The 2010-11 official Kentucky Basketball Yearbook is due in stores in mid-October. It’s 120 full-color pages of the most comprehensive look at college basketball in the Bluegrass. Here’s what you’ll find inside:- UK Goes Global: Dick Gabriel writes about why John Calipari is focused on expanding the University of Kentucky brand on a world-wide scale- Miller’s Time: Darius Miller knows it’s up to him to lead this year’s Wildcats– The Magic Touch: Tom Leach finds out how Coach Cal is continuing to build on his reputation as one of the nation’s elite recruiters– ‘Where is He Now?’ with Frank Ramsey: Dave Baker talks to the Hall of Famer about his career at Kentucky, the NBA and life after basketball– Bringing in the Blue Chips: The UK coaching staff has a method to the recruiting madness (tease below)– Good Works Team: Kentucky basketball program focused on community outreach– The Unlikely Wildcat: Former Louisville player, Oregon coach Kenny Payne joins the UK staff– UK Hoops: Looking to build on last year’s successGet all these stories, along with player Q&As, opponent breakdowns and much more in your copy of the 2010 Official Kentucky Basketball Yearbook at the following locations:Online at www.UKathletics.com; Kentucky Kroger locations, in Lexington at UK Bookstore, Fan Outfitters, Joseph-Beth, Walden Books, and Barnes & Noble; in Louisville at Fan Outfitters; in Cincinnati at The Kentucky Shop; at Rupp Arena beginning with Big Blue Madness for the rest of the season.I had the privilege of writing one of the features, “Bringing in the Blue Chips,” in the yearbok. A small tease of the story is below: In 2009 it was John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, Eric Bledsoe and Co. This year it’s Brandon Knight, Enes Kanter, Terrence Jones and more. Next season, four five-star recruits have been lined up. And before Calipari came to Kentucky, he convinced two highly touted point guards in Derrick Rose and Tyreke Evans to join him at Memphis and helped mold them into eventual NBA rising stars.For those keeping score at home, that’s two NBA Rookies of the Year (maybe one more after this year) and a projected third straight No. 1 ranked recruiting class.”Short of winning a national title, everything happened that you’d want to happen in a season,” Calipari said. “Yeah, it’s kind of scary.”It’s frightening for college basketball coaches across the country, especially because it’s a trend that appears here to stay. While Calipari likened UK’s recent success to being the “flavor of the month,” the recipe for getting recruits, albeit simple, has a little more staying power than a random success.”You sell results,” Calipari said. “You sell what we’ve been able to do. When I said this is a big, big moment for Kentucky basketball, maybe the biggest when those five players were drafted in the first round for the first time in the history of the program, I stand by that statement. That’s why we were able to have the kids committed this year and looking at the juniors and how this thing might roll for the next four or five years.”When a business can sell what it’s promoting — player development, competing for championships, a highly rated academic institution and a possible ticket to the NBA — who wouldn’t want to buy? It’s like a one-way factory line straight to the pros.
To read more, remember to pick up the 2010-11 official Kentucky Basketball Yearbook in stores in mid-October.
