Thread: Who could be the next Wildcat in the rafters?

Well it was a tough choice for me between Wayne Turner and Tony Delk but i went with Turner. I mean look at the bio:

*Gatorade State Player of Year
*Parade All-American
*McDonalds All-American

Season Notes:

*1996-97: All- NCAA Regional Team
*1997-98: NCAA Regional Most Outstanding Player; SEC Tournament MVP
*1998-99: All-SEC [Third Team (Coaches)]; All-SEC Tournament

*2-Time NCAA Champion and 1-Time NCAA Runner-Up
*2-Time SEC Tournament Champion.

Delk would be next for me and possibly two of my favorite all time guys in Ford and Jeff Sheppard are surely deserving as well.

Originally Posted by BigBlueNation502

Yes i do. He just have more points and less assists. He can score but he is a pass friendly Point Guard. Masburn had some decent guys on his team as well like Jeff Brassow, Sean Woods, Richie Farmer, Pelphrey, Feldhaus, "downtown" Dale Brown, Gimel Martinez, Travis Ford, Riddick, Timberlake, Harrison...i mean these are all good players. True Masburn and Wall were two different type of players and its easy to point out those differences but it's hard to say they both weren't great.

No offense to you or anyone of the players you named, but they aren't 1st Round NBA draft picks. They were good, but not great. Wall and his teammates fed off of each other. Wall looked good as a pg because of his assists to Cousins, Patterson and Bledsoe. Mashburn basically put that team over the hump. He made that team so much better. I feel that Wall just isn't deserving of having his number retired. One season isn't enough to prove not only your ability as a college player, but your dedication and heart to this program. That is one thing that everyone who has their name hanging in the rafters has in common, with the exception of Pitino. You have to have love for this team and it's fans to be deserving of that honor. Leaving after one year just shows that money is more important than us fans.

No offense to you or anyone of the players you named, but they aren't 1st Round NBA draft picks

True but it is more about when they were in college at UK and not if they were in the NBA. I just feel that Mashburn would of left after one year too in todays world and he is on there. Pitino also did leave for money but i think he did enough in those 7 years to get at least a banner. He has had to live with that mistake but Boston was persistent about it as it was an astronomical figure threw at him to leave. I don't like the "one and done" either but i guess until they change the rule we can be happy that we have a great coach who gets great players and we most importantly are winning.

Originally Posted by BigBlueNation502

we can be happy that we have a great coach who gets great players and we most importantly are winning.

I can agree to that! But I will forever hold a grudge to Pitino for lying to the fans and the university. If he would've stayed, there is no reason why we shouldn't have anywhere from 8 to 12 titles. He had it made. But anyway, John Wall only played one season. And the point record he set has already been broken. So I don't see what actually qualifies him to have his Jersey retired. On another note, I feel that retired numbers are in order. To my knowledge, there are no retired numbers in Rupp Arena, just jerseys. There are only a few that deserve this, and they are Dan Issel, John Pelphrey, Sean Woods, Richie Farmer, and Darren Feldhaus.

Originally Posted by BigBlueNation502

So two and done is ok? even though a player couldn't leave after a year then and some would of.

Patterson played 3 years and Prince played 4. Neither are two and done??

Patterson played 3 years and Prince played 4. Neither are two and done??

I was referring to Jamal Mashburn. He only played two seasons and he would of been a "one and done" under today's rules. So i'm asking if it was OK for Mash to have a retired jersey but not Wall?

Originally Posted by BigBlueNation502

I was referring to Jamal Mashburn. He only played two seasons and he would of been a "one and done" under today's rules. So i'm asking if it was OK for Mash to have a retired jersey but not Wall?

Okay BBN502, now I see what you mean. We could sit around and argue all day about the reason why they should be retired or not.

Originally Posted by JoshHopkins

Okay BBN502, now I see what you mean. We could sit around and argue all day about the reason why they should be retired or not.

Exactly, and that is what the Discussion Forum is all about. Read, join in or ignore. GO CATS!!!

I'm actually surprised with the feedback I've received.

Really, why? I figured it be Tony Delk since he was so talented and played longest ago in the early 90's. What was you thinking would had happen?

Originally Posted by Steve Dave

I'm actually surprised with the feedback I've received.

You never replied. What was so surprising? I was curious what you thought might happen?

Tony Delk and Wayne Turner. People seem to forget that Wayne played in 3 title games and won 2. Wayne had a terrible free throw shot but he could drive the lane.Turner was a team player and showed a lot of heart.

Tony Delk.

I was born in 98 and my favorite player growing up was chuck hayes. He was the hardest working player on the floor every game.

If we just took every good player who ever played for the Cats and retired their jerseys, the rafters would be completely full and the honor would become meaningless.

I think you need to have made a major impact on the team in some way or another to even be considered. For example, I'd put Cal's first team (as a unit) in the rafters because they turned a program around that was heading south fast. The era between UK's 2nd round loss to UAB in 2004 to Gillispie's near-destruction of the team in 2009 was a dark, dark period for the program. Recruiting was poor (save for a few exception of course, like Darius Miller, etc.) , the fanbase was agitated and other lesser programs (Florida and Tennesee for gosh sakes!) were passing us by. Then Coach Cal came on the scene and put together a recruiting class that reversed our fortunes completely. Sure, they laid an egg in the Elite 8 game against West Virginia, but that season was so much more than that last bad loss. It revitalized a fanbase and gave hope for the future. Just like the Unforgettables.