Sahvir Wheeler understands why John Calipari gets upset when he makes turnovers. (Vicky Graff Photo)
Despite what some Kentucky fans might think, coach John Calipari believes point guard Sahvir Wheeler had a “heck of a year” last season when he averaged 10.1 points, 6.9 assists, 2.6 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game in 31.1 minutes.
“Now, the end wasn’t great. Okay, let’s get that right,” Calipari recently said on BBN Tonight on WLEX-TV. “He was one of the best point guards in the country. Fast, speed, there were games–North Carolina, Kansas–where he was unbelievable.”
“We need that to be more consistent. He came in, he’s lost weight. When he got hurt, gained eight or nine pounds.”
Wheeler debated his future before opting to return to Kentucky for a second year after spending his first two collegiate seasons at Georgia. The 5-9 point guard believes playing a year under Calipari will make him a more productive player this season.
“Just building that connection with coach Cal. We have a really strong relationship. I can talk to coach Cal about anything whether it is basketball related or not. He is my guy,” Wheeler said.
“Just having a year building a relationship continuously and having that strong foundation is crucial, especially coming to a second year when you know you felt like you had the team to win it last year and kind of fell short.”
“I have some motivation behind that and I know he does as well. He is constantly pushing me to be the best player I can be and I am grateful for that.”
The consistency Calipari wants involves reduced turnovers. At times last season, Wheeler made questionable decisions in the half-court offense that led to ill-timed turnovers.
Wheeler understands Calipari’s concern and why he will yell at him again this year if he makes careless turnovers.
“That’s coach Cal. I wouldn’t want it any other way. If he was not yelling at me for a turnover, to me that shows he doesn’t care,” Wheeler said.
“As long as he is yelling at me for making a turnover and also cheering me on when I do well which he does, I am all for it.”
