I can't give Cal credit for Ulis. I think he was destined to be where and who he is right now.

 

You really think if he had gone to Michigan St he would be entering the draft this year?

I can't give Cal credit for Ulis. I think he was destined to be where and who he is right now.

 

Come on Purple.

WCS was at UK for 3 years and I'd argue that he never has gotten any better as a player he just has freakish athleticism and he learned how to use it to be successful. He still can't shoot, he makes dunks and layups, rebounds and blocks shots.

 

WCS was a four year project coming out of high school and wasn't on anyone's draft boards. He was a projected lottery pick after year 2 and just chose to come back.

WCS was at UK for 3 years and I'd argue that he never has gotten any better as a player he just has freakish athleticism and he learned how to use it to be successful. He still can't shoot, he makes dunks and layups, rebounds and blocks shots.

 

Booker was held back because he couldn't get on the court and Bledsoe played out of position because of Wall.

 

In 3 years at UK, WCS went from shooting 37% from FT line to 62%.

 

He went from 242 points as a Freshman to 349 points as a Junior.

 

Rebounding went up every year.

 

Plus I contend had he been available in the 2014 Title Game he would have given UK enough defense and boards to beat UConn. I also give him a lot of credit for forcing a bad shot by Notre Dame at the end of the game in 2015. :thumb:

You really think if he had gone to Michigan St he would be entering the draft this year?

 

If given an opportunity to play then absolutely. What did Cal do to make Ulis great?

Come on Purple.

 

I'll ask you too. What did Cal do to make Ulis great?

WCS was a four year project coming out of high school and wasn't on anyone's draft boards. He was a projected lottery pick after year 2 and just chose to come back.

 

Not my point. Everyone knows going to UK gets you seen and you practice against other kids headed to the NBA. What did Cal do to make WCS a better player? Having watched him in the NBA he is a hyper athlete with height. He has no jumper and no low post offense at all. He plays great defense and he can rebounds extremely well. Cal made that?

I'll ask you too. What did Cal do to make Ulis great?

 

I think the single most important thing he did was create an environment in which Ulis could show his mental attributes which overcome his physical limitations. Could others have allowed him to do as he did? Sure. But Cal gave Ulis alot of freedom which completely changed his development. Without Ulis' ability to score as he did, doubtful he's a lottery guy.

In 3 years at UK, WCS went from shooting 37% from FT line to 62%.

 

He went from 242 points as a Freshman to 349 points as a Junior.

 

Rebounding went up every year.

 

Plus I contend had he been available in the 2014 Title Game he would have given UK enough defense and boards to beat UConn. I also give him a lot of credit for forcing a bad shot by Notre Dame at the end of the game in 2015. :thumb:

 

 

And that only happened because of Cal. Did his playing time increase from freshman to junior year?

I think the single most important thing he did was create an environment in which Ulis could show his mental attributes which overcome his physical limitations. Could others have allowed him to do as he did? Sure. But Cal gave Ulis alot of freedom which completely changed his development. Without Ulis' ability to score as he did, doubtful he's a lottery guy.

 

Fair enough.

And that only happened because of Cal. Did his playing time increase from freshman to junior year?

 

Are you saying that Cal should get no credit in player development? But every other coach should? Just because Cal brings in talent doesn't mean he doesn't make it better.

 

The Harrison's were much better in year 2 than in year 1. The recruiting analysts were wrong on them. Every coach in the country was wrong. They just did not have the athleticism needed to play in the back court, and tried too hard to over compensate for that. They did improve though.

 

WCS improved greatly. Watch a game from his freshman year to his junior year. Totally different player. Maybe he never developed a jumper, but he was extremely raw his freshman year. Defense is where he improved the most IMO. Was never a bad defender, but he became a defensive monster under Cal.

Not my point. Everyone knows going to UK gets you seen and you practice against other kids headed to the NBA. What did Cal do to make WCS a better player? Having watched him in the NBA he is a hyper athlete with height. He has no jumper and no low post offense at all. He plays great defense and he can rebounds extremely well. Cal made that?

 

I'd argue that Cal created that environment though. It wasn't like that before Coach Cal.

Are you saying that Cal should get no credit in player development? But every other coach should? Just because Cal brings in talent doesn't mean he doesn't make it better.

 

The Harrison's were much better in year 2 than in year 1. The recruiting analysts were wrong on them. Every coach in the country was wrong. They just did not have the athleticism needed to play in the back court, and tried too hard to over compensate for that. They did improve though.

 

WCS improved greatly. Watch a game from his freshman year to his junior year. Totally different player. Maybe he never developed a jumper, but he was extremely raw his freshman year. Defense is where he improved the most IMO. Was never a bad defender, but he became a defensive monster under Cal.

 

My original statement was that I don't give any coaches credit for developing players. None of them. I don't give Coach K credit for developing any of the 17-20 Duke players in the NBA. I don't give Roy Williams or Bill Self credit for developing their NBA players that came through their school. Tom Izzo gets credit for Draymond Green? Hell nah.

 

In my opinion talent and work ethic determines their NBA future. Not their college coaches.

I'd argue that Cal created that environment though. It wasn't like that before Coach Cal.

 

And I have acknowledged that in instances like Jorts.

Kyle Wiltjer improved from his freshman year to his senior year. Does Cal get credit for that too?