There’s just something special about the new guys putting in work together as Kentucky Wildcats for the very first time. With so many different backgrounds and previous stops, ranging from young to old, stars to role pieces, everyone gets their shot to prove themselves in the rotation starting now with summer workouts officially underway.
It started with conditioning this past week, followed by the good stuff beginning on Monday with actual practice. Between the two, however, we got the program’s annual combine day, the Wildcats gathering for baseline testing before the summer takes off and they spend the next eight weeks getting pushed to their (legal) limits of eight total hours per week, four being on-court skill instruction.
Combine day included sprints and agility drills with vertical leaps — the whole nine yards outside of using an actual basketball.
UK shared photos from that event on Friday with the Cats showing off all of the smiles and good vibes at the Joe Craft Center:
Immediate takeaways: Justin McBride’s energy is infectious, Milan Momcilovic belongs in Kentucky gear and Braydon Hawthorne is a physical freak.
Oh, and Franck Kepnang is going to be the team dad.
Fast forward to Sunday, and we’ve now got the video footage to match the photos. That includes our first look at Alex Wilkins as a Wildcat, Hawthorne’s ridiculous length, Ousmane N’Diaye getting up and down the floor, more Momcilovic and a whole heck of a lot of excitement in that gym.
It’s just 45 seconds, but you won’t find a better appetizer for practice this week and preparation for the season.
Take a look:
Again, all of this without a single ball bouncing. Just wait until we see the first Momcilovic three, Malachi Moreno alley-oop finish and the one-two punch of Zoom Diallo and Wilkins in the backcourt.
Monday is the big day, folks. Everybody lock in and enjoy the ride.