expected to miss a couple more weeks with a dislocated finger, too. There will be instances where Calipari needs one (or both) of those two to make a considerable impact. Ware or Collins could also be options depending on the opponent.

So far, the early returns on a tightened rotation have been positive. Kentucky posted 18 assists to just six turnovers in the win over LSU while shooting 52 percent from the field. It was 18 assists to 12 turnovers on 60 percent shooting against Louisville. Energy levels are higher and players appear more in tune with what’s going on. The team is now scrimmaging for an hour before every game, which Calipari admitted is “dangerous”, but something he feels this team needs more of — more opportunities to play together.

“We’ve been doing it and we’re 2-0, so I think it’s a pretty good thing,” Wheeler said Tuesday night about pre-gameday scrimmages. “And I know (Calipari is) gonna continue to do it. And it really helps us. Keeps us sharp, keeps us focused so instead of those long stretches where you might not play for three or four days so you don’t really scrimmage as much, trying to save your legs. But nah, we’re gonna continue to get after each other, continue to get better, push each other, and find ways to continue to get better on both sides of the ball.”

Again, it’s been so far so good with these new tactics. But foul trouble is bound to make an impact at some point. Constantly playing 35-plus minutes can be tough on the body as a season progresses. At the same time though, Kentucky has been desperate for something to shift momentum. The plan is working in the early stages.

“You’re noticing, we’re flowing more in sync. You could just see it,” Calipari said.