It’s no secret that something UK head coach John Calipari does with players helps them improve in short periods of time.
He takes high school graduates and turns them into NBA first-round draft picks. His coaching style is criticized because of his perception on what is important to stress and what isn’t, but this same coaching style is also adored by many of his players and assistant coaches.
Calipari said at the Oct. 2 women’s clinic practice he doesn’t stress free throws, and if he wanted a good free throw shooting team, he’d have one. Instead, emphasis on combining a fast pace, fundamentals and communication is the route he chooses to take.
The Cats demonstrated box-to-box passes, layup drills, passing drills, communication drills, shooting drills and the dribble-drive offense. What separates Calipari from other coaches is his ability to move from task to task seamlessly and rapidly.
“There are no water breaks,” Calipari said to fans at the women’s clinic. If they wanted water, they got some when they needed it and jumped right back into the drill. Calipari runs practice in a way that will simultaneously condition players for the pace in games. “There aren’t water breaks in games,” he said.
As expected, the newcomers seemed to adapt to this team strategy. Freshman forward Anthony Davis exploded in practice from beginning to end. He seemed like a quiet player, but he made big plays at each end of the court. Since Calipari emphasizes player communicaion on the court, being encouraged to talk during practices should train Davis to talk during games as well.
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, a freshman forward, was explosive up and down the court as well, muscling out of double teams and drawing fouls.
Freshman forward Kyle Wiltjer also performed well during the first public practice.
Wiltjer, a pretty consistent shooter, drained several from 3-point range. He seems to be working hard for Calipari, being complimented by coaches during sprints after finally “stretching those legs,” Calipari said.
Both listed at only 6-foot-2, guards Marquis Teague and Ryan Harrow muscled their way into the paint and made some big offensive drives and defensive plays during practice, all while maintaining speed. Likewise, junior guard Twany Beckham showed off his veteran skill set while making big buckets on the fast breaks.
The newcomers can tell it’s working.
“It’s even harder in practice than what I thought,” Kidd-Gilchrist said in an October interview. “It’s more intense. It’s an adjustment from high school. But we’re getting better every day.”
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