Photo - Vicky Graff
Jared Vanderbilt has yet to play in a game for Kentucky this season and he certainly won’t play against Virginia Tech Saturday. A preseason foot/leg injury has kept him sidelined even though Vanderbilt has hinted on social media that he might be close to playing. Kentucky coach John Calipari has changed the timeline for Vanderbilt’s possible return several times this year.
Calipari said Friday that assistant coach Kenny Payne told him Vanderbilt was making progress in workouts but the UK head coach said he has not talked with Vanderbilt about when he’ll actually play in a game.
” I’ll just say it again – he’s not playing to help us win. We’re not going to do that. If I don’t think he’s capable of playing to the level he needs to play, then I won’t play him, whether he begs me to go in,” Calipari said.
“We’re not just trying to put a guy in that’s going to damage him to win more games. I won’t do that. He’s going to have to be able to prove to me that he’s going to be able to go.
“I’m not saying he’s 107 percent, I’m just saying that he can go and compete at a high level and not damage himself.”
