Analyst Says Kentucky Wildcats Length Will Aid Them Defensively
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The Kentucky Wildcats are strapping in for yet another long season of college hoops. After an incomplete ending to the 2019-20 season due to COVID-19 scrapping March Madness, every team will come out extra hungry this year. That will include Coach John Calipari’s Wildcats, who have a lot of exciting talent this time around.
While Kentucky aren’t favored to be champions, they are in the running to possibly be in that position. After all, it all comes down to a single-game elimination tournament in the end, which any team could feasibly win. Teams will be looking to stack the deck against their opponents, and the Wildcats may have already done that with their recruiting.
SEC Network’s Jimmy Dykes has observed that the makeup of this Kentucky roster gives the defensive advantages other teams don’t have.
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I really hope we get to see this particular group on the court at the same time this season:
PG – Terrence Clarke (6’7)
SG – BJ Boston (6’7)
SF – Keion Brooks (6’7)
PF – Isaiah Jackson (6’10)
C – Olivier Sarr (7’0)Matchup nightmare for opponents 😤 pic.twitter.com/ihpgHCJTxx
— Grant Peters (@GP_Tre_Ball) November 11, 2020
“The length of Kentucky, you can’t overlook it. In terms of how that impacts them defensively, trying to pass around and kind of get shot through with the top of them. Their ability to make players over the top of you, that’s as long as a team we have in college basketball.”
Kentucky Wildcats and defense
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The Wildcats take pride in producing good defenders. This year’s All-NBA Defensive teams had three Kentucky alums on them. Anthony Davis was one of them and also finished as the runner-up for Defensive Player of the Year. The other two are Eric Bledsoe and Bam Adebayo.
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Coach Calipari has an eye trained to make teams defensively sound. The current Wildcats squad only has two players under the height of 6’3. This is possibly the tallest team that Calipari has assembled in his Kentucky tenure. There are three players that are 6’6, three players that are 6’7, two players that are 6’9, and another that is 6’10. That is all topped off by their 7-foot center protecting the paint.
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This sort of length advantage always allows teams to force errors on the defensive end. Shots are better contested, blocks are more in reach, and nimble players can even use this to help their steals.
The make-up of this team is not by accident. The Wildcats have a team that is taller than most NBA teams (looking at you, Houston Rockets). Expect them to use their size to play like they are men amongst boys.
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