The State of UK Men’s Basketball

I confess, I’ve been slow to welcome Billy Gillispie.  It’s nothing against him as a person or a coach.  I don’t think he’s lacking in either area.

My attitude was the result of absolutely, positively adoring everything about Tubby Smith.  Okay, maybe not his offense, but everything else.  I still think Coach Smith was one or two assistant coach changes away from more another run at the championship. People in my own household argue with me about that, so don’t feel bad if you don’t agree.  I think Tubby and Donna Smith and their family are about as classy as it gets.  People like that are the reason the phrase “good people” was ever created.

Coach Smith never got his fair dues from many people around Kentucky.  “He inherited Rick Pitino’s players, etc. etc…“   What he accomplished at UK had little to do with Coach Pitino.  Don’t get me wrong, I loved Pitino, too.  He was one of the best things to ever happen to UK.  Or Louisville.  Or Kentucky sports, overall.    But, come on - Tubby Smith is a great coach and an even greater person, so forgive me if I am now, and always will be, a fan. 

Frankly, the only person I would have immediately rolled out a red carpet for after Coach Smith left would have been Rick Pitino. 

However, with the direction I see UK headed in, I realize now that I should have rolled out the red carpet the day Coach Gillispie was announced.   The season started off skaky, at best, and I was giving the aforementioned people in my household (who did immediately roll out the proverbial red carpet) a pretty hard way to go.  I guess I blamed them for the hiring.  We UK fans are nothing if not clear-thinking and logical when it comes to our sports.

I think the slow start for this team may have had a lot to do with the fact that Coach Gillispie’s style of play is so different from what they’re accustomed to.  It’s tough to play a certain style of ball for years and then switch to a totally different way overnight. 

I watched this team, game after game - even though some were pretty painful.  Of course, others, like the UofL game and the IU one, were more like passing a 50 pound kidney stone.  Painful? They were beyond painful.  But I started seeing a great deal of hope.  I actually had my faith restored even before the brilliant Tennessee game.  Was that freakin’ sweet or what?!?! 

We upset the number 3 team in the country - our sworn enemies - 72 to 66.  That’s a score I’ll never forget.

As Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer columnist Mark Mathis wrote, “It’s worth investing in this Kentucky squad’s future.”

That goes for their coach, too.  I may have been late arriving to the line that formed behind him (the Tubby love, you know…), but I’m firmly in place now.  And I honestly can’t wait to see where he takes us.