:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/63225207/pj_washington_reid_travis.0.jpg)
The Kentucky Wildcats begin SEC Tournament play on Friday, and it’s starting to look like Reid Travis may be part of it.
On Monday, head coach John Calipari updated the status of Travis, saying he worked out with Kentucky assistant Kenny Payne on Monday. Calipari also laid out the plan for Travis ‘if’ he plays in Nashville, saying the senior forward will play in short 4-5 minute stints to get his feet underneath him.
Then on Tuesday, PJ Washington revealed that Travis is now working out with the team:
PJ Washington on Reid Travis, "Yesterday he worked out with us, he really did good and he was in shape and his knee looked pretty good."
— Curtis Burch (@curtisburch) March 12, 2019
The Cats have a few days of team practice off, but they have been doing individual work together. It still by no means Travis will play in Nashville, but this is another good sign that his return is coming soon.
I still think there’s a chance Calipari holds Travis out until the NCAA Tournament, where there will be more space between games. If Kentucky makes the SEC Tournament title game, that will be three games in three days, which isn’t good for a player coming off a prolonged absence.
But make no mistake about it: For Kentucky to win another conference championship, they’ll need Travis to beat a team like Tennessee, who the Cats would likely face if the advance to the semifinal round.
The winner of that game may also determine who gets a 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. So whatever Calipari’s plan is, it hopefully involves Travis playing around 15-20 minutes on Saturday, even if it is in just 5-minute bursts.
When do you think Travis will make his return?