According to an ESPN.com report by Andy Katz, Jodie Meeks is still going to forgo his senior year in favor of entering the NBA Draft. Meeks had joined the early entrant list to the NBA Draft prior to the hiring of John Calipari as the Wildcats' head basketball coach. Once Calipari was brought on board, there was some thought amongst the general public Calipari's presence would somehow convince Meeks to change his decision, but that isn't the case. Meeks was arguably the best player in the SEC last season. The 6-foot-4 junior averaged 23.7 points per game, and put together a brilliant 54-point outburst against Tennessee mid-January, which was a school record. He shot brilliantly for the season, hitting 41 percent of his threes and 90 percent of his free throws.
Oddly enough, the loss of Meeks actually appears to alleviate the crowded UK roster a bit. After the number Calipari has done in recruiting since his arrival, the Wildcats are absolutely loaded for 2009-2010, especially in the backcourt. Incoming freshman point guards Eric Bledsoe and John Wall are incredibly touted. Talented JuCo transfer Darnell Dodson also joins Darius Miller and DeAndre Liggins, giving Calipari five bonafide guards to rotate as he sees fit.
While it would be nice for any team to have a talent like Meeks, the Wildcats seem as equipped as anyone in the country right now to deal with such a loss. In fact, losing power forward Patrick Patterson from the inside would have hurt much more, due to the way the team is currently constructed. Patterson had entered the draft, but has since changed his mind and decided to return to Lexington.
As things stand, Kentucky is easily a top 10 team for next season -- if not better -- and that's without last season's best player.
