Chris Livingston understood he had to change how he played to help UK more. (Vicky Graff Photo)
Freshman Chris Livingston came to Kentucky not only with big expectations others had for him but also with big expectations he had for himself.
He’s had no trouble getting playing time but he’s not been nearly the big-time scorer and playmaker he was the previous two seasons — a junior season at Buchtel High School in Akron, Ohio, and then a junior season with prestigious Oak Hill Academy that made him a McDonald’s All-American.
He is averaging 5.6 points, 3.0 rebounds and 17.7 minutes per game but has had trouble impacting games the way he hoped to do.
“I’ve never played like that in my life, to be honest with you,” Livingston said after a recent game. “To be honest, it is tough. But I’m chasing something that’s bigger than me at this point in time.
“We have a really good team, and in order to bring it all together, I gotta be a star in my role. So I have to do what I have to do to help this team out. And understand what we can do later on down the line. It’s a marathon.”
That means rebounding and defense are now more important for him on this team than scoring.
“It’s just a mental thing. You’ve gotta change your mindset,” Livingston said.
UK Radio Network analyst Jack Givens has seen an improvement in Livingston’s all-around play.
“He’s not perfect but he really is doing a lot of little things that you don’t notice but do make a big difference,” Givens said. “He’s becoming a really good all-around player. He’s an elite athlete. He might have thought some of this would come easier but he’s getting there.”
However, after the loss at Georgia Saturday when he had nine points, Livingston admitted he made a big-time mistake after talking about the need to improve his defense.
“I felt I picked up my energy in the second half but it was a little too late. I have got to be there for my team from beginning to end,” Livingston said.
However, he also said there would be no quit in his team despite having lost two straight and now nine games this season.
“We don’t have those types of guys to throw in the towel and let go of the rope,” Livingston said. “It does look tough. But we went to Tennessee and won with our backs against the wall and everybody counting us out.”
6 Responses
It is a marathon, but you can’t be to far behind and make it to the dance. I have been waiting for this team to improve on defense and catch fire on offense. I now think neither is possible and this team will go down as the biggest disappointment in UK history. Start in the top five and finish out of the race.
I haven’t given up on this team, but I do see Cal is burn out. Just too many signs of it.
He does look tired
Yeah cannot get 5 miles behind and hope to catch up
Well spoken young man. I hope he comes back next year. But very few care about UK Bball. 10 years ago, a rehash of the previous nights game was the only topic of conversation at work. Now folks ask “who won” or did we play last night?” Cal has: (1) made the program only about him. (2) makes a fool of himself, yelling on the sideline. (3) Belittles the fan base by denigrating “Bennies”, the SEC tournament, zone defenses, etc. (4)refused to install a modern offense.
There is a lot of apathy