ESPN's Greenberg, NBA scout break down Cats

LEXINGTON, Ky. – After watching two days of Kentucky basketball practice over the weekend, ESPN analyst and former college coach Seth Greenberg had one thing jump out to him.

"I like the vibe of their team," he said. "I like that they look to Tyler Ulis as their leader. I like that they've got enough maturity to understand where (coach John Calipari) is coming from and that they're a long way from where they need to be. You gotta remember it's a big difference between six practices and what they did last year: 10 practices and six games in the Bahamas. So it's going to take a while for them to develop their identity."

But Greenberg isn't buying Calipari's recent declaration that the Cats "stink" at the moment, as they try to replace seven players who left early for the NBA with six newcomers. After all, the reason Greenberg was on campus this weekend was to be part of a live, two-hour TV broadcast of Kentucky's latest combine for pro scouts.

The reloaded roster still has enough NBA talent for all 30 franchises to send representatives to Lexington.

"They don't stink," Greenberg said. "I can tell you that much. They might've stunk that day at practice. I think the hard thing when you have all these young guys is they don't understand how important every practice is, because you have a small window before you're really getting after it."

Takeaways from UK hoops' live practice

That's what leaders like Ulis, the sophomore point guard, are there for: to remind them. While he was the smallest player on the court at 5-foot-9, Ulis looked like the most confident – and competent – Cat throughout ESPNU's broadcast of Sunday night's drills and scrimmaging.

"He's an elite point guard. He's a guy that, if they're going to be good, he's going to be good. But he's a guy that wants that responsibility," Greenberg said. "I look at him like a boxer. He's got that boxer's mentality, that underdog that's coming in the ring like, 'Wait until you get a load of me.'"

Kentucky's two other five-star guards, freshmen Jamal Murray and Isaiah Briscoe, also shined at times in the combine. Murray was a smooth operator with a sweet shooting stroke, while Briscoe looked like a bulldog who will be difficult for defenders to keep out of the lane – and who'll finish through contact.

"I'm really impressed with the three guards," Greenberg said. "I think they can all play off each other, and I think that they all have enough of a trust that they'll be able to play together. Now, the one concern is when you take Murray off the ball, he's still got to stay aggressive. Briscoe off the ball is interesting to me, because when you get it ahead in transition, which Ulis does really well, he now becomes such a threat."

There's less certainty in the frontcourt, where the Cats lost four draft picks and are counting on a skinny, 6-foot-11 freshman (Skal Labissiere), a two-year backup (Marcus Lee) and a senior coming off knee surgery (Alex Poythress). All three are former five-star recruits with legitimate NBA draft hopes, though.

"Skal is so intriguing," Greenberg said. "You're going to watch him improve on a weekly basis. He's going to get used to bigs, get used to the competition, get used to speed and get better understanding of how to use his quickness. And he's going to be really good defensively. I mean, really good."

Poythress ran, jumped and at times shot the ball well during ESPNU's broadcast Sunday, but he looked a little tentative still, and the announcers wondered whether he has overcome the mental hurdle of a having his ACL reconstructed last December. Even so, Greenberg was "really happy" to see how far the 6-foot-8 power forward has come.

"Once in his mind he realizes just to go, just to attack, that it's better than ever, by that time his leg will be 100 percent," he said. "I think he's got all the makings of having a great senior year."

The key for Lee, a 6-9 junior who excels at blocking shots and dunking lobs, is "He's just got to believe in himself," according to Greenberg.

"This is your time," Greenberg said of Lee. "Believe in yourself, trust yourself, fly around and do the things that you can do. And if you make a mistake or if things don't go exactly the way you want it to go, get to the next play."

The former South Florida and Virginia Tech coach also believes 7-foot freshman Isaac Humphries will eventually carve out a solid role for the Cats – thanks to the deep shooting range and aptitude for pick-and-rolls that he showed during the combine Sunday. First, Calipari will have to figure out how UK will defend with Humphries in the game.

These Cats will go as far as Ulis takes them

Greenberg also noted one major revelation of the team's early practices.

"Charles Matthews will be a big part of what they do," he said, referring to the 6-6 freshman wing and less-heralded member of a recruiting class that included Labissiere, Murray and Briscoe. "Whether he starts or comes off the bench, either way, he gives them high energy, a lock-down defender and an electric body. I think he's going to become valuable."

Greenberg wasn't alone in that assessment after UK's combine.

"I thought Matthews was very good. He and Skal jumped out," said one NBA scout, who added, "Murray is a good player – a very good player, big, strong guard, not as athletic. Ulis makes them go, but he's so darn small I don't know if he'll have a chance in the NBA. Briscoe, some people think he plays well, (but) I have more question marks, concerns than I do things I feel good about him."

And what about the Cats hosting an on-campus combine that aired on live, national TV for the second straight season?

"People want to say bad things or criticize them, but I think it's all good," the scout said. "I think it's all-the-way-around good. Some people might be jealous of it, but I like it."

After getting a good look, he and Greenberg – and plenty of others – also like Kentucky's chances to make another run this season.

Kyle Tucker can be reached at (502) 582-4361. Email him at ktucker@courier-journal.com.