Merry Christmas Eve! Today is the day before Christmas and most families I know open presents tonight and play with all their new shiny toys all night into Christmas morning. I always got confused by the families that waited until Christmas morning to open presents; my patience never would be able to handle that much anticipation. While we all are waiting for Santa to deliver our goodies, I figured we could take a look at what Santa needs to bring the Cats over the Christmas holiday so that they can reach their potential and become the team we’ve been waiting to see all season. These gifts (if they arrive) couldn’t come at a better time as we play Louisville Little Brother on the upcoming Saturday.

John Calipari- the gift of patience- The Grand Poobah of Lexington has his work cut out for him this year. After coming off the high of last year’s championship, Cal has had to struggle to get these guys to listen to him and communicate with each other in a successful manner. Following a blowout loss to Notre Dame and a 55-game home streak being snapped in a loss to Baylor, Cal quickly changed his approach to this team and the way he talked about them in the media. We have all heard the coach talk about Camp Cal that the team is experiencing over this break, and they showed signs of responding to the grueling workouts against Marshall. With a big game coming up next at Louisville, Calipari may need all the patience Santa has to offer, towards both the players and the fans, if the Cats lose to the in-state rivals.

Ryan Harrow- the gift of a booming voice– All jokes aside about Harrow’s squeaky voice, it will be very important that Harrow develop into a vocal leader that controls the flow of the game and the way the offense operates in the half court set. Harrow admitted after the Lipscomb game that he just yelled stuff trying to look like he was talking as Cal wanted him to do, to avoid being taken out and/or running in practice. While this may work against cupcake teams, Harrow has to be a real, true vocal leader in order to get offensive sets underway when the pace of a game slows down. This will especially be important against a team like Louisville who will want to slow the game down to practically a halting stop. If Harrow somehow gets the voice he needs, he can become an effective leader, and Cal will be able to tell if he is just randomly yelling to skirt punishment, an advantage Harrow has right now with his Alvin-esque voice box.

Archie Goodwin-the gift of CONTROL- This is one of the most important gifts Santa can bring to the young UK guard this Christmas. Goodwin leads the NCAA in shots that bounce off the shot-clock (that isn’t a certain fact, but if they keep that stat, he is definitely Top 5) and possess the unique ability to wow the crowd on one play down the court and make them face palm the very next play. While Goodwin has the ability to be a great scorer due to his athleticism (he nearly posted a triple double this season), he needs to slow down and have “chaos under control” when driving to the basket. Instead, he is content with putting his head down and driving in unabashed until he feels he is close enough to throw the basketball at the rim. This strategy seems effective against weaker competition because he draws fouls, but when SEC play starts, the bigs that reside in Missouri, Florida, Tennessee, etc., will be more than happy to send the shot back into the stands. Let’s hope one of those shiny gifts under Goodwin’s tree brings the art of control with it.

Julius Mays-the gift of fearlessness- Uncle Julius is the old, wily veteran on this year’s team, but doesn’t have the gunslinger mentality that we all assumed he would come in with. Multiple times in the last few games we have witnessed Mays catch a pass behind the 3-line and instead of shooting, pump fake and try to drive. The key to the Calipari offense is the ability to have a trusted shooter on the outside who can stretch the defense to allow gaping holes for the guards to drive through and dish to the bigs (think of Doron Lamb and Darnell Dodson’s role on the last 3 UK teams). While Mays has the ability to shoot the 3 effectively, (he shot 42% from 3 land last year at Wright State), he has begun to hesitate too much this year, driving his percentage down to 30%. The most effective trait of a great shooter is the ability to shoot without hesitation, and when Mays gains the fearlessness to do that, the sky is the limit for the old man.

Alex Poythress-the gift of hustle- While everyone was praising the Cat’s effort Saturday against Marshall, I noticed that out of all the players, the one (in my expert, professional journalistic opinion) player who seemed to still be asleep after tipoff was Poythress. Early in the game there was a chance for Alex to get a monster block coming off the weak side on a fast break, but instead he chose to stay anchored to the ground and reached in, drawing a foul plus the bucket. Poythress rarely smiles, and his facial expressions reflect his effort on the court as well. There have been times when he is the most dominant player on the floor (he scored 20+ points in four straight early season games, tying a UK freshmen record) but there have also been times when he is the quietest player on the court, almost as if we are playing 4-on-5. If jolly old Santa can rub off some of his hustle onto #22, (the man delivers presents worldwide in one night, Alex. Surely you can run down the basketball court) then it will just make his multi-faceted game that much more dangerous just in time for conference play.

Nerlens Noel-the gift of concrete shoes- Noel has been just what we imagined him to be at this point in the year. He has been a defensive force while developing an offensive game. The only problem I see; however, is that he must stop jumping at every pump fake given to him. Noel has what I call the Anthony Davis Syndrome, something that happens when you are expected to fill the shoes of one of the best shot blockers to ever play at the collegiate level. The UK fans expected to have a Davis clone when #3 committed to UK and it has possibly changed the psyche of Noel. He has to be able to stay on his feet and not bite at every fake he is given. Sure, blocks are nice and they look good on the highlight reel, but the ability to stay on your feet and still alter the shot attempt is the true advantage a good shot blocker has over his opponent. If Santa doesn’t drop off any Quik-crete filled shoes, I’m sure Lowe’s has some on sale that we could all pitch in and buy for him.



Willie Cauley-Stein- the gift of toughness- WCS has been a pleasant surprise for this team considering he was better known for football before arriving in Lexington. For Stein to have a bigger impact on this team; however, he must toughen up and stop going so soft to the rim. Oftentimes, he is the tallest player on the court, and can glide down the court as if he was a 6-foot point guard. He must develop the toughness needed to play the post at the D-1 level (especially in the SEC) and be able to snatch a rebound, keep it above his head, and power it back up to the basket with players hanging off of him. Terrence Jones played this role (while being undersized for the 4-spot) perfectly as Davis’ foil, and it is something that WCS needs in order to help Noel as he attempts to develop a better offensive post game. If WCS finds toughness in his stocking this year, the rest of UK’s opponents better take notice, because he could quickly become a force under the rim.

Kyle Wiltjer- the gift of winged feet- The only player who played meaningful minutes last year to return back to Rupp Arena has been somewhat of a disappointment so far this season… My theory is that the team last year was so good it had the ability to hide Wiltjer’s weaknesses (despite Cal insisting “I can’t hide you here”) so that he could play the role of a spot-up shooter on a GREAT defensive team that didn’t really need him. This year, though, is a different story. Wiltjer is playing on a very young and inexperienced team that still hasn’t grasped the defensive concepts at the collegiate level. As Cal has said earlier this year, for Wiltjer to see the floor he must be an effective defender, something he has struggled with mightily this year. Time after time we have seen players blow by Wiltjer or get him turned around on a pick and roll and he doesn’t have the time to recover. If Santa could manage to spare a nice set of winged feet for Wiltjer over the holiday break, he could finally attain the speed we all know he needs in order to play defense the rest of the season. If not, well, shoot it when you get it, I guess.

The rest of UK’s Bench- the gift of joy- Just enjoy this season, boys. Polson, Beckham, and anyone else who has seen the floor this year should appreciate being a part of this team. These guys don’t really play all that much during the games but they are an effective part of practice and go through the same pain and punishment as the stars. Let’s hope they are able to enjoy this time in their lives and create memories they can tell their grandkids someday.

Rick Pitino- coal. Nothing but coal.- Are you serious? Is this even a question? Santa shouldn’t even visit his house. Just, no, don’t even eat his cookies or drink his milk or nothing. Just pass over that house, Kris Kringle.