- I really like the Kentucky Derby Festival All-Star Classic. It is the best event for fans of basketball recruiting to see the future stars here locally, especially those guys going to Louisville.
- Mike Gandolfo, the talent coordinator (wrangler), really does a great job with what he is given. The talent level has certainly changed over the years with the most notable change coming when Kentucky began refusing to send any of its prospects to the game. A lame-o move by John Calipari and the UK admin.
- And, yes, I hate that the attendance keeps going down. And, yes, being at Freedom Hall stinks. I wish it would be at a different venue - even one that is smaller like that Valley Gym, to create a better atmosphere.
- I'd LOVE to see adidas step back up to the table and make the Derby Classic the main adidas All-Star game again. That would be the best thing for the game, and all it would take is Rick Pitino and the adidas folks teaming up, but I'm not sure that's in the future of the game.
- Trust me, I have many more thoughts on this, but let's get to the important stuff, the players.
- Donovan Mitchell is fantastic and I'd be surprised if he doesn't start from Day 1. He is so athletic, so physical and such a competitor. He reminds me so much of Terry Rozier.
- Donovan Mitchell is fan-focused, a great kid. He gave away everything he could reasonably afford to give away, without walking off naked, to the fans at courtside.
- His size 17 shoes are kind of ridiculous looking in person. I'm not sure what advantage that gives him, but clearly it helps in some way. He has flippers.
- I spoke with a UofL legend who said Mitchell was one of the better dunkers he has seen in a while. This person, code name LA, said "All that dunking is great. But can you play?"
- I think that's valid, but I also think LA would admit Mitchell proved that during the game Saturday night. Mitchell was active and scoring from the beginning of the game to the end.
- Deng Adel took a WHILE to get going and really didn't find his shot until the final quarter. He missed 6 or 7 of his first 10 shots and then started moving the right direction.
- Deng is SO active around the basket and he likes to clean up shots with rebound putbacks. He is physically strong, but does not look imposing at all. He's wiry strong.
- I like Deng a LOT on the defensive end. Ryan McMahon said Adel is one of the toughest defenders he has ever tried to play against. He's so long-armed and so quick with his feet he'll find a spot on Louisville's team immediately just as a defender.
- Ray Spalding has a ways to go. He finished with 6 points and 6 rebounds. He didn't look out of place among the Derby Festival All-Stars, but he certainly didn't stand out in any way.
- Spalding has tremendous potential. He is incredibly long-armed, lanky and has great speed. He could be a great player as a junior and senior, but it will take some strength training, weight-gaining and some extra toughness.
- The most common complaint after the game from UofL fans I spoke with was that Spalding wasn't as competitive as they'd hoped. I would hope that was just an all-star game thing, but I wonder if real competitors ever really turn it off.
- Ryan McMahon played spooked Saturday night. He almost admitted as much when I spoke to him after the game.
- He essentially said he wasn't happy with his performance, said he wanted to show a lot more and that he really couldn't find his shot. I agree with all of those things.
- He is a good shooter. He has decently quick feet. He needs a LOT of work on strength and conditioning.
- The good news is that he knows this and he is actively working on it. The bad news is, programs like Louisville don't typically have time for that process to be very long. He'll have to get better and in a hurry to contribute.
- Mike Gandolfo, the talent coordinator (wrangler), really does a great job with what he is given. The talent level has certainly changed over the years with the most notable change coming when Kentucky began refusing to send any of its prospects to the game. A lame-o move by John Calipari and the UK admin.
- And, yes, I hate that the attendance keeps going down. And, yes, being at Freedom Hall stinks. I wish it would be at a different venue - even one that is smaller like that Valley Gym, to create a better atmosphere.
- I'd LOVE to see adidas step back up to the table and make the Derby Classic the main adidas All-Star game again. That would be the best thing for the game, and all it would take is Rick Pitino and the adidas folks teaming up, but I'm not sure that's in the future of the game.
- Trust me, I have many more thoughts on this, but let's get to the important stuff, the players.
- Donovan Mitchell is fantastic and I'd be surprised if he doesn't start from Day 1. He is so athletic, so physical and such a competitor. He reminds me so much of Terry Rozier.
- Donovan Mitchell is fan-focused, a great kid. He gave away everything he could reasonably afford to give away, without walking off naked, to the fans at courtside.
- His size 17 shoes are kind of ridiculous looking in person. I'm not sure what advantage that gives him, but clearly it helps in some way. He has flippers.
- I spoke with a UofL legend who said Mitchell was one of the better dunkers he has seen in a while. This person, code name LA, said "All that dunking is great. But can you play?"
- I think that's valid, but I also think LA would admit Mitchell proved that during the game Saturday night. Mitchell was active and scoring from the beginning of the game to the end.
- Deng Adel took a WHILE to get going and really didn't find his shot until the final quarter. He missed 6 or 7 of his first 10 shots and then started moving the right direction.
- Deng is SO active around the basket and he likes to clean up shots with rebound putbacks. He is physically strong, but does not look imposing at all. He's wiry strong.
- I like Deng a LOT on the defensive end. Ryan McMahon said Adel is one of the toughest defenders he has ever tried to play against. He's so long-armed and so quick with his feet he'll find a spot on Louisville's team immediately just as a defender.
- Ray Spalding has a ways to go. He finished with 6 points and 6 rebounds. He didn't look out of place among the Derby Festival All-Stars, but he certainly didn't stand out in any way.
- Spalding has tremendous potential. He is incredibly long-armed, lanky and has great speed. He could be a great player as a junior and senior, but it will take some strength training, weight-gaining and some extra toughness.
- The most common complaint after the game from UofL fans I spoke with was that Spalding wasn't as competitive as they'd hoped. I would hope that was just an all-star game thing, but I wonder if real competitors ever really turn it off.
- Ryan McMahon played spooked Saturday night. He almost admitted as much when I spoke to him after the game.
- He essentially said he wasn't happy with his performance, said he wanted to show a lot more and that he really couldn't find his shot. I agree with all of those things.
- He is a good shooter. He has decently quick feet. He needs a LOT of work on strength and conditioning.
- The good news is that he knows this and he is actively working on it. The bad news is, programs like Louisville don't typically have time for that process to be very long. He'll have to get better and in a hurry to contribute.
