The five biggest lingering questions about next year's UK basketball team
Kentucky's 2017-18 basketball team should have undeniable strengths.
Depth? There should be plenty of it. Length? In spades. Athleticism? As always. Versatility, youthful energy, rebounding? Yes, yes, yes.
That's why, regardless of what questions remain to be answered, Kentucky will have a lofty national ranking when next season begins. But there are still some questions to answer. Here we'll lay them out.
5. RICHARDS AND KILLEYA-JONES IN THE MIDDLE
It's been a while since Kentucky has had a shot-blocking force like Anthony Davis, Willie Cauley-Stein or Nerlens Noel in the middle. Nick Richards seems like he could affect plenty of shots when he's playing next year, but he won't be arriving at Kentucky with quite the same overall expectations as those players.
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Sacha Killeya-Jones will return as a sophomore and seems to be as driven as ever. Also a five-star talent, it wouldn't be surprising if he sees his minutes and production increase substantially during his second year with the program.
There is no question the talent is there with these two, and fortunately Kentucky has such a loaded front court because of the number of talented forwards that Calipari will have some flexibility in terms of who he puts on the court. Still, how he manages two big guys like Richards and Killeya-Jones inside will be a question that's discussed for the coming months and may not be settled until well into the season.
4. SHOOTING
Here's a familiar question mark in the Calipari era. We don't need to rehash the full history of shooting questions (three-point or free throw) that have been tossed around before, during or after this or that season, but it's not a shock that this would be a question mark.
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There seems to be something close to a consensus that the Knox addition helps Kentucky on the shooting point. Jemarl Baker should definitely help, although it remains to be seen how much of an impact he'll be prepared to make as a freshman, and whether the other parts of his game will allow him to stay on the court for long enough to be a consistent and reliable dead-eye threat from deep.
Diallo's return wouldn't answer this question, but if Kentucky somehow landed Cam Johnson then that would do it. Otherwise, we'll just have to wait and see how much of a liability this is, or if Kentucky might be better than anyone expects.
3. QUADE GREEN AT THE POINT
There seem to be no questions about Quade Green's leadership qualities. The five-star point guard was caught on camera engaging in some celebratory gloating when he learned that fellow five-star Kevin Knox had picked Kentucky. He seems to be ready to assume a position of leadership for next year's Kentucky team, and he should be a player that helps to rally and organize those around him.
But what kind of point guard is he actually going to be?
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He doesn't rank quite as high as some of John Calipari's other point guards (then again, neither did Tyler Ulis), and popular expectations for Green as a freshman will probably be more modest than for many that have gone before him.
If Green meets and/or exceeds expectations (e.g. challenges for All-SEC honors or better) then next year's team looks lights out. If he is less consistent and endures several pronounced peaks and valleys then that will be an interesting variable on a team that is going to be so young across the board, with a couple of other questions.
As we've seen so often, Calipari's teams sink or swim (usually they swim) on the basis of point guard play. Kentucky got so much better when Marquis Teague hit his stride. When Ulis exceeded expectations it changed the forecast for a team for two straight years. When Andrew Harrison struggled as a freshman, Kentucky struggled. When Brandon Knight struggled then improved, Kentucky struggled then improved. It's not a stretch to say that Green could even be higher on this list, and that's not a criticism. It's just a question that hasn't been answered.
2. CAM JOHNSON'S DECISION LOOMS
Might Cam Johnson pick Kentucky?
Rivals.com's Corey Evans wrote this week, "UK and Arizona have been the favorites throughout the process." He went on to say, "If each loses their departing freshman to the NBA Draft, a situation that I do believe occurs, Arizona would remain as the top threat for Johnson."
Even if Arizona is the favorite to land Johnson following the Knox commitment, there's still a chance, a glimmer, that he could pick Kentucky. Given how significant such an addition would be, Johnson's decision has to rank very high on the list of questions yet to be answered about next year's team.
1. DIALLO: NBA OR COLLEGE?
This is the most pressing question facing the program during the hard pivot to 2017-18. When John Calipari landed Kevin Knox he ensured that next year's team should have a go-to offensive player who looks to score in a variety of ways, can create his own shot and can beat you at different spots on the court and with mismatches.
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But Knox doesn't make Diallo much less important than he otherwise would have been because for all of Kentucky's frontcourt depth there's much less of it in the backcourt. Even though Calipari evidently sold Knox on playing the two guard position there will be those who remain skeptical of how that's going to play out in the long run. And even if Knox can effectively be that on offense, Kentucky still needs a long, athletic and quick guard who is capable of locking opponents down on the other end.
Diallo would give Kentucky good backcourt depth, better defensive versatility and another scoring option. He wouldn't answer every question, but he would surely make the team better.