That Kentucky opens the season on Election Day was not lost on John Calipari. The UK coach said he discusses current events and political issues with his team. Whether the players actually will vote was hard to tell.
“We have talked about the shootings (and) the bombs …,” Calipari said Sunday. “We had a discussion about far-right, far-left. How these kids are going to be affected by both.”
Calipari said he also shared his views with the players.
“I talked about some of my beliefs that may not coincide with what you all think,” he told reporters, “or what the Catholic Church thinks.”
Calipari, a Catholic who attends mass regularly, said he advised the players on how to judge candidates.
“He doesn’t have to agree on every point” with a candidate’s opinion, he said. “If you want that, then you run.”
Kentucky’s team left for Indianapolis on Monday and will be out of town on Election Day.
Calipari said went to the Fayette County clerk’s office Monday morning and voted via absentee ballot before the team departed.
Bilas favors UK
ESPN analyst Jay Bilas all but picked UK to beat Duke.
“We’ll see what happens, but I think Kentucky is the better team to start (the season),” he said. “Duke’s got more talent one through three. But Kentucky’s got more talent one through 10.”
‘More of a unit’
Another ESPN analyst, Jay Williams, compared season’s Kentucky team favorably compared to the 2017-18 edition.
“Their team makeup is completely different than it was last year,” he said. “They’re more of a unit. They play together. There’s not as many egos at stake for roles.”
Defense, defense
Defense apparently remains a priority as Kentucky begins the season. The straight-line drives surrendered to Transylvania remain fresh in mind.
“It’s very critical because I think all three of those guys can get to the rack at will,” PJ Washington said of Duke’s Zion Williamson, RJ Barrett and Cam Reddish. “We’ve just got to focus on…
