The one big question John Calipari still needs to answer

Following Kentucky’s dismal 9-16 men’s basketball season in 2020-21, some of the issues John Calipari needed to fix were clear.

During this offseason, the Wildcats head coach seems to be doing an effective job working through that checklist — even though there is one major question that still hangs over UK.

Let’s work through some of the primary challenges facing Kentucky coming out of last season and what Calipari has done so far to address them:

Checklist item one. Add more three-point firepower.

✓. This is not your grandfather’s SEC basketball. The two best teams in the league last year, Alabama and Arkansas, made far more use of the three-point arc than did UK.

Kentucky shot a pedestrian 33.5 percent on three-point shots in 2020-21, making 160 of 477 attempts. That was the second-lowest number of treys made by a Calipari-coached UK team.

Conversely, Alabama took a whopping 989 three-point shots and made 348 (35.2 percent). Arkansas was actually slightly less accurate on three-point attempts (33.2 percent) than Kentucky, but the Razorbacks shot it more, taking 702 treys and making 233 (33.2).

For UK to reclaim its traditional perch atop the SEC, it cannot be outgunned to such a degree from three.

Calipari has used the transfer portal to address UK’s lack of long-range artillery, adding ex-Davidson star Kellan Grady and Iowa starting guard CJ Fredrick.

The 6-foot-5, 205-pound Grady, a grad transfer, is a career 17.4 points a game scorer and a 36.6-percent three-point shooter.

A 6-3, 195-pound Covington Catholic product, Fredrick is a 46.6-percent three-point shooter over two seasons starting in the Big Ten.

Add in the returning Dontaie Allen (39.7 percent three-point shooter this past season) and Kentucky suddenly boasts ample perimeter firepower — if it chooses to deploy it.

Checklist item two: Add players who value possession of the ball.

✓. Of Kentucky’s top 10 players in 2020-21, a whopping seven had more turnovers than assists. That is not what the statistical profile of a good basketball team looks like.

Of Baylor’s top nine players this past season, six had more assists than turnovers.

For Gonzaga, its top seven players all had a higher number of assists than turnovers.

Those were the two teams, you will recall, that played for the NCAA title.

The good news for Kentucky is that Grady and Fredrick bring offensive skills other than shooting.

In his four seasons at Davidson, Grady produced 248 assists vs. 110 turnovers. Over two years playing at Iowa, Fredrick had 121 assists and only 42 turnovers.

Checklist item three: Upgrade the point-guard play.

In progress. Freshman lead guard Devin Askew was assigned far too much of the blame for Kentucky’s lost 2020-21. But it is true that UK essentially played the entire season without anyone who could consistently break down defenses off the dribble.

The late signing of incoming freshman TyTy Washington was a major recruiting win for Calipari. ESPN proclaimed the 6-3 Washington “one of the biggest breakout stars of the high school season” and now ranks him No. 12 in the class of 2021.

Whether Washington, who some see as more of a “combo guard” than a pure point, fully fills UK’s void in the offensive-creator category is unclear.

That’s why Kentucky’s pursuit of the transferring Georgia point guard Sahvir Wheeler is important.

After making 47.1 percent of his shots as a freshman, the 5-10 Wheeler had a horrid shooting year (39.9 percent field goals, 22.5 percent three-pointers) as a sophomore.

Nevertheless, the Houston product can do the one thing Kentucky most needs: Beat defenders off the dribble and distribute the ball (SEC-best 7.4 assists in 2020-21) effectively.

Checklist item four. Add muscle.

✓. Kentucky made only 45.5 percent of its two-point field-goal tries in 2020-21. Out of 347 NCAA Division I men’s basketball teams, that ranked 319th.

Part of UK’s inaccuracy came from the fact that the Wildcats’ roster was filled with skinny guys who had trouble finishing through contact.

At 6-9, 260 pounds, West Virginia transfer Oscar Tshiebwe is going to make UK much harder to push around.

Tshiebwe made 52.3 percent of his shots last season before leaving the West Virginia team after 10 games. That is not highly efficient for a guy most of whose shots come around the rim.

Nevertheless, opponents having to counteract Tshiebwe’s bulk should help open things up for other UK players.

Checklist item five: Adopt a modern offensive approach.

To be determined. By bringing in more polished offensive players, Calipari is putting himself in position to embrace the analytics-driven “new way to play.”

But will a coach who has always prioritized the commitment to man-to-man defense in his playing-time decisions be willing to make accommodations on the defensive end if that’s what it takes to keep the most skilled offensive players on the court?

Until the games start again, that is the big question that will hang over Calipari and Kentucky.

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