On Kentucky

Last night, the Kentucky Wildcats became the first defending national champion to drop an opening round NIT game in nearly 30 years (NC State).  It was a beautiful scene, with tiny Robert Morris University rushing the court to celebrate a shocking start to the other tournament.

Hooray NIT!  From: Deadspin

It took a lot to drag the defending champs down to the level of the Colonials.  A boat-load of roster turnover, an injury to star Wildcat forward Nerlens Noel, a resulting eight-game skid of inconsistent play, an NIT berth, and Lexington hosting the first round of the real Tournament all lead to the blue-blood of blue-bloods traveling to sleepy Moon Township, PA Tuesday night.

But in reality, the fault for this stunning upset lies at the feet of one man: John Calipari.  No, I'm not going to blame the one-and-done system, which he leverages to its fullest (I honestly have no problem with the way he recruits), only how he handled it this year.

I sat in amazement as 'Coach Cal' allowed cameras to come into his program earlier this year.  He allowed the hype to build, and the lights to shine when he should've been focused on mashing the reset button.  What had any of the quartet of incoming stars-to-be done to deserve such indulgence?  The title winning had been mostly done by those no longer with the program.

Whoops.

It's funny that not a year after talking openly of 40-0, and mocking his competitors, that Coach Cal blame-shifted the disappointing season onto his young stars. "They think we're supposed to win 30 a year, 35 a year, go to the Final Four, win a national title. [...] They haven't had any discipline all year." (-link)  No, you think you're supposed to win 30-35 a year.  Where was your discipline?  You set them up to fail, and probably cost those kids money and prestige in the process.

Rather than preaching 'new season,' and the hard work required to do what the baby 'Cats did in 2012, Coach Cal preached how easy and sexy it was.  Contrast that with CU's fall camp, where everyone but the six incoming freshmen were seen wearing 2012 NCAA Tournament gear.  The expectation from Coach Boyle was that this was a young team, and that they needed to prove their worth.  He talked about 15-17 wins, and how hard the climb would be.

The Buffs were just as young as Kentucky this year, with a massive, heralded freshmen class (albeit not nearly as heralded), and only one upperclassmen contributor.  But it's the young Buffs playing Friday, while the Wildcats are already planning for next year.  The lesson, as always, is that humility and hard work comes before achievement.