Big Blue exhibition game: Enes Kanter will get to play at Rupp after all

LEXINGTON, KY. — Most of the details of the Big Blue All-Stars vs. The Villains exhibition basketball game on Oct. 24 at Rupp Arena were already out by the time organizer Jeff Sheppard held his official press conference Thursday afternoon to announce the event. But Sheppard, a former University of Kentucky player, had one big surprise up his sleeve.

“I have a very special announcement that just developed,” Sheppard said. “We have an addition to the Big Blue All-Stars. I’m so excited to announce that he’s going to be playing for us because unfortunately this year he was not able to wear the blue and white and represent the University of Kentucky.

“And so for the first time playing on Rupp Arena’s floor, Enes Kanter will play for the Big Blue All-Stars. (That’s) as good as we could do. We’re super excited to have him on our team.”

Kanter, a 6-foot-11 Turkish player ruled permanently ineligible by the NCAA last season before he ever played for the Wildcats, was taken with the No. 3 overall pick in the NBA draft by the Utah Jazz. Because of the ongoing NBA lockout he, along with the long list of other professional stars expected to participate in this game, was available.

Sheppard, who stressed that none of the rosters are set in stone, also expects the Big Blue All-Stars — coached by former Wildcat Rex Chapman — to include John Wall, Rajon Rondo, Nazr Mohammed and DeMarcus Cousins, among many others.

Sheppard said he’s “working really hard” to get former Florida player Joakim Noah on The Villains roster, which is being coached by Christian Laettner and is expected to include former North Carolina star Tyler Hansbrough and Duke’s Nolan Smith. Sheppard said he’d also consider asking Bruce Pearl to be an assistant coach to get a “Tennessee flavor.”

There’s one major caveat to this game, for which tickets go on presale today and full sale Monday.

“If the (NBA) lockout ends, this whole tour ends,” said Sheppard, whose Big Blue All-Star team begins a five-game tour against small state colleges on Saturday and concludes with the big event in Rupp. “That’s beyond our control, but if the lockout ends, the tour ends — immediately. That would just be a tough break.”

Organizers are optimistic, though. During the press conference, Sheppard showed a pro wrestling-style promotional video in which Laettner taunts UK fans. He, of course, hit the last-second shot to beat the Wildcats in the 1992 East Regional final of the NCAA tournament.

“Hey Kentucky fans, remember me?” Laettner says in the video. “Yeah, you remember. How could you forget? … The Villains are going to stomp the Big Blue All-Stars again, just like in 1992.”

Laettner spoke to reporters on a conference call Thursday and said he’s excited to be part of the event in part because proceeds benefit The V Foundation, of which he’s been a longtime supporter. He said it’s also because he misses the roar of the crowd — even if it’s against him.

“I want to be part of that. I miss that,” he said. “I’m 42 now and I’m getting it less and less. When you retire from the NBA, you don’t get much cheering and booing.”

Laettner figures to get plenty of the latter when he comes to Rupp. Sheppard said T-shirts that say “I Still Hate Laettner” and “Laettner Sucks” are available at bigblueallstars.com. Laettner approved of both shirts.

“He’s been a good sport,” Sheppard said. “I still don’t like him.”

Laettner said he understands the “utter resentment and disdain” UK fans have for him, and he doesn’t hold it against Big Blue Nation.

“I never have and I never will. I think I realize where it comes from,” he said. “It’s kind of a compliment when you get booed so heartily, I think. There’s a thin line between love and hate.”

Big Blue exhibition game: Enes Kanter will get to play at Rupp after all
Ineligible Wildcat will be with All-Stars against Villains Oct. 24
12:28 AM, Oct. 7, 2011
courier-journal.com

It Ain't Over Till It's Over

Sports scenarios many times can be applied to life in general.

Many of us have been told by our elders as we've grown up that life is never as bad as it seems at times nor is it ever as good as it appears at times either. For most of our lives it falls in the middle.

You can apply those remarks to the present day situation of the Kentucky Wildcats basketball season. To add a more sports oriented phrase to the Cats situation is best described by that famous remark that Yogi Berra, the Yankee catcher, uttered one day in the Yankees clubhouse when his revered Yankees were in a bad losing streak and he told a New York sports reporter " It ain't over till it's over."

I think that can be applied directly to this UK basketball team.

While having lost four games in the first half of the 16 game conference schedule isn't a trait most UK teams have displayed this ship can still be righted for a solid finish.

To retrace back to the beginning of the season most realistic prognosticators thought this team would lose anywhere from 3 to 6 SEC games with most all of them coming on the road. The losses at Georgia and Florida weren't that alarming to me and the one at Alabama is beginning to look like no fluke either. The Ole Miss loss is the one that's a head scratcher. Everyone knew this three week seven-game stretch with five games on the road would be the toughest of the season and it has played out to be just that.

The calvary nor Enes Kanter is not on the horizon either, as many hoped would happen when conference play began. At this point of the season the Cats are what we thought they would be back in November.

In order to get back on track UK must run the table at home for the remainder of the conference schedule and even though it's glaringly apparent this team is limited in quantity it does have six quality players, yes I said Six. Three players (Miller, Liggins, and Harrellson) have been ask to perform at a more productive and consistent level than before. It says here the consistency from those three will be better in the second half of conference play because the majority of the games will be played in the friendly confines of Rupp Arena the next three weeks. The other three of the Super Six (Knight, Jones, and Lamb) are all big time division one players and they're no longer freshman at this point in the season.

What would help this season ending comeback scenario tremendously would be for the Cats to steal a win or two on the road this second half. The opportunities for that will come at Vanderbilt, Arkansas, and Tennessee. My guess is the best opportunities will be at Arkansas and Tennessee, but make no mistake the Cats must run the table at home in order to right the ship for a decent run in the NCAA's March Madness.

One thing many people don't understand is that UK is as battle tested as any team in college basketball when postseason play begins each year because they have taken every teams best hit on their schedule all season long. It toughens them up. Then add to that the fact that all postseason play is at a neutral site where UK always has a home court advantage thanks to the Big Blue Nation and you can vision a much better finish to the season.

I'll step out on the limb and project this team to finish off the second half in more impressive fashion. I'll say the finish line record going into the SEC Tournament will look something like 10-6 or 11-5 with a championship game appearance in the Georgia Dome and a Sweet 16 appearance in the Big Dance.

The only fly in the ointment is that any injury to any of those terrific three of Knight, Jones, and Lamb could change the whole picture. Let's keep our fingers crossed.
We just failed to factor in the impact of the youth in late game situations.

It Ain't Over Till It's Over
By Ira D. Combs Syndicated Columnist
Tri State Sports Media Service Inc.
kentuckysportsnetwork.com

Plenty of Bright Days Ahead

Whew!!!!! What a weekend for a University of Kentucky all sports fan. The deeper into the weekend we got the more the losses mounted on the field and court and the worse the weather got across the Commonwealth (especially in Eastern Kentucky) so there were no escape opportunities like high school basketball or even a visit to the local Wal Mart available in most areas, you just simply had to sit in front of the TV and endure. Best part of the weekend to me was UK President Lee Todd and Athletic Director Mitch Barnhart's public statements in response to the NCAA's decision on Enes Kanter's eligibility.

I was refreshing to me to see two men of your stature show some "Backbone" toward the NCAA in your comments.

You are both out of my doghouse and I sense a renewal of faith from the UK fan base toward both of you coming in your next appearance at Rupp Arena.

Now, let's close out the Enes Kanter knockout by the NCAA and make it final with a bit of advice to him as well as the loyal readers of this column by using a couple quotes from one of our most famous coaches in American sports history that I refer to occasionally myself,  "Nothing in life is so hard that you can't make it easier by the way you take it." or " Things turn out best for the people who make the best out of the way they turned out.", both quotes were used on many occasions by John Wooden to his players at UCLA.

Welcome to America Big Enes, we have a few ugly warts in our society but please don't judge the rest of us by the way you were treated by one of our most hypocritical organizations. I hope you enjoy a long and successful career in the NBA and establish your off-season home in the Bluegrass or at least come back to visit once a year to make the "Y" at Rupp Arena.

As for Coach Calipari on to the next battle. As you know there will be more with the NCAA because in their eyes you are their new Jerry Tarkanian and they are still as vindictive an organization as we have in our modern day culture. Just remember to dot your "I's" and cross your "T's" because your at Kentucky now and the NCAA will find a way to punish you whether your guilty or not.

They did again in this case by prolonging a decision for four months that had an effect on your team every day. I'm convinced the decision would have been dragged out to the same finalization in the spring had Big Blue Nation and the UK administration not been so vocal and constant in the various media outlets available today.

As they say down at the old ball yard hang with'em Coach Cal were all behind you especially Lee Todd and Mitch Barnhart.

Plenty of Bright Days Ahead

By Ira D. Combs Syndicated Columnist
Tri State Sports Media Service Inc

kentuckysportsnetwork.com

John Clay: Ugly rhetoric also spilling into sports

Unlike weekend's Arizona tragedy, Kentucky basketball isn't life and death

The shooting Saturday of an Arizona congresswoman that also claimed the life of six people, including a 9-year-old girl, has sparked a public debate about the current tone of political discourse in this country.

Clarence Dupnik, the Arizona sheriff in charge of theinvestigation into the shooting, called on the country to "do a little soul-searching."

I say it's time for sports to do a little soul-searching as well.

It's time for a debate on the current discourse in our own little neck of the woods.

After all, a day after the NCAA on Friday ruled Enes Kanter was permanently ineligible to play college basketball, here is what someone tweeted to New York Times reporter Pete Thamel:

"I hope your children are born paralyzed and they have to slither around like snakes in the grass like their (expletive) daddy"

And this:

"Congrats on Kanter, scumbag! Hope you don't step in front of a taxi."

There were other such disgusting missives directed at Thamel, to the point where Fox Sports' Jeff Goodman called for a halt only to have Goodman be attacked for coming to Thamel's defense.

Thamel's crime: He wrote a September story quoting the general manager of a Turkish professional basketball team saying Kanter received money to play professionally. A statement the NCAA found to be true.

See, the best thing about the Internet is that it gives everyone involved a voice. And the worst thing about the Internet is it gives everyone involved a voice. They don't even have to use their names.

It's not just the Internet, either. It was interesting Friday night, flipping around the radio dial among the numerous sports talk shows, listening to emotional but anonymous callers with rudimentary knowledge of the facts, giving confident opinions, offering conspiracy theories, all but demanding the Big Blue Nation drive to Indianapolis and storm NCAA headquarters.

It's no different on Internet message boards, or blogs, or, sad to say, newspaper Web sites, where inflammatory commentary rules the day. The ruder the better.

We've somehow developed a coarseness in this society where lines of fairness and decorum are constantly re-drawn.

It's not "Beat Louisville" week anymore.

It's "Hate Louisville" week.

You could say it's all in fun, but it sure seems less so. There's too much invested now, in time, in importance, in money spent, whether the money be on a fan's tickets or a school's coaches.

Even with the madness happening in Arizona on Saturday, a fight broke out between fans behind press row at Stegeman Coliseum late in the Kentucky-Georgia basketball game to the point where security was called.

It's just a game, folks.

A game.

Despite Friday's ruling, Kanter can still go to college. He can get a degree if he wants, and one day soon earn millions in the NBA.

But it was interesting that when Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck announced last week he would return to school for his senior season rather than be the top pick in this spring's NFL Draft, one writer tweeted that anyone who agreed with Luck's decision was a "moron."

Not just wrong, but a "moron."

"It's a Rorschach test for people's value system," said West Virginia Athletics Director Oliver Luck about the reaction to his son's decision.

These days, you have to wonder about our value system.

Kentucky's bowl loss, its basketball loss, its disappointment over the Kanter ruling, made for a bad weekend. But not remotely in the same realm as the tragic weekend in Arizona.

What happened there, including the senseless murder of an innocent girl, that's life and death.

And this is what the girl's mother told the Times:

"I think there's been a lot of hatred going on, and it needs to stop."

John Clay: Ugly rhetoric also spilling into sports

JohnClay

kentucky.com

Kentucky might be rife with idiots, awful people

Last year I aired a grievance stemming from my longstanding personal beef with the state of West Virginia. I don't care for that place, and I caught a lot of flack for it, but residents of the Mountain State look like aristocrats based on the venom some UK fans are hurling in every direction following the upheld decision to keep Enes Kanter sidelined from playing college basketball.

Hat-tip to Card Chronicle on this one, but just run a twitter search for @petethamelNYT, the handle for theNew York Times' Pete Thamel, of course, who shed light on Kanter's amateur status late last summer following an exclusive interview with Fenerbache Ulker's general manager, Nedim Karakas. Despite Thamel's imperfect fact reporting on the matter, the revelation to the general public was exemplary journalism.

It's awfully pathetic some people are convinced that because Thamel fueled the investigation that led to Kanter's ineligibility (although the NCAA was already looking into it), then he must like child pornography, has a fabricated/forged work resume, and wronged UK so much that he should lose his hearing and vision. He writes for one of the most reputable newspapers in the entire world, meaning he knows what he's doing. It's his job to break stories such as Kanter's. Apologizes if it ruined your winter.

I've always been fascinated with Big Blue Nation and their undying passion for the basketball team. We don't have enough of it in today's game, as football reigns supreme in many parts of the country. But whatever sort of respect and adoration I had for Wildcat fans has all but been flushed down the proverbial toilet, even though it's likely because of a few clueless social outcasts sullying the name of the school.

Kentucky might be rife with idiots, awful people

Nick Fasulo

searchingforbillyedelin.com

NCAA rules Kentucky's Kanter ineligible for second time

LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Kentucky's pursuit of an NCAA title won't include freshman center Enes Kanter.
The NCAA Student-Athlete Reinstatement Committee upheld Friday an earlier NCAA decision that deemed Kanter permanently ineligible for receiving more than $33,000 in impermissible benefits while playing for the Turkish club team Fenerbahce two years ago.


The ruling means Kanter will not be able to play, practice or travel with the team but will be able to receive financial aid should he choose to remain at the school.


"We are obviously disappointed in this decision and find it unfortunate that a group of adults would come to such a decision regarding the future of an 18-year-old young man," coach John Calipari said.


Calipari has maintained from the beginning that Kanter is an amateur in his eyes. He says his job now is to prepare the Kanter for the NBA draft. The 6-foot-11 center is projected as a top-10 draft pick.


"Enes will always be a part of our family and I plan to be by his side in the green room whenever he is drafted," Calipari said.


The decision ends a monthslong saga that included two different attempts by the university to clear Kanter.


The NCAA initially ruled Kanter ineligible on Nov. 11 by the NCAA reinstatement staff. The reinstatement committee upheld that decision on Dec. 2, but the school was granted permission to have the case reconsidered because of new information on Dec. 8.


The new action ended with a similar result. The reinstatement staff ruled against Kanter again on Dec. 10, and the appeal was heard by the reinstatement committee on Thursday.


Both the school and the NCAA agreed that Kanter received $33,033 in 2008-09 while playing for Fenerbahce's club team. Calipari said about $20,000 of that money went toward Kanter's educational expenses, but the NCAA bylaws consider a player who receives money above necessary expenses a professional.


"The final decision of the reinstatement committee is completely compatible with the collegiate model of sports our members have developed, since he received a significant amount of money, above his actual expenses, from a professional team prior to coming to college," said Kevin Lennon, NCAA vice president of academic and membership affairs.


Kanter has become a cult figure during his time on campus. He was introduced to a rousing ovation during Big Blue Madness in October, walking across a smoke-filled stage while ominous music played over the speakers.


Fans have taken up a "Free Enes" movement that included T-shirts and photos of fans holding "Free Enes" banners everywhere from Rupp Arena to the U.S. Capitol.


Kanter has been allowed to practice with the team during the review process and was dressed Friday as the 10th-ranked Wildcats prepared for their Southeastern Conference opener against Georgia.


University spokesman DeWayne Peevy said it's likely Kanter will be able remain involved in the program in some capacity so long as he stays in school.


Calipari had hired Wayne Turner in September, adding the former star guard to his staff while he completes his undergraduate degree. NCAA rules allow former players who have re-enrolled in school to be used as on-court staffers.


Kanter's family could take the NCAA to court to file an injunction. Calipari said Friday "whatever they choose to do as a family, we'll support."


NCAA rules Kentucky's Kanter ineligible for second time


CBSSports.com wire reports


Copyright 2011 by STATS LLC and The Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and The Associated Press is strictly prohibited.

Cats Are Starting To Gel

Let's get a couple items out of the way this week that need to be addressed as we enter 2011 . While there are many who are jealous or envious of Kentucky basketball their have been two thorns to UK basketball in the recent past , one for a brief two year period ( Billy "G" ) and the other on a more constant basis many times in the past , the ( NCAA ) and both need to get their just due today.

Thank you NCAA for taking the last 3 1/2 months to make sure Enes Kanter or, excuse me Papa Kanter, hasn't exploited your coveted rules that you so consistently apply across college sports. It's opened the door for a very deserving young man to make a solid contribution to UK basketball and just maybe throw them right into the thick of another deep run into March Madness.

A very special thank you to Billy Gillispie, arguably one of your most mysterious recruits Josh Harrellson just contributed in a mighty way toward providing Big Blue Nation with another special win in the Battle of the Bluegrass series and is actually slowly turning into UK's missing link in the post area.

The official count now stands at 28 W's for UK and 14 W's for U of L. That's twice as many L's for Little Brother and the majority have come since the original Dream Game in 1983.

John Calipari has to be thinking isn't it great when a plan starts coming together when so many odds are against you not to mention a few important people behind the scenes in Indianapolis and across the college coaching fraternity. With the annual Dream Game in the win column for Calipari for the second year in a row and his team gaining confidence as the sun rises each morning one could create an early argument for Calipari as a strong candidate for some Coach of the Year awards across college basketball.n

You absolutely can't question his vast coaching abilities in taking two consecutive teams with two completely different personalities and rosters and milking them both for every win possible. No way in my wildest dreams did I think UK would be basically one possession away from having only one loss as we enter SEC play. It sounds crazy to say with UK's tradition and exposure but Cal's job on the bench to date has went under the radar nationally in my eyes. Only reason I can think of is the constant talk about Enes Kanter's situation with the NCAA.

By Ira D. Combs Syndicated Columnist

Tri State Sports Media Service Inc.

kentuckysportsnetwork.com

Glenn and Ken participate in Wildcat Blue Nation Roundtable

Paul Jordan, founder of Wildcat Blue Nation and long-time friend of A Sea of Blue, has come up with what I think is a terrific idea for his site.  Paul's plan is to have various co-bloggers give their opinions each week on the current hot topic the Big Blue Nation is talking about. 

In the first installment of the roundtable, Paul asks the question: Would the Enes Kanter situation have been handled differently if Kanter had attended a school other than Kentucky?

This week the respondents include A Sea of Blue's Glenn Logan, myself, Wildcat Blue Nation contributing writers Greg Edwards and Jonathan North, as well as Kentucky Sports Report and Scout.com writer Brian Eldridge.

I encourage you to give the piece a read, it will be a great way to start off your Sunday.

Ken Howlett

aseaofblue.com