Pope Vows Cats Will Not Fail But His Words Sound Alarms About Season

20 Responses

1. Then why have you done it wrong to this point.

   I am not impressed by words.

   Players brought in who cannot, or will not play is not a good sign at all. We have seen this play before with our last fraud.

   He has one job, distribute the record breaking NIL millions to a dozen premadonnas who can and WILL play together and compete for national championships.

   But, he must be able to identify what all that means and so far, color me UNIMPRESSED!!!!

2. Pope came in and told all the gullible people in Ky what they wanted to hear and they believed him. All summer long we heard how this year Ky had atleast two good players for each position so an injury wouldn't affect the team like it did last year. So that was a lie. All the so called "fraud" did was take the Cats to 7 elite 8's, 4 final fours, and win a Championship. Pope will not come anywhere close to that. He will turn out to be a real fraud.

   1. Hearing that Mitch Barnhart is stepping down at year end. Larry V have you heard anything

   2. BLAH, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH—-go to the ARK fan page and shove all the CAL-loving stats down the throats of their fans–nobody cares or wants to hear that sh** anymore, God Almighty we heard about it for a freakin decade after the time had come to where that moron couldn't even win ONE NCAA TOURNAMENT GAME!!! It's like I always said, if KY has sunk to where it's going 9-16 every year, I would rather be on that ride with a "moron" like Pope than a "moron" like CAL. And u know why? Because Pope is OUR MORON. He is born-and-bred Big Blue—he is of OUR university and OUR bball program. CAL was another of a select few of greats to come here and try to put his own imprint of winning on the program. And in the end, he didn't accomplish anything more or greater than any of the other greats not named Adolph Rupp. All those stats u are still living in and cramming down our throats–7 Elite 8's, 4 Final Fours, etc–yes, u are correct–but in the end, the biggest and greatest one of all is the same as all of the other coaches who have been here: ONE CHAMPIONSHIP. With all of those Elite 8's and Final 4's–yes I agree–but one championship out of all of that. And historically, when u measure that up, u r going to find that's not any greater than any of our other greats…….it goes without saying Adolph Rupp's individual coaching records will never be matched or topped–he is the Godfather–but for context and perspective for people like you who believe that the history of the world began in the year 2000, here are real-life UK BBALL coaches' statistics since 1972, the last year of Adolph Rupp's coaching career:

      Joe B Hall–13 seasons:
      7 Sweet 16's
      5 Elite 8's
      3 Final 4's
      1 NCAA Runner-Up
      1 NCAA Championship
      1 NIT Championship

      Rick Pitino-6 seasons when NCAA-eligible:
      5 Sweet 16's
      5 Elite 8's
      3 Final 4's
      1 NCAA Runner-Up
      1 NCAA Championship

      Tubby Smith-10 seasons:
      6 Sweet 16's
      4 Elite 8's
      1 Final 4
      1 NCAA Championship

      John Calipari–15 seasons:
      8 Sweet 16's
      7 Elite 8's
      4 Final 4's
      1 NCAA Runner-Up
      1 NCAA Championship

      Anyone can debate all the stats all they want to, and even factor in the amount of time one coach had here vs another, which when doing that, Pitino's statistics would blow away everybody else based on only being NCAA-eligible for 6 of his 8 years. The other three coaches all had at least a decade or more here, so after Pitino, CAL and Hall definitely had the two greatest runs here–thats where so much of the frustration with Tubby Smith's career came from in the long run, with his inability to ever get another team back to the Final 4 after the 1998 squad–a team that was fully built and assembled BY TUBBY himself. But aside from that, again, the stats are what they are: when it has come to Final 4's and championships, no coach since Rupp has ever accomplished any more than any other one–all of those men each won just ONE CHAMPIONSHIP apiece–and they all took multiple teams to multiple Final 4s and multiple championship game appearances. Do I believe that KY should have way more than 8 NCAA championships in its history? Absolutely, without a doubt, I believe that, and feel that way. But as you get older, you start realizing the large amount of a combination of talent, hard work, chemistry, coaching, matchups, LUCK, AND INJURIES come into play to make it possible for a team to win the NCAA championship. And if u look at those last two there–LUCK and INJURIES–those are the two biggest-contributing factors as to why KY does not have more national titles than 8 in its history, and hell this goes all the way back to Rupp too! For those of us who have READ and STUDIED THE HISTORY OF KY BBALL, yea, sorry, we are KY BBALL snobs I guess, because of having educated ourselves on accurate and correct history of the bball program, and not being one of these ppl that do well to know history going back to just the 1990s…… Rupp won 3 NCAA championships in a span of 4 seasons, mainly on the back of the Fabolous Five's back-to-back in 1948 and '49, and the third came in 1951, but who here knows why the 1950 team didn't win a title or make the Final 4? THE 1950 TEAM WASNT EVEN INVITED TO THE NCAA TOURNAMENT!!! SMH I bet Mr L.V. knows that though! 😄 Yes, back in Adolph's day, every team had to be INVITED to compete in the NCAA tournament, and even if u were big, bad KY who was beating EVERYBODY ALL THE TIME, that still didn't necessarily guarantee u were going to be playing in the tournament in any one given season. There was some sort of shady, BS, back-room deal that went down that year pertaining to some kinda personal beef that the NCAA president or maybe an AD had with Rupp, and so out of personal grudge and political vendetta, the NCAA chose Virginia over KY to take that regional's spot in the tournament that year. And VA got steamrolled in the first round by somebody, while KY sat on the sidelines with another all-star cast of guys who would come back and win the title the next year, in 1951. One of the most egregious moves ever perpetrated on ANY college bball program was a few years later, in 1954, when KY finished the regular season with a perfect 25-0 record, and had a future NBA Hall-of-Famer and 3 All-Americans on its roster, and these 3 players were declared ineligible by the NCAA to participate in the tournament that year because they had "already exceeded the amount of time college athletes were allowed to play varsity sports"……I'm still to this day trying to find the precedent for where that "rule" came from, because it has never happened to any other program again, before or since. Hagan, Ramsey, and Tsoripolous–25-0 in the regular season–who thinks that squad wouldn't have at least made a Final 4 or won another championship had they been allowed to play? There are so many more examples over the decades: Mike Casey and the broken leg in 1969 that cost Issel, Pratt, and Co a SERIOUS dream in 1970 in the Mideast Regional Final against Artist Gilmore and Jacksonville. John Wooden announcing his retirement from coaching the day before the 1975 NCAA Championship game between KY and UCLA that was played in UCLA's backyard, of all places…….the outcome of that game was decided IN THAT PRESS CONFERENCE ON THAT SUN AFTERNOON IN SAN DIEGO by all the press, media, college ADs and presidents, the fellow college coaching brethren, NCAA committee, officials, u name it……do u think the ESTABLISHMENT was going to allow John Wooden to walk out of San Diego after his last game in coaching as a LOSER in the NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP GAME, AND TO KY, OF ALL SCHOOLS??? that was politics in college sports AT ITS HIGHEST LEVEL EVER up until these last 5 years when it finally became permanently hijacked by the political establishment and the sports gambling establishment. And there are many more examples of KY having been denied a shot at more championships due to fate and luck–think about Derek Anderson's knee in 1997, and what that team would have ended up doing in the end with him still on it and healthy, and the fact that they still came within 5 points and an OT away from doing it anyway without him. Still one of the most miracle finishes I have ever seen from any KY BBALL team–thats why they were dubbed THE UNBELIEVABLES. They were actually a much more talented and athletic, modernized version of THE UNFORGETTABLES. And alot of people forget about this, but I think the fact that the 2014 team did not have Willie Cauley-Stein in that Final Four could have ended up being a difference-maker against UCONN in the championship game. And ppl DEFINITELY forget THIS one: think if u had had Alex Poythress in the 2015 Final Four. Maybe just his presence alone gets u past WIS and into the final game against DUKE. I know that team was loaded and understand that they went 38-1, but even with the greatest teams, there comes a point where, no matter how well things have gone for u thus far, u need ALL OF YOUR PARTS, ALL OF YOUR TOOLS. Just like in '97 with Anderson–that team proved they were still good enough to make it to the final game without DA–but to actually BEAT THOSE GUARDS FROM AZ AND WIN THE THING, u needed Derek. In 2015, Poythress went down in DEC 2014 with his ACL and everybody wrote it off at the time because they believed they were still strong enough with what they had to get the ultimate job done. And they were right up through 38-0. But there were still TWO GAMES LEFT TO GO, TO COMPLETE THE ULTIMATE SEASON, and they were going to be the two toughest challenges of the season yet. With 5 mins left in the WIS game in 2015, everything else that had happened that season UP TO THAT POINT DID NOT MATTER–in that moment, it was about protecting that 5-pt lead against WIS and finishing the job to move on to the final game against DUKE. It's in moments like that where u NEED and u MISS an Alex Poythress the MOST–when everything and everyone else seems to be breaking down, and nothing is working, and all the pressure is raining down on u because u are trying to preserve your own history, and LITERALLY, YOUR OWN PERFECTION–thats when u gotta have your Poythress healthy and available. Not saying that having him guarantees we win that game–its merely that he is another OPTION that could have been gone to and TRIED in those final moments when WIS was putting all the pressure on US. Poythress honestly had a knack for coming up big in those kind of moments too, and those kind of games. I would have trusted him as much as anybody else on that team to try to put us on our backs and take us to the win. But he had been in those moments before, it was his senior season, he was one of the few veterans that team had, and IDC what anybody says, his loss was crushing for that team. It's just that it didn't show up until the Final Four against WIS because that team really WAS so good, even without him, that NOT having him hadn't mattered for 38 straight games. But in game #39, it DID MATTER. So all of this just goes to show that KY has a rich, proud, and very successful tradition that goes back for almost 130 years now, basically….. Old Kaintuck, as it was called, many many moons ago….. This bball program is now at its 123rd season of varsity competition, I do believe, so almost to the 125th anniversary. I know there have been countless books written on the history of KY BBALL, but I would like to see a new, updated version of one written for the upcoming 125th anniversary of the program–any interest on that project, LV?? LOL. U could take everything that had already been written up through the 100-year anniv, and just add on the past 20 years on to it–I would like to see both Tubby's and CAL's eras added on to the long, rich story, and see their eras' stories given representation, and to be able to see that evolvement over a century-and-a-quarter in pictures and on pages. As I stated earlier, each coach at this program has their own unique individual accolades and styles and systems showing the way that "THEY DID IT AT KY". And I think each one has value and each one is special. As the stats showed, each coach aside from Rupp has won ONE CHAMPIONSHIP. Each one is no more and no less than the other. Fans are entitled to have their favorites or who they believe was "THE BEST". But that's exactly why THE UNIVERSITY OF KY IS THE BEST–all the coaches' individual contributions to it are the prime example of that. Only at KY could u have 5 different coaches who won national titles over an 80-year period. And all the great many PLAYERS who have worn the jersey, and made THEIR OWN contributions to it too. I know for a fact that most every man who has had that privilege and honor of wearing that uniform pre-2020 and pre-NIL-era view their time and experience as JUST THAT: an honor and a privilege. And the third part of this pie that continues to help lift those players' feelings about who they are: it's FANS like US, it's die-hard blue-bloods and life-bloods, we are loud and proud, and we always will be, we are the NY Yankees of MLB, and the Boston Celtics of the NBA– and we are always going to support KY, and BE BIG BLUE THROUGH AND TRUE….. but if anybody believes that this college game today is the same one that we all grew up with and came of age with in our day is still the same one, is just lying to themselves, or can't see what is really going on. I will always love KY, but these kids today are not playing for KY because they actually want to be at KY FIRST AND FOREMOST. I mean, let's face it, today the college game is highest bidder wins. So as these years have gone on and the game has been taken over by money, greed, and corruption, and as my own personal life has been tried and embattled right along with that, I have found myself as a fan just having to be more at a distance with all of it, as far as present-day goes. I will always cheer for KY as the bottom line as far as who I am and what is in my DNA—but I know that today my old-school fandom and passion and blue-bleeding would be misplaced, and basically foolhardy and a waste of my time. It will never change the way I feel about all the history of KY and all the ways it has been a part of my life basically up until 2020—but for me personally, that was kind of the cut-off point. The game took a new turn after that 2020 season ended prematurely, and it isn't ever going to go back to the way that it HAD BEEN UP TO THAT POINT anytime ever again going forward. And that is something that I have had to accept. In alot of ways, what KY BBALL WAS, or USED TO BE, or WHAT IT HAS MEANT, AND WHAT IT STILL MEANS AS AN ENTITY to myself, and to my family, died at the end of 2020, and has been buried, and maybe also because that was the same year that my father died as well–it seemed that so much of what had shaped me to be who I am died that year–my father, KY BBALL, college bball in general, the country and it's politics, and our society…….But the SPIRIT of what KY BBALL has meant, has been, and always will be, will never die, and it will always continue to live on through people like me, whose family lived and died with this thing, and spent decades of their lives investing their own time, money, and energy following and supporting these teams, these players, this bball program, this school. There are generations of Kentuckians who, for them, KY BBALL WAS EVERYTHING. And I am one of the "inheritants" of that generation of people who KY BBALL was a way of life and it was their life sport, their passion, their main hobby and interest outside of their working life and family life. It was what they would plan their vacations around so they could travel with the team for the SEC tournaments, and the regionals of the NCAA tournaments, and a few times even the Final Four. It was what they would plan weddings, and even funerals, around, for GODS SAKE. I now find myself becoming one of those "old-timers" with this thing only because of just the passage of time. And then on top of that with the level to which things in the game have changed. This is why people like me felt like it was a dream come true to be able to get a former player to be the bball coach here, esp at the time where the game WAS changing, and at the time where a coaching change was needed anyway. But being a former player doesn't always guarantee that they are going to be a great coach. I mean, alot of us have been sitting here the past couple of weeks wondering this very thing about a man we all love and admire, but it doesn't mean we aren't wondering is he going to truly be up to the challenge? It's the toughest and most demanding job in college bball–in some ways, it can be compared to what being president of the United States is like–in the bball universe. But fans like us, of course we fell in love with having one of our own be the coach here–someone who loves the history and tradition as much as we do, someone who bleeds blue as much as we do, someone who has played and won a championship here, for a coach who, in my opinion, was the Adolph Rupp of bball coaching of the second half of the twentieth century. But, the jury is still out on what Pope's career here is going to look like. He has so much potential, and has a high ceiling, as does this team! And he's smart as hell, he knows the game. But I think the managing of personnel, of egos, of team chemistry, of player psychology, is something that maybe could be a concern or question for him right now–how good is he on that end of the coaching spectrum? That, and alot of other questions, still to be answered. The season is still VERY YOUNG–it still isn't even Thanksgiving–so give this man and this team some time……but there is a lot that we need to see and are wondering about. Here's to a successful season for the Pope and for a roster full of talent and athleticism–lets hope and pray that it can translate into team chemistry and team success, and just FUN! But if we got a program that now only cares about their paydays and their NBA future, and NOT about making any Final Fours or winning championships, then yes, we are in trouble, and so is Pope. PRAYERS UP FOR THE BIG BLUE 💙💙💙

3. I hope JQ isn't Popes Shaedon Sharpe.

   1. I believe he will be. I don't think he is ever going to be 100% this year. Heck he tore his ACL in and had surgery at the end of March. It usually takes even professional players a year. After a year it gets better and better every month after that. He could be ready by the time we hit our conference schedule. He could also not be ready for game contact. He might favor his knee if we play him to early. I think JQ conned Mark Pope because Pope is smart but he's also gullible. Kinda goofy. His dad and he declared he would be ready by September first. That was a lie. It's getting to be the end of November and hes not been practicing full contact with the team. Once he does that. Or should I say IF he does that it will take him close to a month to be ready and get I'm game condition. So once you hear he's practicing full strength he should be ready a month later. If you remember he was paid almost 6 million to play for Arizona State. We backed off him when he asked that much. I've heard through the grapevine that he made over 3 million to come this year not even knowing if he will be ready or fully healed . Some players never come back fully after a ACL tear. We will see with him. I just think Pope makes a lot of bonehead decision for someone who is considered to be a " genius". He says things and stats that don't matter. Just play the dang game and play hard or your not playing is what he needs to say.

4. The concerns about this team have less to do with talent and skill and more to do with selfishness and lack of a common objective. Pope says the assignment is to win No. 9 but his players say play me more and pay me more. The fact that Pope didn't recognize this sooner tells me that the kids are telling him what he wants to hear in practice, but then do what they want to do in the game. They know that when they make 3 or 4 passes, that results in an open shot…but it may not be them taking it. It is more than passing though. The other 4 guys need to be moving constantly…setting screens for each other. Someone will get open after the 3rd or 4th pass if the ball is not held for 5 seconds before making each pass. That allows the defense to recover. Our guys are just standing still waiting to get the ball passed to them and then they will make a hero move to the basket and force up a shot.
   Defensively, they need to be within 3 feet of the man they are guarding even if he doesn't have the ball. This bullshit of sagging in the middle has to stop. If a guy can't stay in front of his man to prevent a line drive to the basket, he doesn't need to be on the floor. If they are 8 to 10 feet off of their man, that guy will get a shot up before they can recover. It would help if they played a zone from time to time. 4 minutes man to man then 4 minutes zone. They should have been working on both a 2-3 and a 1-3-1 zone in September. Now, they only have time to do one or the other.
   For every free throw missed and every turnover made should require the kid to run a suicide line drill for each. On defense, everybody hits the board for the rebound. You can't fast break without the ball. On offense, we aren't getting any rebounds because everyone is standing still on the perimeter begging for the ball. They should be screening for each other with one going to the basket the other to the 3 point line, but if that doesn't get them open they need to screen again. Doing so will always have 2 guys under the basket for a rebound, if not a pass.
   Playing offense and defense this way will tire you out after 4 or 5 minutes, but you sub yourself out for a guy with fresh legs. You do this to wear the other team down and draw fouls. When a guy gets tired, he will foul instead of guard. Doing this for the entire game should allow us to outscore an opponent 2 to 1 during the last 10 minutes of the game and get at least 10 more free throws over the course of the game.
   Come on guys, you should have learned this in high school unless you lived in Bumfuk Egypt. Everyone has to be committed to doing this. 2 or 3 guys determined to play hero ball will bring the entire team down and lose games against good teams. Coach Pope, kids will not want to do this. They want to be heroes on offensive and rest on defense. You have to make them play this way and bench those who don't. You can be their buddy at the end of the season for a couple of weeks, but then you are back into being the Coach.
   This should been drilled into the guys over the Summer and Fall. Demanding it now may result in someone leaving or being dismissed from the team, but that might be what it takes to get back in control of the team. Quaintance needs to start playing NOW, even if it is just limited minutes. Jelavic and Williams need to play more, but if the team is playing this way everybody gets plenty of PT. Start doing your job or lose it in April. Seriously, we are not going to stand for another Calipari.

   1. Another thing. Your right we should play a 2-3 zone. I don't know why he can't see that this team isn't tough enough to run man to man. A good coach will see this. Michigan state played a zone because they know kentucky can't shoot the ball good at all. Last year we had good shooters. This year our defense was supposed to be elite so it didn't matter about offense as much. We have no offense. How many 3s is Mo-D going to jack up before Pope tells him to stop shooting 3s. Shoot short to medium jump shots. Our team never shoots jumpers. It's either a wild 3 or run to the basket and throw up a circus shot
      Then when they get to the free throw line they miss the front end of the one and one almost every time. Moreno needs to shoot a 1,000 free throws a day. He plays in the post he's going to get fouled. He needs to work on his shot. Pope seems dumbfounded.

   2. Mr Barry You are Right on all Your comments! That’s why the coach and players are making the big bucks! Either play and coach like your life depends on it or get the Heck out of Kentucky!

5. Your exactly right. For someone who is considered to be a genius that might be right as far as book smart but he's not street smart as they say at all. He is getting finessed by players who say I want to play for the front of the jersey if you give me 5 million. Then when they break a fingernail in practice they are out for a week. The team is soft because our coach is soft. No discipline whatsoever. I would be ripping the players for no effort. That's what it is no effort and that starts with Pope. I've said this a million times. Players are a reflection of there coach. He walked into the game looking like a loser. That's exactly how we played is how Pope looked. JQ and his dad lied there way into millions. Oh he will be ready by September first. You have to be really stupid to believe that. He will be fully recovered from a ACL surgery 5-6 months removed. Pope should have known this. I didn't want them to go after JQ in the portal I said we need a great backup PG. How aggressive will he be coming back from a ACL surgery? Some players never get fully recovered because they favor the place of the surgery. He's very money hungry and so is his dad. He made 6 million at 16 years old. That takes the hunger away and the competitive nature of trying to play your way into making millions. These kids are gave millions by what they did the year before. They should get paid by there performance.

6. Remember I wanted Mark Few and everyone laughed at me and mocked me. I still think he would be win 2-3 championships every 5 years at Kentucky
   With his coaching and the name Kentucky he would have done big things here.

7. Sorry to always be the next year guy but we will have a better team next year. When Oweh isn't the focal point and our team has more experience. If he can get 7-8 guys back and Potter and Hawthorne gain some weight we will have a great team. We just need 2 good point guards in the portal. Or he needs to get the best 2 available freshman. It seems like he's terrible at recruiting. He can never close the deal. We got Johnson and Moreno because they are Kentucky boys. He whiffed on Kinney now he will whiff on Stokes who he has spent majority of his time trying to recruit. Quit going after these players who demand things. Get guys who want to come here. Guys ranked 50-150. Then get the best you can in the portal. We play sloppy.

8. I am not worried at all. It is very early in the season and Pope has time to get things going in the right direction. I believe he will start cutting down the playing time on those who are not playing for the team.
   Also, I do believe this team would be much better off playing a lot of zone and pounding the ball into the middle. Become a very physical team inside because we the players to do that. You need to be able to run when it's there, but their bread butter is inside. There does not seem to be many players on this team that need to be taking over a couple of 3 point shots in any game.

   1. Pope has had since April to have this team ready to play. The exhibition win against Purdue showed that he had done that. Now losing the first 2 high profile games of the season begs the question…WTF is going on? They not only lost both of those games but they got bitchslappeded and came away looking like a Popcorn State team. He is on the verge of sliding into Billy Clyde territory. I was Pope's biggest champion even before he was hired, but this in indefensible. He will have to make a clean sweep of North Carolina, Gonzaga, Indiana, and St. John's to clear this stink out of Lexington.

      1. I can't see a sweep Barry

         1. Larry, when you're right, you're right.

   2. Hope you are right Old Fan. I am worried

9. Hey Larry I think You will agree with me.whenever I hear Pope I think of this quote:
   Actions prove who someone is, words just prove who they pretend to be.

   1. It's time for Pope to walk the walk.

10. it is the quality of play. Some say that the poor play is due to absence of TEAM focus. Others assign the poor play to inadequate coaching. I don't believe the poor play is due to a lack of God given talent.

    The much vaughted defense has been dismal. The Adjusted defensive efficiency, 5 games in, is 0.944 points per possession. This will not ever get the job done in major college basketball. Teams with defenses under 0.9 ppp can be competitive, and the best defenses of any season will have defensive efficiency closer to 0.8 than 0.9 ppp. Defense is desire and hard work. Everyone loves to shoot the ball, dribble the ball, and most good players even enjoy passing the ball. Not so much at the defensive end. But, defense must be a point of emphasis, because at the championship level of play, there is no sustainable offense that can offset a weak defense.

    The offensive efficiency has been 1.20 ppp through 5 games. This is a worthy offensive efficiency despite the poor 3 point shooting. Of course, improved shooting will increase the offensive efficiency. If UK shot 36% from 3 rather than 31%, the offensive efficiency rises to a contender level 1.255 ppp. Shot better than 36% and the improvement shows up in the efficiency even moreso. In addition to improved 3 point shooting, this team can improve its offensve by donig a better job on the offensive glass. Each offensive rebound provides another scoring opportunity, and that adds over the course of time at least the offensive efficiency value to the point total.

    I agree with others that the Purdue win showed a level of competence that we have not seen since. However, I think some caution in appraising the significance of that win because that game may say much more about Purdue than UK. The fall off against a so-so Georgetown team was the first sign of trouble in Big Blue City.

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