It Took Just One Night Of Basketball To Prove What I Tried To Tell You: Kentucky Is The Best Team In The Country

I tried warning you. I tried to tell the people. Hey, this team is going to be a bit different. These three guards are pretty good. Immanuel Quickley has a little Doron Lamb style to him. Ashton Hagans is a menace. And then there's Tyrese Maxey. The only thing I was wrong about was perhaps underselling just how damn good Maxey is. I say it with no hyperbole. He was the best player on the court tonight and not even close. He outplayed Cassius Winston by a mile. He took the ball and hit every big shot when Kentucky needed it. He had that confidence about him. 

This was one of the more impressive performances I can remember for a Cal team to start the season. Yes, it was choppy with a million foul calls the entire game. But, guess what? Kentucky led pretty much the entire game (they were down 4-3). The defense was fucking outstanding. They have the versatility to send guys all over the place and switch, which we saw at the end when Cal drew up a beautiful design. He put Quickley on a big, so when Winston came off the ball screen down 5, he switched. Then on the other elbow was Sestina for a hard hedge on the secondary screen without having to switch. The game was sealed with that. 

Oh, this is a tough look for Cal only beats up on nobodies: 

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All I know is the fact is Khalil Whitney didn't really do much (hit a massive 3) and he's the second most talented player on that roster. That's scary. SCARY. Keep playing the three guard lineup. Keep mixing in Sestina, Richards and Montgomery up front and then throw in Brooks/Whitney to run small or big depending how you want to play at the time. That's why they are the best team in the country. That and Tyrese Maxey. 

Gold Standard, baby. Buy a shirt.