Antonio Reeves’ return is welcome news for John Calipari and Kentucky basketball

Random notes:

▪ Antonio Reeves’ return to UK is a huge boost for John Calipari. It not only gives the Cats an experienced player, but a shooter. Yes, Reeves was 1-for-15 from the floor in Kentucky’s second-round NCAA Tournament loss to Kansas State, but the Illinois native is better than that.

▪ When watching the NBA Draft on Thursday, remember that Nikola Jokic, the best basketball player in the world, was not drafted until the second round of the 2014 draft when the Denver Nuggets chose him with the 41st overall selection.

▪ By the way, after Denver defeated Miami 4-1 to win the NBA title, Jokic couldn’t wait to get back to his native Serbia to watch his standardbreds race.

▪ My guess: Cason Wallace will fall just outside the lottery. Chris Livingston will be chosen in the second round. Oscar Tshiebwe will not.

▪ When asked last week about John Calipari’s desire for a new basketball practice facility, UK AD Mitch Barnhart reiterated that the athletic department and university have planned and ongoing projects that need to be completed first.

▪ The Cincinnati Reds carried a 10-game win streak into Wednesday afternoon’s game against the Rockies. One reason: John Calipari relative TJ Friedl. The 27-year-old outfielder was hitting .322 after going 4-for-5 in the Reds’ 8-6 win over Colorado on Tuesday night. Friedl hit just .240 in 72 games with Cincinnati last season.

▪ After Tuesday night’s games, the Reds were 39-35. The Mets were 34-39. According to spotrac, the Reds’ total payroll is $91 million. The Mets’ total payroll is $344 million.

▪ It was a sad way for Hall of Fame coach Bob Huggins’ career to end last weekend. The West Virginia basketball coach was charged with DUI in Pittsburgh on Friday. His blood alcohol level was allegedly 0.21 when he was found blocking traffic with a shredded tire on his vehicle. He’s fortunate someone didn’t get hurt.

▪ The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission announced Tuesday that it will probably hold a special meeting in early July to review and approve regulations for legalized sports betting. That would allow the commission to begin the sports betting license application process.

The hope is that sports betting in Kentucky will launch in time for the start of the NFL season on Sept. 7.

▪ Eastern Kentucky football has scheduled its Fan Day for August 26. There will be an open scrimmage at 7 p.m. at CG Bank Field at Roy Kidd Stadium.

▪ Happy trails to 56-year-old Hall of Fame jockey Edgar Prado, who announced his retirement this week. Prado’s mounts won over $272 million during his long career. He won the 2006 Kentucky Derby aboard Barbaro and spoiled Smarty Jones’ Triple Crown in 2004 when Birdstone won the Belmont Stakes.

▪ Kentucky Derby runner-up Two Phil’s is the favorite in Saturday’s Ohio Derby at Thistledown. It will be his first race since May 6 when the Larry Rivelli-trained colt finished second to Mage at Churchill Downs.

▪ Remember former Kentucky wide receiver Josh Ali? After going undrafted in 2020, he’s with the Atlanta Falcons where he’s formed a connection with quarterback Desmond Ridder, the Louisville native and former University of Cincinnati star.

“Any of those times that you have guys that you’re together through a long period of time, whether it’s rookie year (or) scout team, you start to build a relationship and connection with those guys,” Ridder told Sports Illustrated. “I would definitely say me and Josh have a connection. It started early on with him playing at Kentucky, being from Big Blue Nation, and me giving him crap about all that, but he’s a great player for us.”

▪ Kudos to the Lufkin Daily News in Lufkin, Texas, for its headline on a story about an assistant Stephen F. Austin bowling coach being fired for having an affair with a student-athlete. The assistant’s wife is the head coach of the school’s national championship bowling team.

The headline: “Spare relationship causes awkward split.”

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