Kentucky Fetish? WHAT Kentucky Fetish?

[Michael Gooen <callmebogie@yahoo.com>]

Although I certainly won't defend a lot of the personnel moves Pitino
as made since coming aboard, I have to question the accusation some
have made that Pitino has a "Kentucky fetish".  Where's the evidence? 
He inherited Walker.  He signed one former Kentucky recruit (Mills) who
predated (some might say engendered) his tenure as coach there, then
traded him for a package that included another Kentucky player
(McCarty).  He drafted Mercer.

That's it.  A net of 3 guys, 2 of whom can hardly be classified as
mistakes motivated by misguided "school spirit".  And the jury's still
out on McCarty (even though this year Walter's looked like one of those
old electric football men that just buzzes around the field of play).  

Contrary to what idiots like Peter Vecsey have been printing ever since
Pitino arrived in Boston, Pitino has not traded half the team to get
Jamal Mashburn.  He has not picked up Tony Delk, Jeff Sheppard, Mark
Pope or Jared Prickett.  He did not draft Nazr Mohammed, even when he
presumably could've made the same deal Philly did to get him from Utah.
 So where's the fetish?

I'm beginning to wonder whether these Wayne Turner rumors are simply
another Pitino smokescreen.  Perhaps he does have an interest in a
player coming out this year, but maybe it's somebody else -- perhaps
Ricky Moore?  There's no way to tell with this guy until it happens.  

I am willing to give Pitino another season -- full training camp with
the core players working together -- to right the ship (and by that I
mean make the playoffs).  Let's hope the core players feel the same
way.

Michael Gooen

P.S.  Rodney Rogers played at Wake Forest -- not even an SEC school.  I
don't get the apparent fascination either.  I see neither seasoned
veteran leadership nor upside -- just a tweener forward who's played
his way out of the Clippers' starting lineup.  But I don't judge Pitino
on personnel moves until he actually makes them.  Otherwise, I would've
been screaming for his head for trading Billups, Mercer, Pierce and
either Eric Williams or Antoine for Pippen and Longley.
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