Saturday Quickies: Davion Mintz Edition

The second recruiting season is in full swing and John Calipari has landed his first commitment of the cycle. Former Creighton Blue Jay Davion Mintz is officially a Kentucky Wildcat.

The 6’3 grad transfer guard softens the blow left by Johnny Juzang. He’s a three point threat that can handle the ball and hold his own on defense. The different with Mintz compared to some of the other grad transfers is that he has played big time Division One college basketball.

While I am very happy with the addition to Mintz, I still think this team has some questions around it. The Cats need to add or keep at least one more big and I would feel even better if Immanuel Quickley decided to stay.

But I think the writing is on the wall with Quickley and that is why adding Mintz is even more important. Devin Askew is going to be a freshman and even a reclassified one at that. I think the idea from Calipari is to get Mintz to ease Askew into his role while providing support to his other young guards.

I don’t think Calipari is done with the grad transfer route. The only bigs he has on the roster are Keion Brooks, Isaiah Jackson, and Lance Ware. If EJ Montgomery does stay in the draft then Calipari is going to have to land another grad transfer or get Greg Brown to commit.

Tweets of the Day

Matt Haarms is an attractive option for multiple teams. I’m not sure he fits into how Calipari wants to play but he does have elite shot blocking ability.

Quickies

Kahlil Whitney to enter the NBA Draft | Cats Pause- It’s very difficult to not say anything snarky when dealing with Kahlil Whitney. I don’t think there’s been more of a delusional player in the Calipari Era.

Quitting on your team and dropping out of school is the start of the best inspirational stories.

Davion Mintz a “perfect fit” | Lexington Herald Leader- Mintz fills a big need for the ‘Cats. I hope he can bring his shooting stroke to Lexington.

Terry Bradshaw says Tom Brady isn’t the greatest | CBS- Bradshaw takes a tough stance on Tom Brady and then names three QB’s, two of which didn’t win Super Bowls, ahead of him.

The XFL folds again | ESPN- I guess we will never know if the XFL would have worked after a bit of a successful start. Like all other sports the season for the XFL was cut short due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. But unlike other sports there are no plans to restart.

Top high school seniors heading into the spring signing period | Sports Illustrated- Greg Brown is second on this list behind Jalen Green. It seems more and more like a forgone conclusion that he’s going to pick the Texas Longhorns because of his relationship with Shaka Smart- a coach that has been an abject failure in every way at Texas and is lucky to have a job.

Drew Brees’ post football career set | Sporting News- There’s no doubt that Drew Brees will be a first ballot hall of famer when his career in the NFL is over. There’s also no doubt that he will be a major success working for NBC when his NFL career is over.

Major NCAA vote on transfers to happen in May | Yahoo!- The NCAA is expected to vote a one time transfer anywhere rule into place in May. This would be a huge gain for the Kentucky football team as Joey Gatewood would become eligible immediately.

Vernon Carey, Jr. declares for NBA Draft | CBS- Carey was one of the best freshmen in all of college basketball last season. He is expected to leave his name in the draft.