The 29th overall pick, Archie Goodwin became the 13th Wildcat chosen in the first round the last four years. (Britney McIntosh, UK Athletics)
When Archie Goodwin sat down to make an NBA Draft decision, John Calipari asked him whether he was prepared to cope with the worst-case scenario should he declare. Goodwin said he was, so Calipari gave his blessing as Goodwin took the next step in his basketball career.On Thursday, however, Goodwin would have to deal with no such situation.Goodwin was selected with the 29th pick of the draft by the Oklahoma City Thunder. But just as it happened with Nerlens Noel, it appears Goodwin won’t be playing for the team that originally took him. Multiple outlets are reporting the Thunder have agreed to trade Goodwin to the Phoenix Suns via the Golden State Warriors.”My phone has died and I had to borrow a cell phone to call (Deputy Director of Athletics) DeWayne (Peevy) and say, ‘Hooray for Archie!’ ” Calipari said. “What a great thing and a great pick to Phoenix at 29. That’s now 13 first-rounders in four years and 17 picks overall. Unbelievable!”Unbelievable is an appropriate descriptor. UK leads all schools over the last four years in both players taken in the first round and overall draft picks by a wide margin. Kansas is next in both categories with six first-rounders and nine total picks. Kentucky is also the only school to have multiple picks in the last four drafts and one of only two schools (Duke 1992-95) to achieve the feat since 1992.But as impressive as that may be, Coach Cal is thinking more about what the night means for Noel, Goodwin and their families. Even though he was prepared to potentially be drafted in the second round, being taken in the first is cause for celebration. Because he was selected in the first round, Goodwin will receive a guaranteed contract. Making the situation even better for Goodwin is he will have the opportunity to compete for immediate playing time on a young team. Goodwin was UK’s leading scorer as a freshman, averaging 14.1 points to go with 4.6 rebounds and 2.7 assists per contest. He was the lone Wildcat to start all of his team’s 33 games in 2012-13.”I like this pick,” Bill Simmons said on ESPN’s draft broadcast. “I think he’s talented, I really do, and also he’s young.”One of the youngest players in the draft, Goodwin won’t turn 19 until August, giving even more reason to believe he could develop at the next level.”Goodwin’s got talent,” said ESPN’s Jay Bilas. “He’s a combo guard, a little bit more on the offensive end. He’s athletic, he’s really good in transition.”