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Sporting News columnist Mike DeCourcy understood why former Kentucky coach John Calipari felt the “welcome mat had been rolled up and there were other better horizons out there for him” after Kentucky lost to Oakland in the 2024 NCAA Tournament.
DeCourcy might have been the only national basketball writer to suggest immediately that BYU coach Mark Pope, a former UK player, could be the perfect replacement for Calipari after his departure to Arkansas. DeCourcy knew 10 years ago it would have taken a new coach three or four years to put together a competitive roster.
“Now if you are smart, you have the resources to build a roster and Mark Pope is smart,” DeCourcy said. “Mark immediately had a plan.”
DeCourcy has one statistic he thinks is key when a player transfers up. That stat is 3-point percentage.
“Can they make a shot because that can translate way more often than not,” DeCourcy said. “
The Sporting News columnist actually watched Koby Brea play at Dayton in January.
“I didn’t remember him because he didn’t make an impact that night,” DeCourcy said. “I knew (Otega) Oweh’s name and I had seen a few of the other players here and there. But I saw they could shoot.”
He also looks to see if a team has rim protectors. He picked Duke to win the 2024 national title but quickly realized he was wrong because Duke did not have rim protectors. Kentucky has two — Brandon Garrison and Amari Williams.
“With big guys, you want someone who is a rim protector. It is an instinct factor,” DeCourcy said. “Amari Williams is someone who blocks shots at a high level. Brandon Garrison blocks significant shots for the minutes he plays. You can’t win a lot of games if you don’t protect the rim.
“It’s clear that going after bigs was an important part of what Mark and his staff did.”
In-game adjustments are also something that Pope does well.
“He is an exceptionally smart person. He went to medical school. He is really bright,” DeCourcy said. “There is an inflexibility for some coaches that is hard to overcome. Flexibility is going to empower this team. They have nine capable players but all nine will be good every night. Being willing to make changes as the game presents the need is something Pope does well.”
DeCourcy was never as critical of Calipari as other national writers.
“I am not often super critical of coach Calipari but I thought his handling of DJ Wagner in the last third of last season was inflexible,” DeCourcy said. “You can make the point that he was the one good overall defender at guard. Others were not great. Reed Shepherd disrupted passing lanes but was not great on the ball.
“But in other areas they were so disintegrated and that did factor in some of their defeats. You have two be willing to make changes but he would not when it came to DJ and that hurt them in some games.”
11 Responses
I’ve been pretty good on calling shots this year. Let me toot my horn! I said Oweh would be the most consistent and top scorers and he is. I said Carr would take over games. He did against Duke at the end. He was unstoppable going strong to the basket. Right Again! I said Perry and Noah would bring the guys the water on timeouts and I was right again. I said Chandler would play and Perry and Noah wouldn’t do you see were I’m going here!!?? Lol I love it!! I was terribly wrong about the football team but I think we give Texas a game tomorrow. I think we keep it close to the end. I would take them 20.5 points they are giving Kentucky we have almost all the starters back and we were down 14 starters now were down 3. We could even pull the upset of the year. I look for Wilcox to have another good game and Dane Key to get 100+. Brock is going to have his best game. Ill be back tomorrow for a update!! Brock is going to look like Will Levis tomorrow! Texas can say they are not overlooking Kentucky but I guarantee they are! Upset season!
Kentucky football 10-2 in the SEC this year?
Toot that?
Mark Pope a bad hire for Kentucky Men’s Basketball coach?
Why don’t you toot that anymore?
Cal absolutely ruined last year’s team. Starting your two pets over two better players will destroy team chemistry and coach respect every single time. Not to mention he genuinely hurt DJ and Justin’s development as players because he rewarded them as starters when they didn’t deserve it. The bench might have been the motivation they needed and might have removed some pressure from their shoulders, allowing them to develop at their own pace.
Cal had 3 of the best shooters in UK history but they only played together a small percentage of time. And, of course, Cal’s politics and pathetic reliance on propaganda bulls*it lost most of the fans. When he bent the knee to the marxist grifters BLM, thousands walked away. When he double masked and social distanced his bench, he lost all credibility with thousands more. Just a disgusting, brainwashed, washed out used car salesman who got his lifetime contract and then gave up wanting to WIN BANNERS. He put his draft choices over all else.
Good riddance Cal. UK will beat Arkansas by 30.
There you are….the typical Vaught reader of last year … the maggot hater that just wants to tarnish everything you touch. Why did you make a sports column political? I had vowed to not read any more Vaught articles because of the typical commenter’s apparent need to be so incredibly hate filled. With the upbeat, positive nature (winning helps, but Pope is genuine) of the season to date i thought I’d give it another shot. Too bad.
Stay with us Larry. Most comments here much more positive and as season goes on, will get even better
If everyone pretend that everything was rainbows and unicorns last year then Pope would still be at BYU and king CALcified would still be here screwing up OUR TEAM!
Let it go Pblue, he’s not our coach anymore. Enjoy what we got now with Pope.I sure have its a different brand that will put us back on the map.
pretended
The Calipari hate will vanish as the Pope teams bring Kentucky back to the top of the mountain of college basketball. Wildwest is right about what he has said. Calipari earned this rabid hatred for what he did to Kentucky basketball. All of you Calipari lovers need to accept this feeling in BBN for this season and possibly the next. Then Calipari’s damage to our program will be replaced with success from Pope’s teams. Also, Calipari will be exposed for the FRAUD that he is when Arkansas has back to back double digit losses. I see him retiring in 4 years under a cloud of embarrassment or getting fired in shame. Then BBN will be able to forget about Calipari and celebrate the success that Pope will bring to Kentucky. Until then, too many in BBN will still remember the players first and winning titles is not important statements made by Calipari. It is what it is and will cease in time, but that time is not now.
LOVE YOUR COMMENTS!! ABSOLUTELY SPOT-ON 100% ACCURATE ABOUT KING CAL!!! He became more concerned about political and social issues, basically everything EXCEPT KY BBALL or his job here, and he showed that in his last 4 years. The results and the quality of play showed that and reflected that. That all had already begun to slip in the 4 years prior–2016-2020–but at least there was still some emphasis during that stretch on winning for KY–but from COVID on until his last game against Oakland, the FRAUD took the KY BBALL program to a new unrecognizable historical low. I would grant u the run from 2020-2024 was worse than the probation era of KY BBALL. The FRAUD delivered the worse regular season record in school history–9-16–i think alot of ppl forget that–along with the two biggest NCAA Tournament upset losses in school history to St Peters and Oakland–sandwiched around another second-round NCAA Tournament loss. A total of one NCAA Tournament win and one SEC Tournament win from 2020 to 2024. And not even a contender for one of the top teams in the SEC. So what did the FRAUD bring us? Oh, I’m sorry, I forgot, he brought us NBA draft picks and changing families’ lives, and just awesome, fantastic political beliefs that we all should have just bowed down to and anointed and crowned him the KING for having the courage and the fearlessness to stand up for and show the state publicly. Gosh, CAL, u are the absolute GREATEST, and we miss u dearly, we are so miserable over here stuck with this ex-player who has no idea what he’s doing, and who puts coaching the University of Kentucky first over helping these kids achieve their NBA dreams—how DARE he not put his priority on these kids’ lives and sell out to the tradition and history of a bball program with a miserable, ungrateful fan base!!!! Sorry for the rant everybody, but I guarantee u CALIPARI had these exact kind of thoughts and feelings in regard to us as fans and with the people in this state these last 5 yrs, and probably even longer! HE DID NOT LIKE KY FANS—im sorry, his actions, behaviors, and attitudes showed that. And now ARK gets to be stuck with him. Cannot wait for SUPERBOWL SATURDAY on FEB 1ST!!!!!