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Dejuan Wheat

shadow force

shadow force

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Jun 8, 2010
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LOUISVILLE, KY (WAVE) - A former University of Louisville basketball player is sharpening the skills of kids across WAVE Country.

Dejuan Wheat, who played for the Cards between 1993-97, hosted three week-long co-ed summer camps at Valley High School.

Wheat went on to play for Minnesota Timberwolves and Vancouver Grizzlies before becoming Valley High School's head boys basketball coach after retirement from basketball in Mexico.

"This is something I've always wanted to do," Wheat said. "I want to help kids pursue their dreams and aspirations on the basketball court."
This is Wheat's seventh year coaching basketball camps.


Wheat was always one of my favorite Cards.
 
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the man could shoot the 3! also one of my all time favs during a time when UL bball had seen better days, when we lived in a kind of basketball purgatory, this guy was still really fun to watch.
 
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Many forget that Wheat was a "Prop 48" kid. Had he been eligible directly out of high school he would have been a freshman Pervis's senior year. I've always contended we would have won the national championship if the stars had aligned for Wheat to have been on that team!
 
ShortCreek said:
Many forget that Wheat was a "Prop 48" kid. Had he been eligible directly out of high school he would have been a freshman Pervis's senior year. I've always contended we would have won the national championship if the stars had aligned for Wheat to have been on that team!
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Some of you posters kill me with not knowing the history of UL basketball. I guess Dejuan would have been a 15 year old freshman on the 88-89 team. Hell Allan Houston wouldn't have even been on Pervis's last team if he had ended up coming to UL. Lol
 
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ShortCreek said:
Had he been eligible directly out of high school he would have been a freshman Pervis's senior year. I've always contended we would have won the national championship if the stars had aligned for Wheat to have been on that team!
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Ellison's last year 88-89.
Wheat's first year 1993.

Your contention has some holes in it bub.
 
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Ipartiedwithhopgood said:
Ellison's last year 88-89.
Wheat's first year 1993.

Your contention has some holes in it bub.
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There was a period between 1989 and 1996 where I was out of the country as a member of the Armed Services; and it was really difficult to keep up with the Cards (or any sport not named 'Futbol' back before the mobile computer we call smart phones).

Sadly, I didn't get to see much of Wheat's career. Only replays.
 
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Cue Card said:
There was a period between 1989 and 1996 where I was out of the country as a member of the Armed Services; and it was really difficult to keep up with the Cards (or any sport not named 'Futbol' back before the mobile computer we call smart phones).

Sadly, I didn't get to see much of Wheat's career. Only replays.
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Thank you for your service!
 
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Cue Card said:
There was a period between 1989 and 1996 where I was out of the country as a member of the Armed Services; and it was really difficult to keep up with the Cards (or any sport not named 'Futbol' back before the mobile computer we call smart phones).

Sadly, I didn't get to see much of Wheat's career. Only replays.
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That is a shame b/c the Wheat/Sims/Flynn/Rogers teams were fun to watch. The dropoff in overall talent was apparent but these guys beat you with their heads and heart. NTM a well timed dunk, three or flop.
 
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Guess my memory is a little fuzzy. Who were the starters on the team the year Wheat sat out? Again, I guess my memory fails me but I remember at the time feeling as though Wheat's absence during the year he sat cost us big-time (as in a national championship). Regardless, he was one helluva player.
 
ShortCreek said:
Guess my memory is a little fuzzy. Who were the starters on the team the year Wheat sat out? Again, I guess my memory fails me but I remember at the time feeling as though Wheat's absence during the year he sat cost us big-time (as in a national championship). Regardless, he was one helluva player.
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I believe the team that lost to IU in the Sweet 16 was a pretty strong Louisville team, and I think Wheat and Osborne joined the program the year after. PG for Louisville was Keith LeGree - he transferred when Wheat joined the team. UofL had Rozier, Morton, and Minor but IU handled the Cards.
 
Ipartiedwithhopgood said:
I believe the team that lost to IU in the Sweet 16 was a pretty strong Louisville team, and I think Wheat and Osborne joined the program the year after. PG for Louisville was Keith LeGree - he transferred when Wheat joined the team. UofL had Rozier, Morton, and Minor but IU handled the Cards.
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Yep, LeGree was a very highly rated PG. But when he saw what Wheat could do, he hit the road to Cincy. Wheat is probably the least mentioned of UofL basketball greats...I can only guess it's because we didn't have too much NCAA success during his career (1 Elite Eight appearance). He is still Louisville's second all-time leader in three-point field goals (323), ranks second in school history in scoring (2,183 points) and third in assists (498).
 
Wheat was awesome. When he signed or committed I made it a point to check out about 3-4 of his Ballard games that year. He blew me away, I was convinced he was going to be a good one, he just had "it". At Ballard it was his court vision and passing that I loved the most, his scoring was secondary.
 
I'll never forget the first time I laid eyes on LeGree (Derby Classic), he had the body of a fullback but the problem was he shot like a fullback too! He played hard but we took his commitment over Damon Stoudemire, which was a huge blunder.
 
I'll add one more comment about the Wheat years. When we went to the Elite 8 Wheat's senior year I think we would have beat UNC with Wheat healthy. I have always said that Denny won 28 games that year with smoke and mirrors, we just did not have that much talent. I mean, Damion Danzler (spelling?) in the post? Maybe Crum's best coaching job of his career!
 
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He was the only reason we had any success the years he played. Alvin Simms should send him a thank you card every year. :)
 
ShortCreek said:
I'll add one more comment about the Wheat years. When we went to the Elite 8 Wheat's senior year I think we would have beat UNC with Wheat healthy. I have always said that Denny won 28 games that year with smoke and mirrors, we just did not have that much talent. I mean, Damion Danzler (spelling?) in the post? Maybe Crum's best coaching job of his career!
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Don't know how much center Dantzler played, but most of the position was played by Beau Zach and Alex Sanders. Nary a true center among them, but Beau Zach could defend the entry pass into the post very well. That alone drove UC nuts. Nate Johnson was a freshman forward who got major minutes. Crunch time, it was Wheat/Sims/Flynn and ???

Like you said, smoke and mirrors.
 
Billy, while my initial post was waaaay off and inaccurate I was thinking Wheat but it was actually Allen Houston. He would have indeed been a freshman (had he been a Card) during Ellison's senior year. And, Denny releasing him (which was the correct thing to do) did IMO cost us a National Championship.

But, I have often contended that where Crum really screwed up on this deal was not releasing Houston but how he allowed the whole thing to go down.

Wade Houston was a hot commodity at the time, he had been interviewing for head coaching jobs for about 2-4 years each spring but just hadn't found a program willing to give him his shot. Still, Crum signs Allen in the early (fall) signing period and we lose all the other guards we were recruiting to other programs. Then Wade leaves, we release Allen and we're a player short in our NCAA run, losing to a very good Illinois team in the Elite 8.
 
Wheat would fake the three, dibble inside the arch, then either take the open jumper or hit Sims on the wing who would finish with a monster jam at the hoop.
 
ShortCreek said:
Billy, while my initial post was waaaay off and inaccurate I was thinking Wheat but it was actually Allen Houston. He would have indeed been a freshman (had he been a Card) during Ellison's senior year. And, Denny releasing him (which was the correct thing to do) did IMO cost us a National Championship.

But, I have often contended that where Crum really screwed up on this deal was not releasing Houston but how he allowed the whole thing to go down.

Wade Houston was a hot commodity at the time, he had been interviewing for head coaching jobs for about 2-4 years each spring but just hadn't found a program willing to give him his shot. Still, Crum signs Allen in the early (fall) signing period and we lose all the other guards we were recruiting to other programs. Then Wade leaves, we release Allen and we're a player short in our NCAA run, losing to a very good Illinois team in the Elite 8.
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Allan Houston as I stated before wouldn't have been on the 88-89 team. He was a McDonald's all American in 1989 on the west team with Shaq I believe. Also we lost to Illinois in the sweet sixteen not the elite 8.
 
billybeer44 said:
Allan Houston as I stated before wouldn't have been on the 88-89 team. He was a McDonald's all American in 1989 on the west team with Shaq I believe. Also we lost to Illinois in the sweet sixteen not the elite 8.
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You are correct. We lost to Illinois 83-69 in Sweet Sixteen after trailing 40-37 at the half. They were a #1 seed and we were a #4. Their 2nd leading scorer was limited to 15 minutes due to a knee injury. We were outrebounded (26-35), turned the ball over more (17-12) and had fewer assists (13-22).

Source: Encyclopedia of the NCAA Basketball Tournament

Personally, I liked our chances in this game, especially with Denny on one bench and Lou Henson on the other but that was not to be. This team was not the same after Pervis went down @ OSU.
 
ShortCreek said:
I'll never forget the first time I laid eyes on LeGree (Derby Classic), he had the body of a fullback but the problem was he shot like a fullback too! He played hard but we took his commitment over Damon Stoudemire, which was a huge blunder.
Click to expand...
Didn't LeGree end up at LSU, playing with Shaq?
 
flyercard said:
Didn't LeGree end up at LSU, playing with Shaq?
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LeGree hit the three that beat LSU with Shaq and big Stanley.

One more thing on Wheat and Sims. Late in their JR year, one of them knocked up the others girlfriend and it fractured the team. I think it was Sims that messed with Wheat's girl but can't say for sure. From then on, there was almost zero chemistry between those two.
 
Boom Boys 13 said:
LeGree hit the three that beat LSU with Shaq and big Stanley.

One more thing on Wheat and Sims. Late in their JR year, one of them knocked up the others girlfriend and it fractured the team. I think it was Sims that messed with Wheat's girl but can't say for sure. From then on, there was almost zero chemistry between those two.
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I recall hearing it the other way, but nothing as serious as a pregnancy. Just one's girlfriend dalliance with the other. Either way, it is a tribute to both that they could put off-court friction behind them on the floor, although it may be the explanation for a dropoff late in conference play.
 
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flyercard said:
I was wrong on another response, but didn't Simms just disappear after the No. Car. NCAA loss.
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He threw a little shade on Denny in an interview after his Sr season. Not sure if it was intended to be crappy but it came off that way. He said something like the system held him back and he wasn't able to really showcase what he could do. Maybe another old-timer has a better memory than I do on it.
 
Ipartiedwithhopgood said:
He threw a little shade on Denny in an interview after his Sr season. Not sure if it was intended to be crappy but it came off that way. He said something like the system held him back and he wasn't able to really showcase what he could do. Maybe another old-timer has a better memory than I do on it.
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You might be on to something according to this old article from Mike DeCourcy of the Sporting News. Apparently, Denny was not as big a fan of Alvin's game as were DeCourcy and I, so I can see Alvin being critical of the way he was used.

flyercard, Sims played a lot of ball overseas.


www.sportingnews.com/ncaa-basketball/list/top-10-greatest-player-louisville-cardinals-all-time-best-players/1j2y2whtrmemj17r7acvxrwq5x
 
Wheat was a super nice kid. Quiet and reserved. One of the most under appreciated players for UofL and from the city to boot. That run in the NCAA tournament was fun, but ran into a very very good UNC team.
 
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Wheat was my all time favorite Card. Growing up as a kid watching him was awesome. Those were the days. However, it's sad to watch him coach now. The Valley program he had has a ton of talent in it and he barely even moved on the sideline when I watched them over the course of the season. They progressively got worse. It was even more sad to see the C-J come out and write an article proclaiming that Wheat was some kind of great coach because of the number of games the team won. To be honest, he looked like he would have rather been doing something else while he was coaching. Disappointing to see that in him these days but man what a great player back in the 90's.
 
ciswilldean3215 said:
Wheat was my all time favorite Card. Growing up as a kid watching him was awesome. Those were the days. However, it's sad to watch him coach now. The Valley program he had has a ton of talent in it and he barely even moved on the sideline when I watched them over the course of the season. They progressively got worse. It was even more sad to see the C-J come out and write an article proclaiming that Wheat was some kind of great coach because of the number of games the team won. To be honest, he looked like he would have rather been doing something else while he was coaching. Disappointing to see that in him these days but man what a great player back in the 90's.
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Not sure there is a translation between being a player and what you should look like as a coach. When I watch Steve Alford or Danny Manning on the bench as coaches, I still see them as players in their heyday and don't see them as coaches.
 
Ipartiedwithhopgood said:
I believe the team that lost to IU in the Sweet 16 was a pretty strong Louisville team, and I think Wheat and Osborne joined the program the year after. PG for Louisville was Keith LeGree - he transferred when Wheat joined the team. UofL had Rozier, Morton, and Minor but IU handled the Cards.
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A little off topic I know,but wasn't that the team that was decimated by the loss of Kip Stone(went on to start at Jacksonville or somewhere),Wingfield(Texas starter) and yours truly,Hopgood?

Btw,loved Wheat
 
DeJuan Wheat went to my high school and even though he picked the wrong color from my perspective of the rivalry I'll always be a fan of his. He and Alvin Sims were a damn strong back court.
 
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earsky said:
A little off topic I know,but wasn't that the team that was decimated by the loss of Kip Stone(went on to start at Jacksonville or somewhere),Wingfield(Texas starter) and yours truly,Hopgood?

Btw,loved Wheat
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That group would have graduated either '94 or '95 per sports-reference.com, two years before.
 
Let me clarify...when I go to high school games, typically I see the coaches, umm, well "coaching." Interacting with players, moving them to spots, calling out plays or defenses, ect. Wheat? He just sits there. Not trying to bash him, he just looks like he'd rather be doing something else. Most coaches that I know, I'm in and out of the coaching ranks in the city, don't sit on the bench for an entire game and not interact with their players. Just sayin'.
nccardfan said:
Not sure there is a translation between being a player and what you should look like as a coach. When I watch Steve Alford or Danny Manning on the bench as coaches, I still see them as players in their heyday and don't see them as coaches.
Click to expand...
 
ciswilldean3215 said:
Wheat was my all time favorite Card. Growing up as a kid watching him was awesome. Those were the days. However, it's sad to watch him coach now. The Valley program he had has a ton of talent in it and he barely even moved on the sideline when I watched them over the course of the season. They progressively got worse. It was even more sad to see the C-J come out and write an article proclaiming that Wheat was some kind of great coach because of the number of games the team won. To be honest, he looked like he would have rather been doing something else while he was coaching. Disappointing to see that in him these days but man what a great player back in the 90's.
Click to expand...

My favorite Card as well.

Always will be.
 
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