C.L. Brown of ESPN looks at the players who got sidetracked due to injuries or academic issues last year and will probably make an impact on their team this season.
The list begins with Kentucky’s Alex Poythress.
1. Alex Poythress, F, Kentucky
The Wildcats’ season won’t rest on how well Poythress recovered from a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee — they’ve got many other skilled players such as freshman center Skal Labissiere. But Poythress could return to the numbers he put up as a freshmen, when he averaged 11.2 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. Last year, Poythress started the first eight games before suffering his injury during practice and averaged just 5.5 points and 3.8 rebounds per game as coach John Calipari cut minutes while tapping into his deep roster. UK won’t be quite as deep this season, meaning if Poythress proves to be fully healthy he can make an impact. To that end, Calipari said last month that he’d use Poythress his natural position of power forward rather than at small forward, where he’s been most of his career.
Read “The forgotten ones: Five players we’ll be glad to see back in action” by clicking here.
