Josh Selby: Let's Clear Things Up

The fact that Josh Selby is a super talented basketball player is known by most UK fans and most basketball fans, regardless of affiliation. The fact that he is one of the only two players in Scout.com's top 10 still available and uncommitted is probably also known. There are a few things, though, that aren't quite so clear. What is His School List? Selby looks to have a pretty open list at this point. Different schools have been visiting his games and he and his mother seem open to letting some in. The latest example is Arizona, who will be getting a visit from Selby the weekend of January 9th. So they do seem closed off to most schools, they may still consider some other options. At this point, Kentucky, Kansas, Syracuse and Indiana appear to be the other schools that Selby is considering. Kentucky Took Advantage of An Opportunity to Impress With both Kentucky and Indiana on his list and Maeshon Witherspoon, his mother, being the the huge basketball fan that she is (very knowledgeable about the game in fact) I am 100% sure that she watched the UK/IU matchup in Bloomington. Kentucky took advantage of that huge recruiting opportunity and showcased an offense that allowed John Wall to get into the lane at will, while also using half-court sets that enabled Eric Bledsoe to knock down multiple three's. Outside shooting and breaking down defenders off the dribble just so happen to be strong points in Selby's game as well.  On top of that, Kentucky ran Indiana out of the gym. Every guard knows that an up and down transition game allows them the most opportunities to create. If Calipari and his staff could show Witherspoon and Selby a tape of how well Josh would fit into the dribble-drive, it would probably look a lot like the Indiana game. Do The Same Problems With Kansas and Lamb/Knight Apply to Selby? Why yes, informed reader, they do. No matter whether you're looking at Knight, Selby or Lamb, you're going to encounter the same logjam problems with Kansas. The problem is that Kansas will probably have 8 or 9 scholarship guards on their roster in 2010 and that's without any other guards committing. As you can see, they're targeting three highly recruited guards right now on top of that 8 or 9. While it bodes well for their chances of having a good team, it hurts their recruiting. No matter how well any of those three play, its going to be hard to justify starting them or even giving them significant minutes over all the other former top recruit/highly capable upperclassmen that Kansas is going to have. If they don't play and practice extremely well, they could even end up at third on the depth chart at their position. Imagine that! Not a very attractive position for recruits and their families who are obviously, especially in the case of these three kids waiting until Spring, making themselves highly informed and educated about their options. Kentucky, on the other hand, will have plenty of playing time available. On top of the fact that John Wall will be playing for pay, Calipari has been adamant about the fact that he doesn't like to have an extremely large roster. Therefore, Kentucky is going to offer the most playing time but is also going to have Calipari's usual extremely talented roster of players for that lucky recruit to play alongside and dish to. That should be very attractive. January 2nd is Going to be a Huge Opportunity for Kentucky One of the biggest misconceptions out there about Selby is that UK is using him as a backup plan for Brandon Knight. Let's clear this up right now, SELBY IS A BACKUP PLAN FOR NO ONE. Another misconception is that the Cats haven't extended an offer. They have. UK would be satisfied taking a commitment from Brandon Knight and equally as satisfied taking a commitment from Josh Selby. January 2nd, therefore, when Selby visits Lexington for the UK/UL game, is going to be a HUGE day for UK recruiting. Witherspoon and Selby both were very impressed with their visit to Kansas and how the Kansas crowd responded. When they see Lexington and Rupp Arena, you better believe that they're going to be making comparisons to Lawrence. UK's staff picked a great game to showcase the Cats and their fans though. The crowd should be booming with Pitino coming back, the fans should be excited to be hosting such a top-notch recruit who could be the key to a future championship and UK/UL should be a run and gun slugfest. Hopefully the Cats will win and hopefully the crowd support that Kentucky player's get, which you and I both know is better than anywhere else in the nation, will be more than enough to fully impress UK's (hopefully) next star point guard. Anything else? Sure. If you're as a big a Selby fan as I am, you're going to enjoy what CourtCred.com has been doing with Josh. Over the past few months, they've been following around Maeshon Witherspoon and Josh Selby and allowing the world to know what it is like to be a top recruit. In the 4th and latest episode, Witherspoon clears the air on some of the rumors that have surrounded Josh's recruitment lately. All of the episodes are good so I'll link each of them for you here:

Josh Selby: Welcome to My World Episode 1

Josh Selby: Welcome to My World Episode 2

Josh Selby: Welcome to My World Episode 3

Josh Selby: Welcome to My World Episode 4

Notes:

- John Calipari will be taking a trip to Ironton, OH tonight for the 9pm matchup between Doron Lamb's Oak Hill team and Cincinnati Princeton HS. Doron put up 15 points and 5 assists last night, while leading Oak Hill past Walnut Ridge. This is a great opportunity for UK fans in Ohio to see Doron Lamb up-close and personal and also get to see John Calipari. When I saw Coach Antigua and Coach Cal in Marshall County, they allowed the fans to line up and get autographs and even took a few pictures. If you live in Ohio, take advantage of this rare opportunity to cheer on Doron Lamb and also meet the Grand Poobah himself. Coach Antigua will also probably make the trip and from what I hear ladies, he's quite the sexy little thang.

- Brandon Knight scored 46 points in two games this weekend at the Kreul Classic and the Shiver has nice little scouting report from the games.

- Stacey Poole scored 14 in his team's victory.