Aaron Gordon visits Kentucky Wildcats, UK still in top 5

Over the weekend, Aaron Gordon, the 6th best player in the 2013 class was in Lexington over the weekend for an official visit. From most accounts, Gordon will be a spring decision and most pundits have him staying on the West Coast, yet as you can see from the above tweet, Gordon has Kentucky in his top five.  He also tweeted out that his Kentucky visit was “last but not least”.  Seems that if anyone will pull Kentucky from the West coast, but if anyone can, it will be Calipari.  Keep in mind, people said the exact same thing about Marcus Lee.

Ben Roberts from “Next Cats” talked with Gordon’s HS coach Tim Kennedy , who was present at Calipari’s home visit to Gordon.  Kennedy had this to say about Calipari’s recruiting style: 

"“I think it’s pretty much like what you’ve seen with his shows on the Kentucky All-Access on ESPN there,” Kennedy said. “He lets you know, ‘We want you. We don’t need you, but we want you. We’re Kentucky and this is who we are, this is what we’re about, and this is how we do things.’ I think he’s very up front with guys and lets them know that he’s going to take care of you and you’re going to become better. “He goes through what it’s going to entail being a Kentucky basketball player. And it’s definitely something that, as a basketball player, it’s appealing. You have all of the facilities. You have the great fan base. You’re going to be playing on the biggest stage"

Mar 1, 2012; Lexington, KY, USA; A general view of Rupp Arena in the game against the Kentucky Wildcats and the Georgia Bulldogs. Kentucky defeated Georgia 79-49. Mandatory Credit: Mark Zerof-US PRESSWIRE

Hey …. remember all the debate about what to do with Rupp Arena? Whether to renovate it or build a new one? Well, the debate still continues. And it looks as if some type of decision may be made moving forward:

"That process continued last week when a subcommittee of the Arena, Arts & Entertainment District Task Force listened to two groups present themselves as possible guiding lights for Lexington. One could be hired to formulate a design plan for the district, a business plan for deciding who does what and, most importantly, a plan for how to pay for the project. Here’s a few notes: ■ Committee members continue to emphasize that a re-invented Rupp Arena is only part of the project. What to do with Lexington’s Convention Center is a key component. ■ If all goes according to plan, construction will begin in late 2014 and be completed by the end of 2017. ■ CSL & Associates noted how it planned an arena project in Lincoln, Neb. That arena has 40 private suites (all sold), plus club and loge seating. University of Nebraska basketball is the prime tenant. ■ There’s a lot of ifs. The subject of season ticket holders being displaced by private suites came up. Mike Ondrejko of CSL & Associates said the company would want to hold face-to-face meetings with any such fans before proceeding. Any such displacement would be a decision made by UK, not by Lexington officials. But that’s a decision that might or might not arise years in the future. ■ Bill Rhoda, the president of CSL & Associates, saw the model used by the Green Bay Packers as viable. The Packers sold shares to fans to finance a renovation of Lambeau Field. “It’s not feasible in most markets,” Rhoda said. “This may be one that it is”"

November 9, 2012; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings point guard Tyreke Evans (13) congratulates center DeMarcus Cousins (15) for dunking the ball during the first quarter against the San Antonio Spurs at Sleep Train Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-US PRESSWIRE

Oh. That. Boogie. The Arrested Development of DeMarcus Cousins continues as Cousins has been suspended for two games by the NBA for confronting San Antonio announcer Sean Elliott in an hostile manner. Sacramento coach Keith Smart talks about the conversation he had with Cousins about the incident:

"“Any little mark is gonna knock you all the way back down again,” he said, remembering their conversation. “So you’ve got to stay one step ahead and be perfect, with everything that goes on. You’ve got to be a man now and accept what’s happening. And then we’ve got to move on. But understand that everything you do until you are this person that we believe you can become, you have to do things perfect, because when you make mistakes they affect not just you but it affects our entire team. “So let’s put this behind you, we’ve got the right people in place now to get you through all these things and we’re looking forward to the polished person to eventually come out.”"

Just going to point out again that John Calipari kept Boogie under control for his time in Kentucky.