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Daimion Collins figures to be an essential piece to Kentucky’s success next season

John Calipari thinks Daimion Collins becomes one of the best players in the country this season

The nature of 's annual  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 . 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 , 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.”

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On This Day In UK Basketball History

On March 28, 1992, in what many called the “best NCAA Tournament game ever,” Kentucky takes defending NCAA champion Duke into overtime before losing 104-103 in the East Regional finals in Philadelphia. A last-second shot by Christian Laettner sends Duke to the Final Four, and breaks the hearts of Wildcat fans everywhere. It is Cawood Ledford’s last game as the “Voice of the Wildcats.”

 

On March 28, 1998, against Stanford, Kentucky rallied from a 10-point second-half deficit, then grabbed a 5-point overtime lead, before fending off the Cardinals to advance to the title game for the third straight season. Jeff Sheppard canned three long-range three-pointers - two in the final three minutes and one in overtime - en route to a career-high 27 points.

 

On March 28, 2014, unranked Kentucky beat No. 5 Louisville 74-69, in the 2014 NCAA Tournament Sweet 16.  Aaron Harrison buried a three-pointer from the left corner with 39 seconds left that put UK ahead to stay before 41,072 in Lucas Oil Stadium.

 

On March 28, 2015, No. 1 Kentucky defeated No. 8 Notre Dame, 68-66, in the 2015 NCAA Tournament Elite Eight.  With its 37-0 record on the line, Kentucky trailed Notre Dame 59-53 with 6:14 left. UK rallied in front of 19,464 fans in Cleveland’s Quicken Loans Arena and preserved its perfect season thanks to a crucial blocked shot by Willie Cauley-Stein and two game-deciding free throws from Andrew Harrison in the final seconds.

 

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