A look back at the Draft Cats 2011

Whenever a new player dons the blue and white of Kentucky the range of expectations are oftentimes wildly varying among the fan base.  Some expect immediate greatness, while others consider the youth and lack of major college experience while opting to take a wait-and-see attitude about the potential of the newest Wildcat.  The unknown quantity of a player’s ability is what keeps fans excited and Internet message boards alive with prognostications about a player’s future, and how that future will impact the UK basketball program.

In the case of the 2011 Draft ‘Cats — Brandon Knight (8th pick to Detroit), Josh Harrellson (45th pick to New Orleans, then traded to New York), DeAndre Liggins (53rd pick to Orlando), and Enes Kanter (3rd pick to Utah) — the bag was decidedly mixed when it came to what UK fans expected out of the foursome: Knight was a two-time Florida Gatorade Player of the Year, and a consensus top-5 high school player; Liggins was a consensus top-25 player out of Chicago via Findlay Prep in Las Vegas who arrived in Lexington with questionable scoring ability; Josh Harrellson, a JUCO transfer from Illinois, was considered a decent outside shooter (for a man 6’10″) who had not taken up basketball until his freshman year in high school, and whose most impressive suitor coming into college was Western Illinois; Enes Kanter inspired tremendous excitement among the Big Blue faithful due to his Internet visibility, while at the same time causing much consternation because of his foreign soil basketball background.

http://www.coachcal.com/2011/06/30/a-pre-fireworks-look-back-at-the-explosive-2011-draft-cats/