Kentucky basketball has questions but also has a lot to like

Kentucky fans are really going to like Jacob Toppin this season. (Vicky Graff Photo)

For those UK fans that watched Kentucky basketball’s open practice scrimmage last Tuesday night in Rupp Arena they probably saw some things that were encouraging and some things that may be cause for concern. If so, I agree because I saw some of those same things.

Here are my thoughts about what I saw keeping in mind that it was an open scrimmage several months before the season officially starts. It was, quite simply, an opportunity to showcase the raw talent of each individual player.

So here goes. First of all, this 2022-2023 team appears to be a typical John Calipari-type team. These Wildcats are a long, very athletic team that have good quickness at most of the guard positions and good length and athleticism on the inside.

One area of strength for this team in my opinion will be guard play. With 5-10 (and the last two seasons’ college assist leader) Sahvir Wheeler playing the point guard position and 6-4 top 10 high school player Cason Wallace at the shooting guard spot UK should have two players with enough quickness to beat defenders off the dribble and create shots at the rim or create assist opportunities for inside players like Oscar Tshiewbe, Daimion Collins, Jacob Toppin and Lance Ware. Wallace also looks like he could develop into a Tyrese Maxey-type player with a very good runner to go with his slashing drives to the basket.

Both guards should be very disruptive on the defensive end of court with quick hands and quick feet. They also both seem to have high motors with constant movement on defense as a trademark for both players.

Another strength will be the inside play of last year’s 6-9 national player of the year Oscar Tshiewbe and 6-10 Collins. Tshiewbe is a known commodity after a monster college basketball performance last season and Collins appears to have added some offensive moves around the basket to go with his sky high dunks and potentially some occasional 3-point shooting as well. Both players should benefit greatly from the quickness of the Cat’s guard group.

That gets us to the wing players. Jacob Toppin appeared to me to be the most improved player on the floor. The 6-9 jumping jack seemed to be everywhere on the offensive end of the floor taking and making 3-pointers, driving to the basket for multiple shots at the rim and adding a few impressive dunks along the way. Toppin appears to be what could be the missing piece of the offensive puzzle for Calipari’s Wildcats.

As physically impressive as the Cats were individually on offense, the question that still remains in my mind is can this team consistently hit outside shots if their opponents slow the game down into a half-court crawl that offers few fast break opportunities or open driving lanes to the basket? Can CJ Frederick replicate the kind of shooting year that Kellan Grady had early last season and can Wheeler and Wallace consistently hit enough outside shots to keep teams from playing a constant rotation of zone defenses or sagging man to man? Those questions will still remain until UK plays some tough competition in November.

Defensively the Wildcats appear to have enough length and quickness to make it difficult for teams to score consistently on the inside but the jury is still out on how well they will be able to cut off straight line drives to the basket. They seem to have the physical tools to play good perimeter defense but it will also require great teamwork and awareness from all five players on the floor. The fact that Kentucky has so many upperclassmen on the roster should be a big boon for the defensive effort this year.

A couple of players that I didn’t mention but should have are 6-4  Illinois State transfer shooting guard Antonio Reeves and 6-6 incoming freshman Chris Livingston. Reeves looks like with his quickness he could immediately provide some slashing drives to the basket on offense and give UK another taller defender on the perimeter. His previous experience at Illinois State should also help him acclimate quickly to life in the SEC.

Livingston looked like a player that is still adjusting to the speed and athleticism of the college game. He appears to have all the physical tools to play for the Cats and just needs some additional experience to get into the flow of the game. One other player on the scholarship roster, 6-5 four-star freshman Adou Thiero appears to be more of a project player that should pay more dividends down the road in the 2023 season and beyond.

So it appears from one brief team scrimmage (you have to love when sportswriters make broad, sweeping generalizations after one practice but it’s their job) that Calipari has a team that is athletic, talented and dominated by upperclassmen. On the 10-man roster five of the players are seniors and one is a junior. That is unheard of for a Calipari coached team in the “one and done” era.

Now the question remains, can all that experience and talent be molded into a cohesive basketball unit that in the month of March demonstrates the ability to win tough games at tough times. On paper they look like they can but as sportswriters have said for years, “that’s why they play the games.”