So the Free Enes fight appears to be over. Could he eventually win the appeal, sure he could. Will he win the appeal? I can’t imagine that he would, but my heart hopes he will.
The exciting part of the 2010 Class to me, and maybe me only, was this young man named Enes Kanter. I’ve never personally talked with him or even seen him in person, but the lack of information about his playing skills intrigued me to truly want to see Kanter in a Kentucky Uniform.
[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]That may never happen now. The reality is that the NCAA and Kanter are $33,033 apart from each other. Okay, that’s a lot of cash. Still, when does the NCAA eventually develop a set in stone rule for players coming from oversees?
A little over a year ago, the rule was completely different then the ruling is today. It used to be that they could have paid it all back and Kanter would have been forced to sit out as many games as he played.
That rule recently changed. Unfortunately it appears that the Kanter ruling may be used as a precedence for future players attempting to get into the NCAA.
So it wasn’t really hundreds of thousands of dollars. And there wasn’t a salary. And Enes Kanter is not an actual professional basketball player.
Well, he’s not a college basketball player either, at least not officially.
Matt Jones may have said it best when he stated that Kanter may be the most loved Kentucky player to never suit up for the Cats!! He has, with some miraculous manner, won over the hearts of the Big Blue Nation and as any Kentucky fan will tell you, once a Cat, always a Cat…
My thoughts of the impact of the Kanter Ruling:
[B]The BIGS:[/B] The loss of Kanter is a major blow to the Cats in two areas, rebounding and inside muscle/garbage points. Most analysts didn’t think Kanter had a great shot, but they did believe he was an absolute beast on the boards. He’s a big man that would consume a lot of space in the block. Replacing the boards will be hard.
[B]DDM:[/B] Coach Calipari will, and probably already has been, formulating his offense and defense without Kanter. Expect a lot more DDM if Kanter doesn’t win the appeal.
[B]Small Ball:[/B] Don’t give up hope. This team is talented. More then we truly realize. Knight, Jones, Lamb, Miller, Liggins. Shooting shouldn’t be a problem for the Cats, both inside and out. Brandon Knight appears to be a scoring machine. Jones will only get better as the season progresses and could end up being the top rebounder. Lamb has a super running lob shot and a solid shot from outside the arc. Liggins and Miller should be the solid rock for the Cats both on defense and offense.
[B]Fast Break:[/B] Up and down is not a problem for any line up Calipari puts on the floor. Without Kanter, it means more players may have to crash the boards which could limit the fast breaks, but if they can find a way to solve, at least part of the rebounding concern, fast break points could actually be a larger part of the scoring this year then even last.
[B]The Big D:[/B] Defense shouldn’t be a major problem. Teams that could hurt the Cats are those with a Cousins type player down low. Stopping a great ‘big man’ could be an issue. We’re not deep down low with Vargas and Harrellson. Josh should get the lions share of the minutes and has improved, but still a major question for UK. Vargas doesn’t look like he enjoys contact. Get that problem fixed and he could be a major asset to the Cats.
[B]Boss Man:[/B] Coach Calipari is the jewel of the class. Don’t be gloom and doom over potentially losing Kanter. Calipari is one of the best at developing line ups based on the talent he has on the bench. Expect him to come up with some different line up like jones at the 5.
[B]Ray Of Hope:[/B] Cal would rather have Kanter. Kanter puts UK in the Top 5 and a potential Final Four team. Most think without Kanter, the Final Four is a stretch, but look at the last two National Championship teams. Duke had no production from the center spot with Plumless. North Carolina had great production out of their big, Tyler Hansborough. But Tyler was not a traditional big man at 6-9.
[B]Kanter Ray of Hope:[/B] Yes, it’s bleak. The situation isn’t looking good for Enes or for UK, but don’t give up hope. Kanter could still win the appeal and suit up for the Cats at some point during the season. Remember Jeremiah Masoli at Ole Miss? Most thought the odds of him wearing an Ole Miss jersey this year was dead, but his appeal not only worked, it worked rather quickly. Sure, different case, but it does prove that the appeal system can work.
With or without Kanter, this team will compete, and compete at a high level. Players have stepped in to fill roles and slots throughout the history of Kentucky Basketball.
Expect, as the season progresses, to see a Cat team come together and play at a level Coach Calipari expects. It may be rough in the beginning, but by SEC time, this team should have found their identity and be hitting on all cylinders.
Go Cats!!!
Contact Chip Miller with your Kentucky questions or comments at [EMAIL=”[email protected]”][email protected][/EMAIL], via twitter at [URL=”http://twitter.com/ukbigbluenation”]@ukbigbluenation[/URL] or here at N of B, at his NofB Profile, by [URL=”http://www.nationofblue.com/members/chip-miller/”]clicking here[/URL].
