UK head coach John Calipari spoke with the media Friday leading up to the Asbury game on Sunday.
For the majority of the presser, Cal talked about getting this team prepared for the big games in the future.
He said that Asbury would be like the Clarion game, where he tries multiple looks to see what works.
“We’re still trying to figure out combinations,” Calipari said.
He said he may play three guards, and try different looks, but for the most part he’s still trying to figure out what works.
He also hasn’t decided whether Isaac Humphries or Derek Willis will start.
“I may start Derek, I may start Isaac,” he said.
He hasn’t sat down and written anything out like he had done last week.
Cal also talked about how there are plenty of things the Cats can get better at, and one of those things is the half-court offense.
“Our execution in half court is just not there,” Cal said.
He added that the timing was bad, and they’ll have to work on it, but it’s expected with how inexperienced some of the players are.
Speaking on the improvement of one specific player, Cal talked about how Bam Adebayo needs to get better at the free throw line to help his post game.
“We’ve gotta get Bam where he doesn’t have to bounce it in the post, just get to that basket,” he said.
Cal wants to get him comfortable at the free throw line so he can draw contact in the paint and still put up points.
While there’s room to improve, Cal is very optimistic about how much the team can grow.
“This is the beginning of November, it’s the first time all these kids are doing some of this stuff,” Cal said.
What helps with that is the fact that practices are getting even more competitive between the players, according to Cal.
Cal closed the press conference with some comments on the Bahamas game against Arizona State, and said he wants it to be a “family trip.”
“The stuff’s going good, but I would like this Bahamas stuff to be a family trip,” Cal said. “I think this is going to be the trip.”
Cal said the Cats are going to have an open practice in the Bahamas, and he wants the fans to get as close to the team as they can. He said this will be a better trip for the fans than the New York trip or the Vegas trip.
Here is a replay of Calipari’s full press conference from Friday: