Calipari expects 5-7 Kentucky players to enter NBA Draft; will build around Ulis
Kentucky's core won't be coming back to give 40-0 a second try.
Two days after Kentucky saw their undefeated season snapped one game shy of the national championship thanks to Wisconsin, head coach John Calipari spoke with reporters about the program's immediate future.
That immediate future is going to see the team built around point guard Tyler Ulis, who will be returning to Lexington for a sophomore campaign.
Calipari said he texted Ulis and told him the plan, while also confirming that he, too, is staying in the college ranks, unsure if he'd find the same satisfaction at the NBA level.
It sounds as if Ulis will be joined by Marcus Lee and almost certainly Alex Poythress, who is feeling out his NBA Draft stock after missing most of the season with a torn ACL.
That trio will be flanked by No. 3 recruit Skal Labissiere, No. 13 recruit Isaiah Briscoe, No. 42 recruit Charles Matthews and possibly key contributors from this season in Dakari Johnson and Devin Booker. Consequently, Calipari will keep something similar to his 2014-15 platoon system in place, given the teams depth.
Booker is believed to be a borderline lottery pick, so a return would be surprising. Johnson might be on the wrong side of the first-round bubble and could vault his stock with a strong junior campaign. Both are still considering their options after speaking with Calipari, who promised to do no brainwashing during the decision process.
That leaves five who are almost certainly on their way out.
Calipari guesses five is minimum leaving but "seven is a distinct possibility." And "I hope they surprise me like last year."
— Kyle Tucker (@KyleTucker_CJ) April 6, 2015
Karl-Anthony Towns, a potential No. 1 overall pick, has always seemed a likely one-and-done candidate as there's little sense in returning for a sophomore campaign from a draft or financial perspective. More goes into the decision, but it's tough to see a guaranteed top-three pick walking away from a lot of money, even if there are a few precedents.
Towns will likely be joined by Willie Cauley-Stein, himself a likely top-10 pick, and Trey Lyles, a borderline lottery pick who helped his stock plenty as the year wore on.
Twin brothers Andrew Harrison and Aaron Harrison are also likely to eschew junior seasons, even though their current draft has both - Aaron in particular - teetering on the edge of the second round. Calipari believes after workouts and interviews are conducted, both could regain the draft stock that saw them penciled into the first round in the past.
That's probably too optimistic, but were Booker to declare, it's feasible Kentucky could have up to five first-round picks and eight players drafted overall.
It's little surprise they went 38-1, then, and it shouldn't be surprising to see them dominate in 2015-16 - Ulis, Lee, Booker, Johnson, Poythress and Labissiere would all start the season firmly on the 2016 draft radar.