Get used to the John Wall hype, because here it comes

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November 17, 2009

Monday night’s Kentucky-Miami (Ohio) game could have been a disaster.
Here were the ultra-talented, ultra-hyped Wildcats not only in a close
game but losing, losing, down by five in the second half to a
supposedly cakey RedHawks team. When you let teams like Miami hang
around, bad things happen. They did: The RedHawks hit a three with five
seconds left to the tie the game at 70, and it appeared that Kentucky
would have at least another five minutes of too-close basketball with a
vastly inferior opponent.

Then, John Wall happened.

Wall took the inbounds pass –
Kentucky coach John Calipari didn’t call a timeout — and sprinted down
the court. Miami didn’t have time to rush an extra defender Wall’s way,
and he had a pretty good look at a step-back jump shot from the wing.
He made it. Now, after 19 points and five assists and a spectacular game-winner, the legend of John Wall begins.

The hype for Wall’s entree into college basketball was already
off the charts, but a shot like this cements it. A Kentucky loss would
have meant the Wildcats weren’t ready, that they haven’t congealed,
that talent doesn’t always trump solidity and experience. It would have
meant a calmer, more somber UK fan base. Instead, Kentucky’s win is an
early season coronation for Wall and Eric Bledsoe and Demarcus Cousins,
Calipari’s freshmen phenoms. The John Wall hype is bad enough already,
but it’s about to get worse. Not that there’s anything wrong with
that. Hype is fun when it’s deserved.

In the meantime, Kentucky has its fair share of problems to
address. Transition defense was really ugly. Miami was able to handle
the dribble-drive at times. Wall’s primary contributions came from the
free-throw line and not within the flow of the game. And so on.

Wall’s story begins one way; Kentucky’s begins another. Calipari
has plenty to fix. In the meantime, he can rely on John Wall. Like a
last-second win over Miami, there are worse fates.

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