The State of Kentucky

[dante]

Something must be wrong with the air or maybe is the water, First is Cal talking about an undefeated season and being everyone's superbowl lol

Then is Pitino talking about they're on a verge of a mini-dynasty? whatever that is, and now their fans thinking Russ Smith is better then Kemba?

http://mbd.scout.com/mb.aspx?s=17&f=2755&t=12479690

 

[TheRealKBuks]

Every team wishes they had a kemba walker in their history, I say let em dream. Russ smith is a great player but you're kidding yourself if you think he's anywhere close to Kemba Walker. The real question is could Russ smith lead a team to an NC with the same supporting cast, I think we all know answer to that. Let em compare all they want, all that matters is we had the real thing, everything else is a cheap imitation.

 

[HuskyBballFan]

It's cute how they're comparing Kemba's full season statistics to Russ Smith's statistics thus far this year - when Louisville's schedule to this point has been UNC and 9 games against the Sisters of the Poor.

Regarding the "mini-dynasty" comment, I can't get too worked up over it given the fact that they've gone to 2 straight Final Fours, won 2 straight BETs, won the National Championship last year, and certainly have a chance to make another run this year.

 

[mauconnfan]

Russ Smith is a very good college player so let's not downplay his impact on their success.......

I will say this though, in order to have a fair comparison on impact he will need to lead them a long way this year. His last 2 FF's were with Siva, Dieng (both Jr and Sr years) as well as Behanan/Hancock and a few other upper classmen. Kemba took a Fr Bazz, Fr Lamb, Fr Roscoe and a few soph's to the promised land. That's basically "putting the kids on your back" in comparison. So while they may actually compare stats wise let's see what Russ does with a little yonger squad this year before making the final analysis.

 

[babysheep]

Mini-dynasty isn't too far off. HBBF nailed it.

Comparing Russ Smith to Kemba, however, is ridiculous, and shows that they lack a full understanding of what Kemba did. They look at stats, but ignore the teams he did it against and the circumstances under which he performed the way he did. Unfortunately for them, they will never have a chance to win 5 games in 5 days against 4 ranked teams, then 6 and a row (with S16 and E8 games being home games for the opponents).

 

[Kitaman]

You all know that this is duplicated around the country, by many coaches and fans. No need to pay attention to this or defend/compare Kemba. I have no problem with coaches talking this way and am honored that Kemba is still being discussed outside of UConn. Let's talk Stanford.



We are UConn dammit!

 

[TheRealKBuks]

You all know that this is duplicated around the country, by many coaches and fans. No need to pay attention to this or defend/compare Kemba. I have no problem with coaches talking this way and am honored that Kemba is still being discussed outside of UConn. Let's talk Stanford. We are UConn dammit!

I agree with everything you said, however when an opportunity arises to discuss Kemba Walker you have to take it.

 

[tykurez]

Right, because Russ Smith is seeing the triple-team nightly.

Kemba was feeding on the bones of trolls and fools. #winning

 

[Palatine]

Until Smith hits an underhand trey from 40 feet out with the shot clock on zero, Kemba is alone.

 

[Scoe]

If Russ Smith were Kemba then whats he doing in college he would be in the NBA right now.

 

[willie99]

Russ Smith is a great player, but he's not even projected to be a 1st round pick anywhere I look.

Kemba was a lottery pick and is now the face of the Charlotte franchise. Kinda hard to argue Russ is better.

Too bad Detroit didn't take him over Knight or the Bobcats didn't take AD. They both missed chances at better players, and KW would be playing with AD. That would be awesome

 

[Huskyforlife]

The idea of Russ smith being in kembas galaxy makes me laugh so hard. Kemba won a chip with lamb as his secondary scorer, with ao as his best big and bazz as the only other ball handler. He is the definition of carrying a team. Dudes a legend nobody will remember Russ smith when he goes to the nba, and like someone said above I've never seen Russ smith projected in the 1st round.

 

[Huskyforlife]

Don't get me wrong he's a great college player but you can't put him and you know who's name in the same sentence

 

[UConnSwag11]

i could only read the first few comments...

http://gifb.in/lvsV

 

[UConnSwag11]

also how do you post gifs?

 

[UConnSwag11]

kemba is regarded as the possibly the greatest tournament player ever... look at maui, the BET, and the NCAA. He played with one of the, if not the youngest teams in the country. he didnt have a majority of a national championship team coming back... i want someone to put a poll up on a very popular sports page and ask this question... who would you rather have on your college team... A. Russ Smith B. Brandon Knight C. Kemba Walker D. Jimmer

 

[GlastonTim]

kemba is regarded as the possibly the greatest tournament player ever... look at maui, the BET, and the NCAA. He played with one of the, if not the youngest teams in the country. he didnt have a majority of a national championship team coming back... i want someone to put a poll up on a very popular sports page and ask this question... who would you rather have on your college team... A. Russ Smith B. Brandon Knight C. Kemba Walker D. Jimmer

Ummmmm.......Jimmer?

 

[intlzncster]

kemba is regarded as the possibly the greatest tournament player ever... look at maui, the BET, and the NCAA. He played with one of the, if not the youngest teams in the country. he didnt have a majority of a national championship team coming back... i want someone to put a poll up on a very popular sports page and ask this question... who would you rather have on your college team... A. Russ Smith B. Brandon Knight C. Kemba Walker D. Jimmer

If you polled sports writers, it'd be Jimmer hands down. He was their Jimmy Chitwood. No way Kemba, as superior player on so many levels, was winning against the everyman white dude. Don't get me wrong Jimmer was good. He just wasn't on Kemba's level.

 

[Senore]

What Kemba accomplished in one year may never be duplicated. Speaking as a then-bitter rival, I will not even make a tiny move towards diminishing Kemba Walker's season that year. It's stupid to try.

But Louisville is lucky enough to have Smith playing right now - not last year or 3 years ago. No one knows what he will do and he definitely has what might be a better supporting cast anyway. Wayne Blackshear and Chane Behanen have no idea what not going to a Final Four is all about. Russ has also changed his approach and his game completely. His 10 assists last game could have been 15 had his passes been converted. He is now delivering the ball to players in the best position to make baskets.

And he can still light it up. He scored 36 against UNC in a weird ballgame. Trust me, people in Louisville will remember Russ Smith long after he is gone.

 

[Senore]

The "dynasty" talk of Rick's was aimed in only one direction. It was tongue-in-cheek in the first place. I think you guys know where it was directed.

 

[Scoe]

We tend to use hyperbole on these boards ourselves so lets not be hypocrites, that one poster on their board summed it up well let Russ Smith be Russ Smith, I feel the same way about Shabazz.

 

[Fishy]

Russ Smith isn't a great player.

He's cognizant of the fact that he needs to be more of a point guard and so his assists are up markedly this year, but when it comes down to it, Russ Smith is gonna be Russ Smith.

And that means taking 16 threes and handing out two assists against North Carolina.

 

[UConnSwag11]

If you polled sports writers, it'd be Jimmer hands down. He was their Jimmy Chitwood. No way Kemba, as superior player on so many levels, was winning against the everyman white dude. Don't get me wrong Jimmer was good. He just wasn't on Kemba's level.

I wasn't asking about sports writers. A popular website where they would put the question up and sports fans would answer it like you and me

 

[intlzncster]

I wasn't asking about sports writers. A popular website where they would put the question up and sports fans would answer it like you and me

I got what you were saying. I was merely pointing out what a farce that POY was, as obviously the answer is Kemba. I think you'd see an 80-90% KW vote.

 

[Senore]

Russ Smith isn't a great player.

He's cognizant of the fact that he needs to be more of a point guard and so his assists are up markedly this year, but when it comes down to it, Russ Smith is gonna be Russ Smith.

And that means taking 16 threes and handing out two assists against North Carolina.

I would disagree with that no end.

Last year he was Kenpom's Most Efficient Player by a large margin. He steals the ball by anticipating passing lanes, makes it rough to get by, is a natural pickpocket on the floor and is blazing fast. His history as a volume scorer warrants scouting reports dedicated to stopping his scoring which he now translates into the 10 assists he had last game. He scored 36 against UNC, makes 85% of his FT's and was MVP of last season's MidEast Regional, averaging 27 points a game against Duke and Oregon. He averages 2 Turnovers a game this season along with 5 assists.

He is a more complete player because he has help. Like someone said, we'll take him.