Could 2015 Be Cal's Most Important Class?
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Darrell Bird l 247 Sports[/caption]
By now you've heard about the NBA's push to raise their own age limit from 19 to 20, effectively changing "One and Done" to "Two and Through" nationwide. Even if it's passed, though, the earliest it could be implemented is 2016, which means that Karl Towns, Tyler Ulis, Devin Booker, and Trey Lyles don't have to worry about it at all. If they want to go after one year, they're free to do that, guaranteed.
But the 2015 class? Well, that's where things get interesting. Because the 2016 NBA Draft could be subject to the 20-year old age limit, the 2015 class could be the first to have to stick in college for two years. What does that mean? Well, to put too fine a point on it, that means we need to get good players next year. Duh, right? I mean, isn't that the goal every year? "Talent over experience" and all that? But really, in 2015, that goes beyond important: it becomes mandatory.
Remember that Cal said that if he could keep players for more than a year, he'd stick around a while longer. Why? Because it's easier to keep a good team! It's just that simple. And 2015 could very reasonably be the year that starts.
So how are we doing?
Kentucky's already on the board with Top-15 player Charles Matthews, a 6'5" shooting guard from Chicago who committed in February. That's a fantastic start. But who else is considering UK? How about the #1 and #2 Centers (Stephen Zimmerman and Diamond Stone), #1 Power Forward (Ivan Rabb), #1 Shooting Guard (Malik Newman), and #3 Small Forward (Montaque Gill-Ceasar), among others. Interestingly, there isn't a point guard ranked in the top 20 of ESPN's Super 60, so we'll have to see how our point guard situation works out by that point. My suspicion is that we'll start a sophomore Tyler Ulis to kick off the 2015 season, but we'll see how things work out.
We always keep a close eye on recruiting, and with 2014 almost completely wrapped, it's time to turn our attention to Matthews and his future teammates. We almost always have bragging rights in the recruiting period with Calipari, but in the 2015 class, we could be getting something even better: sophomores.
Think about that.
Darrell Bird l 247 Sports[/caption]
By now you've heard about the NBA's push to raise their own age limit from 19 to 20, effectively changing "One and Done" to "Two and Through" nationwide. Even if it's passed, though, the earliest it could be implemented is 2016, which means that Karl Towns, Tyler Ulis, Devin Booker, and Trey Lyles don't have to worry about it at all. If they want to go after one year, they're free to do that, guaranteed.
But the 2015 class? Well, that's where things get interesting. Because the 2016 NBA Draft could be subject to the 20-year old age limit, the 2015 class could be the first to have to stick in college for two years. What does that mean? Well, to put too fine a point on it, that means we need to get good players next year. Duh, right? I mean, isn't that the goal every year? "Talent over experience" and all that? But really, in 2015, that goes beyond important: it becomes mandatory.
Remember that Cal said that if he could keep players for more than a year, he'd stick around a while longer. Why? Because it's easier to keep a good team! It's just that simple. And 2015 could very reasonably be the year that starts.
So how are we doing?
Kentucky's already on the board with Top-15 player Charles Matthews, a 6'5" shooting guard from Chicago who committed in February. That's a fantastic start. But who else is considering UK? How about the #1 and #2 Centers (Stephen Zimmerman and Diamond Stone), #1 Power Forward (Ivan Rabb), #1 Shooting Guard (Malik Newman), and #3 Small Forward (Montaque Gill-Ceasar), among others. Interestingly, there isn't a point guard ranked in the top 20 of ESPN's Super 60, so we'll have to see how our point guard situation works out by that point. My suspicion is that we'll start a sophomore Tyler Ulis to kick off the 2015 season, but we'll see how things work out.
We always keep a close eye on recruiting, and with 2014 almost completely wrapped, it's time to turn our attention to Matthews and his future teammates. We almost always have bragging rights in the recruiting period with Calipari, but in the 2015 class, we could be getting something even better: sophomores.
Think about that.
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