The nature of John Calipari's annual Kentucky basketball roster overhaul makes it easy to forget it is possible for players to develop over time.
While Calipari has never been shy about reminding fans and reporters that each player is on a different timetable, it is also true that only 13 of the 45 Wildcats drafted during the Calipari Era spent multiple years playing for the Hall of Fame coach at UK. With the new group of five-star freshmen arriving every year now joined by high-profile Division I transfers, the players signed out of high school who spend multiple years on campus can get lost in the shuffle of offseason conversation.
Maybe that is why Calipari went out of his way this spring to remind fans that sophomore forward Daimion Collins, who averaged just 7.4 minutes per game as a freshman, figures to be an essential piece to Kentucky's success next season.
“In Daimion's case, I think he becomes one of the best players in the country,” Calipari said shortly after the end of the 2021-22 season. “I think the things he does normal players can't do.”
Walter Cornett, of Glendale, Kentucky, is the owner and operator of Walter's Wildcat World. He founded WildcatWorld.com in 1998 making it one of the oldest Kentucky basketball fan sites in operation today.