By Keith Taylor
Kentucky Today
Kentucky coach Mark Pope hasn’t dominated out the opportunity of Jayden Quaintance making his debut in opposition to St. John’s Saturday in the CBS Sports Classic.
“We’ll see,” Kentucky coach Mark Pope stated Thursday. “he’s been out of basketball for nine months and crossed half court for the first time in a drill two days ago … he’s done an unbelievable job on his rehab and he’s kept up with everything in terms of having a off the court concept of what we’re trying to do. Every day is probably going to paint a clearer picture for us.”
The Arizona State switch has been recovering from an ACL harm and Tuesday was the primary time Quaintance “crossed half court and did some drill work.”
“That was good,” Pope stated. “We’ll see how he is (Thursday), and he’s making incredible progress. I’s kind of a day-by-day thing. Once he’s confident and healthy and cleared, we’ll roll.”
Once cleared, Pope is anxious to see how Quaintance performs on the courtroom, particularly on the defensive finish of the courtroom.
“He’s confirmed to have an unbelievable affect on the defensive finish of the ground in phrases of his mobility, his physicality and his rim safety. He’s bought the potential to be an elite-level transition offensive participant. He takes up area offensively.
“I think he’s a guy that we could live with (being) in isolation a little bit or he’d go to work. I think he’s a high IQ player that’s going to really pick up the feel of how we play quickly. I think he’s a terrific talent and great kid and and expect good things (from him).”
Still studying
Pope stated the workforce’s 72-60 win over Indiana final Saturday proved to be a studying expertise on each ends of the spectrum for his squad.
“Doing the autopsy of that game was good for our guys, because it taught us a lot about what we could be in a positive way, and a lot of what we don’t want to be in some negative ways,” Pope stated. “The thing I’m excited about is for us to to continue to have a more more belief in the specific vision we’re chasing. Tthe game is a pretty brutal task master. If you don’t buy in, it’s gonna hurt you, right? Until you do and if you’re humble and willing enough, you will. I think we’re making progress. I’m excited about it.”
Known for a three-point capturing type, Pope likes the thought of including a combination of “smash mouth basketball” to the workforce’s present recipe, particularly in opposition to St. John’s.
“it’s gonna be really fun, ugly, gruesome and brutal and violent,” Pope stated. “It’s awesome. It’s great. It won’t be forever. It’s just for now.”
Kentucky, which opened December with losses to North Carolina and Gonzaga, respectively, carries a two-game successful streak into Saturday’s recreation in opposition to the Red Storm.
Special place
Pope considers Atlanta a “special place” due to his experiences as a participant. Known as “Catlanta,” Kentucky has compiled a 35-12 mark in Atlanta, together with a 26-6 mark in the Georgia Dome.
“Atlanta is a special just like Nashville,” Pope stated. “Atlanta is a really special place to me and my Kentucky tenure from when I was a player here, playing in SEC tournament there and we had a great experience there last year. Catlanta is that for a reason, right? It’s, it’s like second home to to Kentucky and it’s important for us to go perform well there like it is everywhere. I love it every time we get to go play there, it’s special.”
Gametracker: Kentucky vs. St. John’s, 12:30 p.m., Saturday. TV/Radio: CBS, UK Radio Network.