John Calipari addresses a throng of reporters at men's basketball media day. (Chet White, UK Athletics)
CALIPARI: How about this? Our women's volleyball team is in first place in the SEC. They stomped on Tennessee last night. How about that?
Q. You said if everybody played like Gilchrist you'd have a team on fire. What did you mean by that?
COACH CALIPARI: Yesterday in practice, he was just his (Michael Kidd-Gilchrist) level of intensity, DeAndre Liggins' (meant to say -Michael Kidd-Gilchrist's) starting point is where DeAndre (Liggins) finished. That's what he is right now, only he's 6?7, he's long, he can play inside, outside, he can guard three positions, or four positions for that matter, like DeAndre. He just brings a burning desire to get better. He was in the building last night like at 11 o'clock shooting. He's like the guys that I've had here who ?? they are chasing greatness.
Q. I read that this was your most talented team?
COACH CALIPARI: Who said that? The old, 'I read it somewhere.' (Laughter).
Well, last year's team, it was more that they came together as a group and a unit. That was one of the best teams I've coached. I've coached three teams like that. I coached a team at UMASS like that ?? I've only had three, and that last year's team was that team. They just said, we are bringing it, I know we only have six guys, I know someone else maybe had more talent than we had, but that's too bad, we are winning anyway.
This is different. This is kind of like my first year and a couple other years where I've had where you're in a short order trying to get a group of talented players together to play. So it's ?? am I surprised kids want to come to Kentucky? No. Not at all. I would be surprised if they wouldn't want to come. Why won't you want to come.
Q. Are you surprised how well you've been able to recruit here?
COACH CALIPARI: Well, yeah, the aura of this program, the fans, the facilities, the SEC, there's a lot of things here, and then all of a sudden, they see results of other past players, and what's happening for those, why wouldn't you want to be a part of this. Now, the issue, sometimes becomes, this is not for everybody.
The stuff ?? look at you. I mean, there's ?? this is what it is, and they are going to feel it when they get in there. When they saw 600 tents lining up around ?? let me go back, I think I was misquoted, I think it was 570, what was the exact number, so we don't have to have people search it out and have people say I misspoke. 550? Is that exact?
So we are going with 600. I like that one better. (Laughter) but when they see that for five days and see games they start to realize, uh?oh. And I really think, that's one of the reasons that Michael Gilchrist is in that gym at eleven o'clock and Brandon was and John Wall was and Marquis Teague, Darius. They do this because there's a sense of, wow, this is big, and I hope I'm for it. And that's why I think the guys perform. They go farther than people think and they go to the league and they do better than people think. It's kind of this whole environment, I call it the Kentucky effect, just kind of does it to you.
Q. On some rule changes heading into the season?
COACH CALIPARI: I like the arc underneath the rim. I wish it was a little bit bigger but I like the arc because we drive the ball and if you are in that arc you run the guy over and it's a block, whether he's there. It can't be your own man now. That arc is under there for the secondary defender, but we are trying to beat our man on the dribble, which means there's secondary guy coming over.
Well, if you're in that area, you don't have to worry about anything. Just run the guy over. Can't be there. The old stand under the basket and take charges; that's why they have done that arc, which I think is a good rule.
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