Kelan Martin

[ShortCreek]

Plain and simple - we missed on Martin! The guy's a player. Last year as a freshman he averaged 7.1 points per game. This season that average has soared to 15.5 points per game, granted its early, but he looks certain to average in double digits in points. In addition, the guy knows how to hit the boards. So we sign two kids that transfer in that class and let the hometown stud leave town. I realize recruiting is not an exact science but it stinks to see Martin excell two hours away!

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

Martin was a 3 star ranked #139. He had offers from St. Louis, Texas Tech, Butler, and Xavier.

One kid in that class for us transferred, not two.

The kid that transferred was Aaron, a 4 star who was ranked #30. Aaron had offers from UCONN, UCLA, California, and UofL.

We should be competing with UCONN, UCLA, and California for players, not Texas Tech and St. Louis.

I am all for being happy with a hometown player finding success, but I'm not going to blame the staff for taking substantially higher players instead of a local player.

Maybe we could have looked at Martin instead of reaching with the project Stockman. That is a fair argument to bring to the table.

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

It's also fair to question if Martin would fit into this system.

He's listed 6-6 235lbs. That's fairly heavy. Wouldn't surprise me if he's closer to 6-4 and 250lbs.

He fits the Butler system very well. Methodical half court team, where his lack of athletic ability can be hidden.

Some players fit one system better than they fit another. We get up and down, trap, press, and don't hold it.

Would not stun me if he torched us if we played. Still doesn't mean he'd have success if he was here.

 

[kozmas]

Wasn't Martin the kid that went to Moore or some Southend high school but he was originally from some other city. He really struggled academically and they weren't sure he would have the grades to make it.

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

He went to Ballard.

 

[coachsales]

Wasn't Martin the kid that went to Moore or some Southend high school but he was originally from some other city. He really struggled academically and they weren't sure he would have the grades to make it.

Last Year Kelan Martin was listed as 6'-6" and 215 lbs. in the Butler Program

Background: First team All-State forward at Ballard High School in Louisville, Kentucky...named to the Kentucky All-Star Team for the annual summer Indiana-Kentucky All-Star series following his senior season...named a finalist for Kentucky “Mr. Basketball” honors...averaged 22.8 points and 8.7 rebounds as a senior at Ballard...shot 37% from three-point range...finished third on Ballard’s all-time list for scoring (2,151 points)...had 1,011 rebounds, 173 steals, 160 assists and 153 blocked shots during stellar prep career...scored a season-high 36 points against Doss as a senior...posted a career-high 37 points against Central as a junior...scored 30 or more points seven times during prep career...had 20 or more points in 21 games in final prep season...had 18 rebounds against Trinity as a senior and against Central as a junior...averaged 19.1 points and 10.2 rebounds as a junior, while helping Ballard to a state runner-up finish...named second team All-State and chosen to the Kentucky Junior All-Star Team in 2012-13...High School Coach: Chris Renner.

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

ESPN lists him 6-6 235lbs this year.

Don't think it matters which weigh in is accurate.

He's an under-sized PF and/or an over-sized SF. Good player though.

 

[ShortCreek]

I watched him today (8 pts 9 reb). We missed on him. He is leaner than he was in high school, let's not make him out to be some clod who can't get up and down the floor and play for us. It's not like Ballard plays Hickory High style ball. They ain't running the picket fence over there!

 

[KerryRhodes]

Recruiting is hit and miss.

 

[REDFISTFURY3]

We miss out on lot of the better players . But hit homeruns with the Stockmen types all day.

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

I watched him today (8 pts 9 reb). We missed on him. He is leaner than he was in high school, let's not make him out to be some clod who can't get up and down the floor and play for us. It's not like Ballard plays Hickory High style ball. They ain't running the picket fence over there!

He is a good player.

He was rated 139th in the country coming out of HS because he has limitations athletically. .

He wasn't a good fit for our system. He's not a very good defender, which is a big deal around here... and he's a tweener. He doesn't get steals, or block shots. I don't want to insult him, he's not a clod but he's not quick either.

His strength - rebounding, not a need. He's not all that efficient offensively either. He shot low 40% from the floor last year.

I like the 4s we have more than him. Johnson and Spalding are much better defenders with much more upside. If you want to add Mathiang to the mix I like him more too. His shot blocking is elite and he's got a high motor and has proven to be a fine role player. Johnson can get boards and he's an efficient offensive player around the basket. Spalding's upside is through the roof, he's long, athletic, can score, block shots, etc. Both these guys, I'd rather have. Rick Pitino appears to agree. It's actually pretty scary how well Spalding appears to fit this system. He will end up outperforming his HS ranking, which wasn't too shabby.

Martin's nowhere near good enough to play the 3 in our system. Our 3s have to be dynamic, and really great on one end of the court or the other. Adel is already a fine defender. Lee is a bomber and can get his shot and score whenever he wants. Martin couldn't effectively press here he doesn't have the lateral quickness.

Maybe he would be such a hard worker he's force his way onto the court. I'm sure he is a fine young man. It's just not a catastrophic miss.


Doesn't mean he's not a good player.

It's ok to disagree about things.

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

We miss out on lot of the better players . But hit homeruns with the Stockmen types all day.

Look troll I get it, this thread is an opportunity for you to dog Louisville.

That said, in your previous feces level posts you pretended to cry about the lower rated players Louisville has signed over the years, and this guy is a lower rated player.

Do us all a favor and cut off all your fingers.

 

[KerryRhodes]

Look troll I get it, this thread is an opportunity for you to dog Louisville.

That said, in your previous feces level posts you pretended to cry about the lower rated players Louisville has signed over the years, and this guy is a lower rated player.

Do us all a favor and cut off all your fingers.

Wouldn't do any good. He'd use his nose to type shat about UofL.

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

Spalding's upside is through the roof, he's long, athletic, can score, block shots, etc. .

It was all on display today, you had to like it.

 

[devilschild]

I was on here screaming for us to sign Martin in that class. Just like I was on here screaming for us to take Aric Holman,Remy Abell,& Eli Wright. We got none of them. Anyway Martin had a more college rdy body then the kid from Seattle. Plus he would've been playing behind Blackshear for a year so it wasn't a situation where we were depending on him straight out the gate. As far as his athleticism goes....Luke Hancock played the 3 very well here. Lol I really believe Martin is 1st team all Big East before he graduates. Good luck to him.

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

Yeah Luke played the 3 well, because he was great on the offensive end, which is what I said in my previous post, the 3 has to be great on one end of the court or the other.... Luke could bomb 3s and Martin can't, the comparison doesn't make sense at all I'm not sure why you're trying to compare those two players. If the player isn't a big time athlete @ the 3 spot here, he's got to be a knock down shooter, and Martin isn't.

Look @ the previous SFs in this program under this coach. Francisco Garcia, T Williams, L Hancock, W Blackshear.... Martin is nothing like those players, he's not in the same mold, he's just not a fit. Not a knockdown shooter, not a great passer, not a great athlete, and guess what... Not a Louisville Cardinal. Sorry.

Martin was rated 100 spots behind Aaron. It is silly to come on here after the fact and say the staff should have taken the guy rated 139th over the guy rated 30th. Does not compute. These threads show up all the time, but they are just so short sighted.

Of course it is nice to see local players produce at a lesser program where he is getting the 20-25 MPG he wouldn't get on a bigger stage. But posters seem to forget the rub, those minutes aren't there at power programs.

Remy Abell is the perfect example of just that. He's a good role player @ X but he couldn't cut it at IU, got recruited over, and he would have faced the same issue @ UofL - he would have been buried on the depth chart and not received the required 20-25 MPG he's getting @ X.

The guys you were screaming for are all good role players that could have each been a nice 8th or 9th man on our team and received inconsistent minutes, and not produced the kind of #'s they figure to be getting at the lesser programs they are playing today.

We can't have four different 9th men, that adds up to 13-14 guys. It's not like football where there are a ton of scholarships available to offer.

I'm sure you guys hate me and my responses, I get it. I'm so argumentative. All I am saying is I'm siding with the staff for taking substantially higher rated players over local players with limitations. Even if we did sign some of these guys they wouldn't have played much and would have been forced to decide to stick it out or transfer to a lesser school that offers more PT.

 

[ShortCreek]

Attended today's game and very happy with the Cards progress, but just want to make sure everyone knows my boy Kelan Martin went for 25 points and 11 boards in a Butler blowout win vs Tennessee!

 

[Fern Creek Card]

I wouldn't trade anyone on this team for anybody. This team is going to be a fan favorite and win many games. My prediction is final four. We will see. go Cards

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

I wouldn't trade anyone on this team for anybody. This team is going to be a fan favorite and win many games. My prediction is final four. We will see. go Cards

This is exactly how I felt about it and still feel about it.

That said - Martin is doing great. And I'm happy for him. He's where he should be. You just never know if statistics transfer when a player finds himself in a different program.

 

[zipp]

Butler's RPI SOS is currently 111th nationally...

 

[KerryRhodes]

Butler's RPI SOS is currently 111th nationally...

Playing $EC teams will do that to your SOS

 

[cardsfan53]

I think it worked out best for both parties. Not sure how much playing time Martin would get here. It's silly to think the coaching staff should have took a player ranked 130 ahead of a player rated 30.

 

[gocards1987]

I was on here screaming for us to sign Martin in that class. Just like I was on here screaming for us to take Aric Holman,Remy Abell,& Eli Wright. We got none of them. Anyway Martin had a more college rdy body then the kid from Seattle. Plus he would've been playing behind Blackshear for a year so it wasn't a situation where we were depending on him straight out the gate. As far as his athleticism goes....Luke Hancock played the 3 very well here. Lol I really believe Martin is 1st team all Big East before he graduates. Good luck to him.

So you wanted us to take every local player that shows any promise at all. Martin is not a 3 in out system. He is a 4. In out system the 3 is more of a guard and he is not a guard.

 

[shamcard]

Yeah Luke played the 3 well, because he was great on the offensive end, which is what I said in my previous post, the 3 has to be great on one end of the court or the other.... Luke could bomb 3s and Martin can't, the comparison doesn't make sense at all I'm not sure why you're trying to compare those two players. If the player isn't a big time athlete @ the 3 spot here, he's got to be a knock down shooter, and Martin isn't.

Look @ the previous SFs in this program under this coach. Francisco Garcia, T Williams, L Hancock, W Blackshear.... Martin is nothing like those players, he's not in the same mold, he's just not a fit. Not a knockdown shooter, not a great passer, not a great athlete, and guess what... Not a Louisville Cardinal. Sorry.

Martin was rated 100 spots behind Aaron. It is silly to come on here after the fact and say the staff should have taken the guy rated 139th over the guy rated 30th. Does not compute. These threads show up all the time, but they are just so short sighted.

Of course it is nice to see local players produce at a lesser program where he is getting the 20-25 MPG he wouldn't get on a bigger stage. But posters seem to forget the rub, those minutes aren't there at power programs.

Remy Abell is the perfect example of just that. He's a good role player @ X but he couldn't cut it at IU, got recruited over, and he would have faced the same issue @ UofL - he would have been buried on the depth chart and not received the required 20-25 MPG he's getting @ X.

The guys you were screaming for are all good role players that could have each been a nice 8th or 9th man on our team and received inconsistent minutes, and not produced the kind of #'s they figure to be getting at the lesser programs they are playing today.

We can't have four different 9th men, that adds up to 13-14 guys. It's not like football where there are a ton of scholarships available to offer.

I'm sure you guys hate me and my responses, I get it. I'm so argumentative. All I am saying is I'm siding with the staff for taking substantially higher rated players over local players with limitations. Even if we did sign some of these guys they wouldn't have played much and would have been forced to decide to stick it out or transfer to a lesser school that offers more PT.

Yeah Luke played the 3 well, because he was great on the offensive end, which is what I said in my previous post, the 3 has to be great on one end of the court or the other.... Luke could bomb 3s and Martin can't, the comparison doesn't make sense at all I'm not sure why you're trying to compare those two players. If the player isn't a big time athlete @ the 3 spot here, he's got to be a knock down shooter, and Martin isn't.

Look @ the previous SFs in this program under this coach. Francisco Garcia, T Williams, L Hancock, W Blackshear.... Martin is nothing like those players, he's not in the same mold, he's just not a fit. Not a knockdown shooter, not a great passer, not a great athlete, and guess what... Not a Louisville Cardinal. Sorry.

Martin was rated 100 spots behind Aaron. It is silly to come on here after the fact and say the staff should have taken the guy rated 139th over the guy rated 30th. Does not compute. These threads show up all the time, but they are just so short sighted.

Of course it is nice to see local players produce at a lesser program where he is getting the 20-25 MPG he wouldn't get on a bigger stage. But posters seem to forget the rub, those minutes aren't there at power programs.

Remy Abell is the perfect example of just that. He's a good role player @ X but he couldn't cut it at IU, got recruited over, and he would have faced the same issue @ UofL - he would have been buried on the depth chart and not received the required 20-25 MPG he's getting @ X.

The guys you were screaming for are all good role players that could have each been a nice 8th or 9th man on our team and received inconsistent minutes, and not produced the kind of #'s they figure to be getting at the lesser programs they are playing today.

We can't have four different 9th men, that adds up to 13-14 guys. It's not like football where there are a ton of scholarships available to offer.

I'm sure you guys hate me and my responses, I get it. I'm so argumentative. All I am saying is I'm siding with the staff for taking substantially higher rated players over local players with limitations. Even if we did sign some of these guys they wouldn't have played much and would have been forced to decide to stick it out or transfer to a lesser school that offers more PT.

Yeah Luke played the 3 well, because he was great on the offensive end, which is what I said in my previous post, the 3 has to be great on one end of the court or the other.... Luke could bomb 3s and Martin can't, the comparison doesn't make sense at all I'm not sure why you're trying to compare those two players. If the player isn't a big time athlete @ the 3 spot here, he's got to be a knock down shooter, and Martin isn't.

Look @ the previous SFs in this program under this coach. Francisco Garcia, T Williams, L Hancock, W Blackshear.... Martin is nothing like those players, he's not in the same mold, he's just not a fit. Not a knockdown shooter, not a great passer, not a great athlete, and guess what... Not a Louisville Cardinal. Sorry.

Martin was rated 100 spots behind Aaron. It is silly to come on here after the fact and say the staff should have taken the guy rated 139th over the guy rated 30th. Does not compute. These threads show up all the time, but they are just so short sighted.

Of course it is nice to see local players produce at a lesser program where he is getting the 20-25 MPG he wouldn't get on a bigger stage. But posters seem to forget the rub, those minutes aren't there at power programs.

Remy Abell is the perfect example of just that. He's a good role player @ X but he couldn't cut it at IU, got recruited over, and he would have faced the same issue @ UofL - he would have been buried on the depth chart and not received the required 20-25 MPG he's getting @ X.

The guys you were screaming for are all good role players that could have each been a nice 8th or 9th man on our team and received inconsistent minutes, and not produced the kind of #'s they figure to be getting at the lesser programs they are playing today.

We can't have four different 9th men, that adds up to 13-14 guys. It's not like football where there are a ton of scholarships available to offer.

I'm sure you guys hate me and my responses, I get it. I'm so argumentative. All I am saying is I'm siding with the staff for taking substantially higher rated players over local players with limitations. Even if we did sign some of these guys they wouldn't have played much and would have been forced to decide to stick it out or transfer to a lesser school that offers more PT.

That was a good move by Abell. Xavier has a power house this year. Sorry we missed on Martin. Always appreciate getting good locals. CRP obviously was going for height that year, and, on its face, Aaron appeared to be a better prospect.

 

[cardsfan53]

Remy is having a solid year for Xavier, but I doubt he plays over Lewis, Snider, or Mitchell here either. Playing styles make players, and not every style fits every player.

 

[devilschild]

Gocards1987 i want us to take all the local kids that are good enough to play for U of L. All those kids can play at this level. All might not have been stars just like some of the kids currently on our roster wont be stars.

 

[devilschild]

The kid we just signed out of Cleveland is the same level of recruit as Abell and Martin. He's not being brought in to start and he'll more then likely get recruited over based on his national ranking. He's being brought in to provide quality depth as an upperclassmen IMO. Thats how this program is built. Martin,Abell,etc would have been the same type recruits.

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

People ITT want an 18-24 man roster.

Recruiting Nationally produces E8s, FFs, and National Titles.

I love some Elisha Justice but I don't think he's going to do as well against Trey Burke as Peyton Siva did. Then again that's completely ridiculous to consider because if we're taking Justice over Siva we aren't reaching a title game and seeing Trey Burke anyway.

Oh wait. We actually took Siva and Justice. And Justice ended up leaving to seek more playing time.

Recruiting only locally wouldn't produce the same results in March because the majority of the local players are role players.

Let's not pretend the staff has completely dismissed all the local players. Check the bios for Snyder and Spalding. They were both National recruits as well - those are the type of players the staff can't afford to let get away - and they didn't.

None of these locals playing at other programs would play the extended minutes they are getting at their current school here. The fact that some posters don't realize that is baffling. Their stats are nice for them and we're happy they are finding success but I prefer Donovan Mitchell over Remy Abell and Spalding over Martin and if you don't agree then I am just happy you aren't on the staff making personnel decisions.

Mitchell and Spalding would eat both those guys alive in practice and render them useless to our program. They'd then be forced to decide, sit around as the 9th and 10th men for a big time program or take an easier path to PT and transfer out.

If Pitino made a habit of bringing in local guys ranked in the mid 100s over National guys ranked in the mid 30s the program would be in the toilet.

Kid from Cleveland is supposed to be a lights out shooter - Martin and Abell not the same type of shooter coming out of HS so not the same type of recruit. It is a matter of fitting a system also, which continues to be dismissed.

We got some passionate high school basketball fans ITT - cool.

People seem to forget - we are a BIG TIME program, talking anywhere from 5th to 7th in the country.

Last time I checked, we're 15-3 in the NCAAs the last four years bringing in higher rated players. I hope the staff sticks with the blueprint.

 

[cardsfan53]

The kid we just signed out of Cleveland is the same level of recruit as Abell and Martin. He's not being brought in to start and he'll more then likely get recruited over based on his national ranking. He's being brought in to provide quality depth as an upperclassmen IMO. Thats how this program is built. Martin,Abell,etc would have been the same type recruits.

Goodin the top player in the state was offered a scholarship. He is also a guard but decided to sign with Xavier beside UofL. If he would have committed I doubt we take the kid from Ohio.

 

[gocards1987]

The kid we just signed out of Cleveland is the same level of recruit as Abell and Martin. He's not being brought in to start and he'll more then likely get recruited over based on his national ranking. He's being brought in to provide quality depth as an upperclassmen IMO. Thats how this program is built. Martin,Abell,etc would have been the same type recruits.

In the 2013 class we had Anton Gill, Rozier, and Chris Jones. Its a hard to decision to pick Abell over any of them without foresight. All of them were 4/5 star players. In Martin's class we took Johnson and Aaron as 3/4s. Again its hard to try and justify taking a undersized PF over either player. Maybe you say take him over Mahmoud and Stockman but neither is really a comparable player to Martin. We took Spalding last year instead of Aric Holman. Spalding is a local and a nearly a 5 star. The other option is losing Adel. This class you could make the argument of Goodin over Hughes but Goodin was not as enthused with Louisville as many fans thought.

 

[devilschild]

Elisha Justice was a walk on who IMO wasnt the instate PG that shouldve been a Cardinal. That should've been Anthony Hickey. Again folks act like we're not the program that has given guys like Larry O,Kyle Kuric,Chris Smith,Preston Knowles,etc the opportunity to play beyond their national ranking. Not to mention we've given opportunities to our share of Angel Nunez's, Swopshires,etc. I expect Martin to be an all Big East performer at Butler before his career is over. And Martin is not playing a traditional 4 at Butler. He is playing the wing handling the ball and shooting 3's. He's actually shooting 48% from 3 and that includes going 5-8 versus Tennessee. He couldnt play for U of L just like Dante Smith Revere, Roosevelt Jones,Kris Dunn,Trevon Bluieett,Jaylen Reynolds,etc couldn't.... (Please insert sarcasm when reading that.) The new Big East isn't the old Horizon League. Oh yeah having this convo in no way means I'm dwn on the way things are going with my Cards. I just feel the state of KY is producing enough talent that we could recruit certain kids and still be a national power. Every kid wont be a star. And that applies to the kids that are currently on our roster. (Shrugs)

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

So now you are saying we should have taken the Anthony Hickey that got kicked off his first college team. He's the type of guy we want in the program. You've just made an argument stating the Cards would have been better off if they brought trouble into the program.

I think we did just fine with Russ Smith backing up Siva at the point those years, I like the title we got and the other FF.

The Louisville program is 15-3 in the NCAA tournament the last four years, and you think changing the rosters would have benefited the Cards.

Good argument.

You continue to ignore so many obvious variables and push the "I wish we took that guy agenda"

I wish we had Ben Simmons. I wish we had Jah Okafor. I wish I wish I wish.

You seem convinced these local guys would all accept their lesser role if Pitino offered them a scholarship. Hate to break it to you, but they wouldn't.

The example of Remy Abell tells you they won't, and don't. Remy Abell really happened. He went to a top school and left because of a lack of PT and getting recruited over. That is the dilemma all the home grown lesser talents face.

Remy Abell, 12MPG @ IU
Remy Abell, 26 MPG @ Xavier

Get it? See what happened? He wasn't satisfied with limited playing time and bolted to a place that offered more PT.

This ain't football. It's 5x5 and the rosters are short. You can't sign everybody these good local players aren't willing to play 5-10 MPG three years and maybe get 15-20 MPG their SR year in nearly all instances. Just ask Remy Abell yourself.

The idea that the stats accumulated at one school would be the universal stats of the player wherever they played is simply foolish. Different systems, different playing time, and different players commanding more shots in some places more so than others. The roster @ Butler is nothing like the roster @ Louisville. Martin would be receiving limited playing time here, and it's unknown how he would perform under those circumstances.

The conversation is silly. We're getting results that are as good as any program in the country lately no roster philosophy adjustment is needed.

15-3 in the NCAAs and we got posters openly stating we wish we did things differently. Amazin I tell yeah.

We're sitting on another dangerous team in what is supposed to be our "down year"

 

[devilschild]

You really wanna bring up troubled players??? Uh we took Kevin Ware & Chane Behanan in the same class?!?! Or did you forget what came with our last title??? Again because I think the state of KY has produced kids that can play at this level does not mean I'm unhappy with the program I'm simply stating what I feel on a message board using #'s and past examples to back up what I'm saying. As far as how #'s translate....anybody that thought Lee & Lewis weren't/aren't gonna get there's playing for U of L doesn't know bball. Yes kids that played for Cleveland St and Drexel can magically excell at this level. As I said earlier had Larry O went to UAB. Had P Knowles ended up at VCU. Had Kyle Kuric ended up at S. Illinois(Thise schools were where those kids were headed before we stepped in btw) there would be folks on here saying these kids weren't good enough to play here. As far as who would ve willing to set the bench where....Willis and Hawkins both have set the bench for years at UK. When you have local kids that dream of wearing a certain jersey they're a little more prone to accept a lesser role. (Shrugs) Regardless there have been several kids that we missed on locally IMO. There are more kids coming out in the next couple classes that are good ebough to play here too hopefully they get their shot.

 

[shadow force]

Yeah but some of those kids were recruited by UofL but just ended up wanting to go elsewhere. I always like seeing guys like PK, Snider, Spalding, etc.come here and excel but sometimes even when UofL recruits these guys THEY simply don't want to play here. Plus hindsight is 20/20 and it is easy to look back after the fact and point things out. Sometimes things work out for the best and sometimes they don't.

 

[shamcard]

Yeah but some of those kids were recruited by UofL but just ended up wanting to go elsewhere. I always like seeing guys like PK, Snider, Spalding, etc.come here and excel but sometimes even when UofL recruits these guys THEY simply don't want to play here. Plus hindsight is 20/20 and it is easy to look back after the fact and p
oint things out. Sometimes things work out for the best and sometimes they don't.

Western's Edmund, a 6'4" quick jumper had 8 rebounds against us today. Martin probably has the same capability, but also is a better scorer.

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

You really wanna bring up troubled players??? Uh we took Kevin Ware & Chane Behanan in the same class?!?! Or did you forget what came with our last title??? Again because I think the state of KY has produced kids that can play at this level does not mean I'm unhappy with the program I'm simply stating what I feel on a message board using #'s and past examples to back up what I'm saying. As far as how #'s translate....anybody that thought Lee & Lewis weren't/aren't gonna get there's playing for U of L doesn't know bball. Yes kids that played for Cleveland St and Drexel can magically excell at this level. As I said earlier had Larry O went to UAB. Had P Knowles ended up at VCU. Had Kyle Kuric ended up at S. Illinois(Thise schools were where those kids were headed before we stepped in btw) there would be folks on here saying these kids weren't good enough to play here. As far as who would ve willing to set the bench where....Willis and Hawkins both have set the bench for years at UK. When you have local kids that dream of wearing a certain jersey they're a little more prone to accept a lesser role. (Shrugs) Regardless there have been several kids that we missed on locally IMO. There are more kids coming out in the next couple classes that are good ebough to play here too hopefully they get their shot.

Uh, Ware and Chane had problems AFTER they arrived, if the staff knew they were going to have problems they wouldn't have brought them in. You are logging in here telling us the staff should have taken Hickey AFTER KNOWING he got kicked off his first team. Be honest, you had no idea he got kicked off his first team. Only a complete moron would suggest the program should bring in mediocre knucklehead talent AFTER THE FACT.

You have tunnel vision on this topic. You fail to conceptualize all the variables in play. Your examples of Lee and Lewis are inconsequential to this topic - they joined a team that lost 85% of it's scoring from the year before and were handed starting positions and 28-32 MPG with the understanding they would be alpha dogs. They had one year of eligibility and they made their college choice based on the availability of playing time and potential to play for a post season maestro as a coach.

These other players in this discussion are role level type of players that would not be receiving guaranteed minutes. They would be left with decisions to make in regards to their careers. Sit pine the early portion of their college career and have the work ethic to try to carve a role eventually or choose to go to a smaller program that can promise minutes immediately. You can't throw 15 players into a rotation in this sport.

Give me your contact information I'll send it to Rick Pitino and he can work with you on next year's roster.

 

[devilschild]

Which school was Hickey kicked out of again?!?! Hoptwn,Christian Co,or Clarksville High??? Hopefully you're not talking about OK St. Because we should've had him before the Cowboys. Anyway I see you havent touched Preston Knowles,Larry Obannon,or Kyle Kuric. According to their national ranking they all should've been role players here. None were. As far as minutes available....we had Wayne Blackshear at the 3 last year when we took Aaron over Martin. This year as a Sophmore minutes were readily available at the 3. Except Aaron took his ball and went home. That's how Lee ended up here. I love Ricky P but there's nothing wrong with saying he's made some mistakes in recruiting. Ask Tyler Brown(Owensboro Apollo) what Rick told him after he went in our championship team at the Yum. It went something like "Sorry I screwed up your recruitment." Anyway Go Cards!!!

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

Which school was Hickey kicked out of again?!?! Hoptwn,Christian Co,or Clarksville High??? Hopefully you're not talking about OK St. Because we should've had him before the Cowboys.

Jesus dude none of the above. LSU kicked him out, they didn't want him for his SR year because of all his BS.

http://www.nola.com/lsu/index.ssf/2014/06/former_lsu_guard_anthony_hicke.html

The former LSU point guard was told last month that he would not play in 2014-15 after three successful seasons on the court, but rocky ones off of it. Hickey's scholarship would have been honored and he could've remained in school and completed his degree, but he would not have been part of the basketball program.

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

Anyway I see you havent touched Preston Knowles,Larry Obannon,or Kyle Kuric.

Kyle Kuric is from Evansville dude, if you're going to call him local then just exactly how many local prospects are there a year, 75? Let's bring 'em all in we got the room. Evansville is also apparently two blocks from campus in your world too. The guy also agreed to walk on LMFAO... Your boy Kalen Martin is too good to walk on, get it? Oh my.

O'Bannon's career began at Louisville during the absolute LOW POINT of the program's existence this era. That is not where we are today. He is also another player, that could shoot the basketball.

Preston Knowles was a big time shooter that fit the system. He was willing to sit that pine for a few years and wait his turn. He joined an incredibly loaded roster with the understanding he wasn't going to play meaningful minutes his first season.

And, all 3 players you are mentioning.... the coach brought in. If the coach brings them in I am all for it. I am down for what the coach wants. You are the one saying the staff is screwing up by passing on players.

Your argument in this thread is the coach is screwing up by passing on players that can play here. Since that is your argument, the 3 players you are listing are not examples for your argument, because they played here, he did NOT pass on them. Kuric is certainly not to be mentioned, because he initially walked on, and isn't local either LOL... It's time to move on dude.

 

[devilschild]

There is no me without you....you realize that right? You brought up Hickey having issues at LSU but when I brought up Ware & Behanan having issues here it was different according to you. Exactly how?!?! Just so you follow me Hickey should have been a Card, based on his talent, straight out of high school. As far as the example of O'bannon,Kuric,& Knowles....they all were "reaches" when it came to being able to play for the Cardinals. As far as the national perception of their talent. You know like you say Martin is. They proved that when you give the right under recruited kid an opportunity they just might surprise you. Oh yeah you give Knowles props for setting the bench and waiting his turn....yet a kid like Martin,who grew up in U of L's shadow, might not have been willing to do the same?!?! Yea ok....