Sahvir Wheeler lost the ball on this drive against Georgia. (Vicky Graff Photo)
What role will senior point guard Sahvir Wheeler have the rest of the season for Kentucky?
He led the Southeastern Conference in assists two years ago at Georgia. He led the SEC in assists last year after he transferred to Kentucky. And he’s leading the SEC again this year with 6.1 assists per game — only two other players are averaging four or more assists per game.
Yet most Kentucky fans are convinced the Cats are better with Cason Wallace at point guard instead of Wheeler based on how the Cats played at Tennessee when he was injured and how they played the second half against Georgia when Wheeler only played one minute.
Even the analysts indicate UK’s best lineup is Wallace, Antonio Reeves, CJ Fredrick, Jacob Toppin and Oscar Tshiebwe. The belief is that lineup can space the court better and either let Tshiebwe go one-on-one inside or free Reeves and/or Fredrick — or even Wallace — for 3-point shots.
However, don’t look for Wheeler to just keep a seat on the bench even if Calipari does decide to start Wallace against Texas A&M Saturday or in future games.
Toppin said Thursday that Wheeler is “really important” to UK’s future success this season.
“I know a lot of people are talking bad about him, but this team is nothing without Sahvir. He does a lot for us, whether he’s starting, whether he’s coming off the bench,” Toppin said.
“He brings a lot of energy to this team and he changes the pace of the game on the offensive end. He defends very well. Even though he’s small, he fights, he’s tough. So all the negative comments about him can go out the window. He’s really important to this team and we need him in order to do something special.”
My guess is that Calipari could feel the same way and these comments from Toppin made me think he might have heard his coach saying the same thing to Wheeler.
“The media always tries to put someone against the wall, bring somebody down. And like I said, it can take a toll on somebody’s mental (health) and a lot of people don’t know what we go through behind the scenes,” Toppin said.
“I just want to make it aware that he’s really important to this team. Without him this team wouldn’t be anything, so I just want everyone to know that.”
Not quite sure I will buy all that Toppin is selling there. The media doesn’t miss shots or make turnovers. The media doesn’t get UK beat against South Carolina.
Even Calipari finally had to admit not playing Wheeler the second half against Georgia was the logical thing to do.
“The game just dictated to me this is how you’ve got to play this. It’s not brain surgery. We were all watching the same thing,” Calipari said after the comeback win over Georgia on why he didn’t play Wheeler or freshman Adou Thiero in the second half.
But just like Toppin did, freshman Chris Livingston Thursday stressed Wheeler’s importance to the team and made it sound like he expects Wheeler to play a lot Saturday.
“He runs the show for us offensively and he’s like the head of the snake defensively,” Livingston said. “We’re looking forward to getting him back in the lineup, getting his minutes back up, cause we’re gonna need him throughout the course of the season.”
Livingston called him an “amazing teammate” who was coaching the team when he was injured at Tennessee and talking a lot to him and Wallace.
“He’s a vocal leader, he’s someone that we need for this team. He really did his part when he didn’t play, bringing energy on the bench. That was very needed,” Livingston said.
8 Responses
Cal didn’t do Wheeler any favors by playing him as much as he did when Wheeler was making so many mistakes and was the major liability on defense. He can’t play the pick and roll, doesn’t stay in front of his man and causes defensive match issues. This is aside from the offensive issues and forced turnovers. He can provide some key minutes if he just shored up his defense and played more under control.
He will get it together just give him some time
I do think he has a role on this team
He has by example taught others how to pass the ball into Oscar. He and Oscar are by far the best at this and other players are improving. We need all the players to be a team!
More players the better but do not think Wheeler needs to play 35 minutes a game any more
Any player that is really playing all out shouldn’t play 35 min. Any player giving his all will need a couple minutes rest atleast twice a half. No player is at his best when their tired.
Wheeler can help the team, but not as a starter. There will be games where his speed will make for a better matchup, but he has to stop letting his man drive by him to the basket. He is also a liability on pick and rolls. He is an injury or illness away from getting more PT but he has to put the team first.
Toppin really is a special kid. Love the effort and heart he gives on and off the floor. Based on his comments, it sounds like Wheeler is really struggling with the negativity directed toward him on social media. Glad he has teammates who seem to really support him through it all. The best outcome for UK involves all players playing a role to the best of their ability and fully buying into that role. Hopefully our fans can find a way to support Wheeler in his new role.