Willie Cauley-Stein on playing in front of Kentucky fans: 'That's what I love'

On Friday, the Big Blue Nation gave Willie Cauley-Stein a warm welcome back to Rupp Arena. After La Familia’s 82-56 win over the 305 Ballers in The Basketball Tournament (TBT), Cauley-Stein opened up on his return to Lexington, Kentucky.

“It’s electric,” Cauley-Stein said. “I felt it in the back of the locker room. All the guys coming in like “Willie, don’t go out there. You’re gonna get bombarded.’ I’m like, ‘That’s what I love.’ I felt my hairs come up and get the little chills, man. I knew it was gonna be a good time. It was gonna be a show.

“We represent these guys. We’re Kentucky through and through. And when we put on that jersey, we’re playing for them. They don’t get to experience this, so we got to go out there and put on a show so they can experience some type of energy.”

The Kentucky alumni certainly put on a show on Friday night. In the win, Cauley-Stein tallied five points, six rebounds and three blocks. Kerem Kanter, Enes Kanter’s brother, led all scorers with 21 points on 6-9 shooting. Eric Bledsoe, Andrew Harrison, Aaron Harrison and Nate Sestina scored double figures as well.

Cauley-Stein made no shortage of fond memories at Kentucky. Over his three years with the program, Cauley-Stein boosted the Wildcats to two Final Four appearances. In 2015, Cauley-Stein was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Year and was a USA Today First-Team All-American selection.

The Sacramento Kings selected Cauley-Stein with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft. He spent seven seasons in the NBA, playing for four different organizations. Nonetheless, there’s no place like home for Willie Cauley-Stein.

“Man, I’m from a town of 800 people, so I’m one of these people,” Cauley-Stein said. “I’m one of these guys. I embodied that when I came here. I would sit outside the [Wildcat Lodge] for three hours, signing autographs, just feeling people’s energy and getting to know people.

“A big, big reason why I got so much love out here is because I literally felt like one of them. I’ll go out and walk, you know what I mean? I’m not scared to be around people and feel that energy and be around this great state.”

With 3,954 fans in attendance on Friday, there was plenty of energy for Cauley-Stein to soak in. After the game, Cauley-Stein challenged BBN to double its attendance for La Familia’s next contest. On Sunday, La Familia will square off against The Nawf at 2 p.m. ET in Rupp Arena.