Calipari’s biggest challenge this year was bringing in his ‘blue ribbon’ kids and not upsetting the apple cart of the talent that was already in town.  After all Memphians are very proud of the great high school players and programs they have here and a large number of them had become the ipso facto ‘Memphis Mafia’ that represent this program.  And they are not exactly chopped liver!   The Tigers will be led this season by two superb returning players both of whom were from Memphis (well one if officially from West Memphis Arkansas but you get the gist).  Junior shooting guard Larry Finch and sophomore post player Keith Lee are the mainstays that helped put this team on the map.  Calipari will keep them in place for two reasons.  He wants some continuity from the past but most importantly he knew these two could flat play the game.  Both are extremely talented players but more so are great teammates and exceptional leaders.  Finch, 6’2 185,  has unlimited range and is not afraid to fire from anywhere.  He knows what his role is on this team and truly understands the game of basketball.  Not the most gifted athlete, Finch makes up for his lack of athleticism with intelligence and desire.  He has become an institution on the campus and the fans love him.  He is not afraid to take a clutch shot and usually makes them.  In the modern game where the three is the thing Finch has become a vital part of the Tigers offense.  He is the best long range shooter on the roster and the one thing Calipari will not dare attempt to replace is his ability to make threes.  His teammates look up to him which is something considering most of them are more athletic than he is.  The next dunk Finch throws down will be his first but he does not wander into the key too often.  Calipari has to have an upperclassmen to lean on and to become his on court leader when he took over this program.  He knew he would bring in talent but you have to have a leader on and off the court and Finch is that.  And then some.  Lee is the prototypical power forward though he did get more than a little time at center.  He has the great post-up game and can rebound with anybody.  He does not run well but doesn’t need to as he is the low post option for the Tigers.  Lee will block a shot, hit a turnaround or slam one over the defense but never looks like he gets excited.  At 6’10 215 he is the star of the team but you would never know it the way he handles himself.  He led the Tigers in both scoring and rebounding in his first year and may be the most unassuming superstar in the country.  Of course on a team with this kind of overall talent and showmanship a guy that comes to work and does his job EVERY night will get lost in the shuffle sad as it is.    As a local kid who made good (He led his high school team to two state titles in West Memphis before choosing to stay at home) the fans really love him.  The Tigers may have had some better talent coming down the pike that Calipari has brought in to get this program to the next level but the anchors of this team are Finch and Lee.

At the other three positions is where there are some issues and the new coach will open up the competition to the Old school carryovers and the fresh faced kids he has brought in.  Who do you think is going to win that one?  Calipari does have the luxury of some solid returnees but nowhere near the athletes he is bringing in.  Calipari will start the season with Junior Alvin Wright and Sophomore Andre Turner battling for the starting point guard spot.  These are two very solid players who have different skills that complement each other.  Turner is a true distributor who harasses other teams with his superior quickness.  He can really get to the hoop.  Wright is a good defensive player as well and can also get the ball to his teammates. Both are good leaders who are the waterbug type philosophy as they are under six feet tall.  Neither should get too comfortable in the starting lineup as Cal has brought in not one but two potential superstars who both play point. And these cats go 6’4 and 6’7 respectively which will give the new coach plenty of options on the perimeter.   With Phenom Penny Hardaway coming in for his freshman year and wanting to play that positon, Calipari felt obligated to let him play when he became eligible five games in.  Hardaway is a special talent who can play any of the three back court position at a very high level.  Hardaway is a good point guard and with his size was a matchup headache for other teams.  The Tigers, however, were better suited with Hardaway rotating around to the other positons.  The season turned around when Calipari put Hardaway on the bench as a super sub playing three different positons and turned the keys over to the next coming.  Enter Derrick Rose.  If you think Penny is special Rose could be the best point guard to come down the pike since Magic.  Rose is a tremendous athlete who finishes like Jordan and has the quickest move to the hoop of anyone not named Isiaih.  He can also distribute but his biggest asset is being the best player on the court at all times.  Now if he can just stay on the court.  He missed way too many games with injuries and he missed a few more with some eligibility issues that nobody seems to want to discuss in Memphis. The Tiger faithful sometime question him as it seems like they have sold their soul for this kid but he is the real deal as he showed in the great run down the stretch.  Rose is the biggest thing to hit Memphis since the King died and like E he is one sensational performer when he is on his chosen stage.  Rose is another level athletically and basketball wise and if he can stay healthy (and stay at Memphis with the pros calling) this team will be hard to beat next year.   

Calipari could rotate in any number of players at the other two positions as well.  Foremost of these was at the center position.  Sure, he has Lee to fall back on but he wants to play him at the four as much as possible.   Senior big man Forrest Arnold will almost assuredly be jettisoned early on as the 6’4 former scoring leader here is just not big enough for C-USA..  This will not be easy as Memphians love Arnold’s work ethic but he is nowhere near the talent Calipari has brought in.  He has much to fall back on though as Arnold wants to be a preacher and basketball is much more a hobby then a way of life for this soft-spoken Man of God.  Another senior big man has seen the writing on the wall and will supposedly be coaching this year for Calipari, helping with the transition, while maintaining a roster spot.  Big Wayne Yates is 6’8 235 from North Little Rock and can bang down low but barely played last year after transferring from New Mexico State and understands better players are coming down the pike.  This is a great idea that Cal and Yates as the senior to be wants to be a college coach someday and Calipari is as good of a mentor as there is in the game today and Yates most definitely can show the new kids some tricks inside the key.  One holdover who is every bit as good as the big men Calipari brought to Memphis is Sophomore William Bedford. Bedford, another Memphis product, gives Calipari a burgeoning force in the middle.  A gifted shot blocker, Bedford is a true seven footer who eats up space and is solid on both ends.  The one thing he is not is consistent.  Bedford had some huge games against good competition but also disappeared at times but then again he was a true freshman.  If he plays like he is capable at all times the Tigers will be tough to beat.  Juniors Ronnie Robinson, John Gunn and James Bradley give Calipari some great options if Bedford does not progress.  Robinson is solid but at 6’8 200 is a little svelte for big time basketball.  Robinson is consistent though and can score and board inside.  Gunn, on the other hand, goes 6’9 220 and has incredible upside. Gunn led his Memphis High School team to dominance (over Robinson by the way) going undefeated with Wright and Bradley on the same team.  This kid is tough as nails (ask ORU about that) but like Bedford needs to become more consistent and really needs more minutes and to stay healthy (he missed some games due to a weird virus the doctors have not been able to get a handle on. Bradley is nowhere near as physical as Gunn but he can play.  He is more of a clone of Robinson physically at 6’8 202 but likes to play out on the open court more.  He has a game more suited for the three spot which is open for competition with most of the guys coming back being much smaller.  

Speaking of these smaller wings (do not talk about small wings in Memphis man) seniors Win Wilfong is the incumbent.  Wilfong became the most popular guy in Memphis since well August 16th 1977 after a terrific first year.  He transferred from the hated other Tigers down the road in the Ozarks (Mizzou) and was a god send.  Wilfong is a complete player who is good on both ends of the court and was magnificent last year under Coach Bartow who loves his fire.  He is only 6’2, however, and entering this new conference will be quite the challenge as he will be trying to hang with the likes of Mark Aguirre.  This does not bode well and as good as he is he seems like the logical guy Cal will try to replace with one of his blue chippers in his first year in Memphis.  Senior Bob Neumann has a much better chance of sticking as he goes 6’5 and can flat shoot.  This Cincinnati Kid (he played against the Big O in some pickup games) is the older brother of Ole Miss phenom Johnny and taught him how to get his shot off consistently against more athletic wings.  Still, that lack of athleticism might cost him with the kids Cal has coming in.  Combo guard seniors George Kirk (Star Trek reference) and Mike Butler have been productive for the Tigers but will be pushed hard to keep their gigs though Butler can light it up.  Fellow senior Hunter Beckman is also on the roster but this 6’5 kid is a long shot to even make the team as he is nowhere near athletic enough to play wing in CUSA.  Bradley and another junior, James Douglas, who can score as well but is more of a slasher, are also in the mix.  Fellow junior Billy ‘the Kid’ Cook is a 6’5 stud who played really well last year.  He is good on both ends and can set it up or shoot it.  Sophomores Vincent Askew and the best names in sports, Baskerville Holmes, will also challenge after terrific years on the JV playing next to each other.  Both are 6’6 and terrific athletes but might get caught in the wash. 

The Memphis Tigers are an enigma this season.  Loaded with talent, the Tigers kind of walked (get it walking in Memphis?)  through the year in the Metro and did not even get an invite to the Big Dance.  That precipitated a coaching change and brash John Calipari is coming down from New England to liven things up on the river.  The thing that this great young coach has shown though contrary to popular belief is that what is he does is not just all about recruiting five star athletes.  He is a terrific coach as well who lets his players play and will do the same here.  Is that going to finally get the Tigers on the national map in college basketball?  Well, being in this big new conference (as well as new arena) won’t hurt and the attention is coming.  Can they hang with the elites?  I would not bet against Calipari as he turned U Mass into a contender almost immediately.  Of course he had some kid named Erving up there but apparently he has a couple of point guards coming in that are that level of talent.  That I got to see!