Vargas to go on China trip
Junior Eloy Vargas dunks during the UK mens basketball Dillard exhibition game. Photo by Mike Weaver
May 16, 2011
Last year, Josh Harrellson couldn’t find enough space in his duffel bags for all his jorts while he was traveling to China.
Eloy Vargas will probably not encounter the same problem.
However, UK would love to see Vargas emerge from his round-the-world trip with the same productivity as Harrellson, who along with Jon Hood participated in the Sports Reach program. This year’s team will play nine games in 10 days.
Is that drastic improvement realistic? No. Harrellson’s improvement came almost exclusively through the hard work accompanying his Twitter saga and subsequent workout program — along with the sole rights to being the big man on the team. But he did get the chance for game action over the summer, and that certainly played a part, although probably miniscule.
Still, the China trip should help Vargas, especially when that trip is coupled with his tryouts for the Dominican Republic national team. But the biggest factor if he does improve will probably be from simply being a year older, a year more experienced, a year more used to the college game.
For some perspective on how players end up after the trip, here’s the rosters of the last two years plus this summer’s:
Summer of 2009 (roster via)
| Ali Farokhmanesh | Northern Iowa |
| Kwadzo Ahelegbe | Northern Iowa |
| Alex Legion | Illinois (transferred to Florida International) |
| Dominique Keller | Illinois |
| Carlton Fay | Southern Illinois |
| Paul Carter | Minnesota (transferred to Illinois-Chicago) |
| A.J. Slaughter | Western Kentucky |
Summer of 2010 (roster via)
| Peyton Siva | Louisville |
| Brandon Barnes | Lipscomb |
| Malik Story | Nevada |
| Jon Hood | Kentucky |
| Skylar McBee | Tennessee |
| Xavier Silas | Northern Illinois |
| Steffphon Pettigrew | Western Kentucky |
| Jeremy Williams | UTEP |
| Carlton Fay | Southern Illinois |
| Josh Harrellson | Kentucky |
| Sean Kowal | Northern Illinois |
Summer of 2011 (roster via)
| Eloy Vargas | Kentucky |
| Jordan Hulls | Indiana |
| Victor Oladipo | Indiana |
| Malik Story | Nevada |
| Justin Bocot | Southern Illinois |
| Austin Hollins | Minnesota |
| Garlon Green | TCU |
| Marcus Thornton | Georgia |
| Keith Clanton | Central Florida |
| Devonte Elliot | Nevada |
