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Kentucky has a point guard problem right now, and John Calipari is scrambling to find an answer as soon as possible.
In three games, five-star rookie Devin Askew and transfer Creighton graduate Davion Mintz have both done solid things, especially when it comes to scoring the basketball. The former averages 7.0 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists per fight, while the latter accumulates 7.3 points, 1.7 assists and 1.3 rebounds per game.
Neither player, however, is shooting more than 35% of the field overall and they combine for 5.4 turnovers per fight.
Both showed flashes of solid play, but it’s clear that Calipari is tinkering with their roles and looking for more, at least at the start of the season. One of these potential new options? 6-foot-7 winger Terrence Clarke, who currently averages 11.0 points on 43.3 percent shots, with 4.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.3 steals per game.
Clarke experimented with the role to open the season against Morehead State, something he felt “comfortable and confident” doing.
“(I’m going to do it) as much as the team needs me to do it,” Clarke said after the team’s season opener win. “I think we have a great point guard at Devin Askew, and Davion Mintz is our alternate point guard as well, but I’ve played both here and whenever the team needs me to play first I’ll be at comfortable and confident as I should be. I had reps in training too, so today I went there and had reps at this one.
With his obvious versatility and raw talent, Clarke would be ready to take the reins if Calipari asked him to do so.
“I’m confident to play any role on the team and that’s what I preached; I am as versatile as I want now, ”he added. “Whatever I have to do on the pitch, I will.”
Heading into the Holiday Hoopsgiving event in Atlanta this weekend, Calipari provided an overview of the Georgia Tech game and discussed some of Kentucky’s main issues at the moment after the 1-2 starts and back-to-back losses, specifically emphasizing the position of the playmaker.
For Askew, the reclassified newcomer reminds Calipari of another former Kentucky guard, who helped lead the Wildcats to a national championship in 2012.
Upon arriving in Lexington, the Marquis Teague had his fair share of struggles and growing pains. At the end of the year, however, he was a key part in helping the Wildcats raise a banner.
“Marquis Teague had a goalscoring mentality, if you remember that,” Calipari said. “It was all about him trying to get baskets. He held the ball too long, picked up his dribble and returned it at a high pace. Who does it look like?
Going through the list of options and brainstorming ideas for moving this team forward, the UK head coach approached the players to have Clarke slide over to that one, a move that would see Askew and Mintz more catch-and-shoot and play opportunities. at their current strengths a little better.
“I told the team, even Davion, how we’re going to play him,” Calipari said. “How do I play if I want to go with a bigger guard?” Can I play Terrence (over there)? Does he have the self-discipline to play the job? “
Calipari made a similar move at Memphis during the 2008-09 season with Tyreke Evans, a 6-foot-6, 220-pound guard with similar versatility and raw capacity. After starting his time in Memphis as a shooting guard, Calipari moved him to playmaker 11 games in the season, with the Tigers winning every game the rest of the season until falling to Missouri in the regional semifinals. of the NCAA tournament.
Individually, Evans is an eight-time American Conference Rookie of the Week honors and was the only first-year finalist for the United States Basketball Writers Association’s National Player of the Year award, en route to being selected with fourth pick in 2009 NBA Draft.
“It’s there (for Clarke),” Calipari said. “But (Tyreke) was a great layup shooter, a awesome layup shooter. He didn’t miss any layups. When we turned it over, I looked at the tape of the game and got the staff together, and I said, “Guys, do you want the good news or the bad news?” They asked for the bad news. I said, ‘Well the bad news is we put him on guard and 75% of the time Tyreke had the ball in his hands.
“They asked for the good news, and I said, ‘After watching this, he needs the ball in his hands 85% of the time. “
As we’ve seen with Calipari over the years, he’s not shy about changing roster and rotation for the betterment of the team. Last year, the UK head coach put Immanuel Quickley in the starting lineup to give the Wildcats three ground guards at the same time the rest of the year.
“Each team, you understand as you go. I don’t have a lesson plan, it’s all in pencil, ”Calipari said. “Some of the exercises, they’re compound, you create an exercise and work on it to improve yourself. Position, last year we did not start Immanuel Quickley, the 25th pick in the draft, the starting player in our league. When you play games, you discover things. I won’t panic.
“I’m not happy with our departure, not happy with our schedule, but the two are who we are.
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