Kentucky Wildcats Basketball: Top Players at Each Position in the John Calipari Era
Dec 11, 2015; San Antonio, TX, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Julius Randle (30) shoots over San Antonio Spurs forward LaMarcus Aldridge (12) at AT&T Center. San Antonio won 109-87. Mandatory Credit: Erich Schlegel-USA TODAY Sports
#2 Julius Randle
Coming in at number two is a similar type of player. Left handed, can dunk on you on the offensive side and get you ten rebounds on the defensive glass. What gave this player the edge was how much he meant to his teams success. Julius Randle meant everything to the 2013-2014 Cats, but it looked as if he was not always a lock for Calipari.
Going into the end of the recruiting period, the Kentucky Wildcats had already signed an enormous class and it did not look like there was enough room. Also, there were many bickering around Texas that Randle and the Harrison twins did not get along. Luckily, those were false reports and Julius joined the twins for an exciting ride.
Randle brought to the Wildcats a toughness that you do not usually see from an 18 year old. He fought through double teams on nearly every possession to score 15 points per game. On the glass he averaged 10.4 rebounds per game leading him to combine for a double double per game.
The stats were impressive, but the regular season was not what Calipari or Randle were expecting. Heading into the NCAA Tournament, the Wildcats were an 8 seed and supposed to lose to Wichita State in the second round. Behind some great shots by Aaron Harrison they ended up making a championship run.
However with out a key offensive rebound from Julius and the kick out to Aaron for a corner three against rival Louisville, the Cinderella run would have been cut short.
Rebounds like that, and the effort that Julius gave every night made him a fan favorite. That big smile he always had did not hurt his cause with the fan base either. He has a great career ahead of him and should be able to return from this injury and have an exciting year.
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