Sahvir Wheeler moves past St. Peter's loss, looks ahead to "special group" in 2022-23

On3 imageby:Jack Pilgrim06/02/22

Kentucky point guard Sahvir Wheeler has moved on from the team’s disappointing end to the 2021-22 season. From this point forward, the focus is on improving this offseason and preparing for 2022-23.

St. Peter’s is in the rearview mirror.

“That’s all behind us now,” Wheeler said at his Players First Satellite Camp in Danville on Thursday. “It is what it is, it’s unfortunate, but it’s a new year and a new season with new teammates. I’m just super, super excited to get back on the court and mentor those guys. …

“It took some time. It’s a loss. Any loss for me takes me a while. Obviously, it was an NCAA Tournament game, first round, it stung a little bit. Not going to get too much into it because it’s behind us.”

Kentucky fell in historic fashion to open the 2022 NCAA Tournament, losing 85-79 to the 15-seed Peacocks in overtime. It was a roster many felt could make a run, a trendy Final Four pick among fans and media. The Wildcats thought it, too, genuinely sold that they had a group capable of hanging the program’s ninth banner.

And then it didn’t, not even getting out of the opening weekend. It’s led to a clear chip on the team’s shoulder going into 2022-23, specifically with John Calipari and his starting point guard. The two have developed a strong bond, one they both believe will help push the Wildcats over the hump next season.

“Building that connection with Coach Cal, we have a really strong relationship,” Wheeler said. “I feel I can talk to him about anything, whether it’s basketball related or not. That’s my guy. Having a year to build a relationship continuously, having that strong foundation, it’s crucial, especially coming into a second year where you felt like you had a team that could win it last year and fell short.

“I have motivation behind that, and I know he does, as well. He’s constantly pushing me to become the best player I can be, and I’m grateful for that.”

That winning mindset has become contagious, with the roster that consists of six returning talents in Wheeler, Oscar Tshiebwe, Jacob Toppin, Daimion Collins, CJ Fredrick and Lance Ware all coming back with title expectations. And they’ll be joined by four new additions that include two five-star recruits, one four-star signee and a 20-point-per-game transfer.

Returning to Lexington this week for summer workouts, Wheeler’s first impression of the new roster is quite positive.

Special, even.

“I’m really excited about it, have some good guys coming in, some guys back,” Wheeler said. “Super grateful for the opportunity to play for Kentucky again. I’m enjoying everything, you know. We just got back on campus, finally meeting guys in person for the first time. It feels like it’s going to be a really good team, a special group. We’re looking to build on what we did last year, for sure.”

Why are Wheeler’s expectations high going into his senior campaign? They should always be high at the University of Kentucky, he says. Taking a deeper look at the roster and the talented pieces lining it, he feels those expectations are justified.

“It’s always a good team here. I think having that — just continuing what we did last year, having those key guys back. We lost some good players, but we also got some really good players back,” he said. “The core that we have with Lance (Ware), Jacob (Toppin), Oscar (Tshiebwe), myself, Daimion (Collins), everyone has gotten better.

“We also have a year under our belt here, so we know what to expect not only from our opponents, but we know how Coach Cal is. We know what he wants, how he does things, what the coaching staff is like, so it’s going to be fun for sure. With all that, we know we’ve got to get better. It’s the only way.”

Part of that includes personal growth. Wheeler was a Bob Cousy Award finalist for the best point guard in college basketball, averaging 10.1 points and 6.9 assists in 31.2 minutes per contest. Even still, shooting efficiency was still an issue — he shot just 44.1% from the field and 30.8% from three — as was ball security, averaging 3.0 turnovers per game.

He improved his numbers from the year before at Georgia, but there’s still work to be done going into his senior year.

“(I’m working on) everything. Definitely trying to get better,” Wheeler said. “I increased everything, my field goal percentage, my free-throw percentage, my 3-point went up 10% from my sophomore to my junior year. I shot over 40% (from three) in league play. There were some struggles mid-season, but you can’t become an elite shooter overnight. It takes work. You’re going to have ups and you’re going to have downs until you get it just right.

“During the year, tweaking stuff, working with Brad (Calipari) and all the coaches, by the end of the year I was really comfortable with it. I was making shots. I’m going to continue building on that and have fun while doing it.”

Even his best attribute, playmaking, can grow from year one to year two in Lexington.

“You can always work on that,” he said. “You can always work on finding new ways to get your teammates easy looks, easy baskets. I mean, you just can’t get complacent. We’re not getting paid millions yet to do this, I’m not the No. 1 player in the world. It’s always about finding new ways to get better and enjoying the process of doing it, as well.”

He’s confident Kentucky fans will see the best version of himself during the 2022-23 season. As his game continues to improve, so will the team as a whole. From there, the wins will continue to stack up.

“Not everyone is a 50/40/90 (split player) over one year, it takes work,” Wheeler said. “That’s work I’ve been willing to put in, and I’ve had game success making shots. I’ve also had not so much success where I’ve had to remind myself to get in the gym and get reps up, even when I was struggling from the field.

“It’s all part of the game, but I’m in a really comfortable place right now, and I’m super excited to get back out there in front of the best fanbase and continue to rack up wins.”

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2024-03-28