Five things we could learn about the Kentucky basketball team this week in the Bahamas

This week will offer a once-in-four-years opportunity for John Calipari to get a jump-start on the Kentucky basketball season, a chance to see his players go up against outside competition, an occasion to try some things he might not otherwise be able to attempt.

It’ll also give those who are ever-curious about all things UK basketball an opportunity to get a sneak peek at the next group of Wildcats.

Kentucky will play four exhibition games over five days in the Bahamas starting Wednesday night, taking advantage of an NCAA rule that allows programs to embark on an international preseason trip once every four years. All four games will be on the SEC Network.

The first time Calipari did this, his team built a 38-0 record before ending its season in the Final Four. The last time the Cats went on the trip, they were an overtime loss away from yet another Final Four appearance.

Calipari has talked at length about how this trip serves as a great bonding experience for his players. It also gives Kentucky’s coaches a series of low-risk opportunities to try different lineups, tinker with new approaches, and simply get a gauge for their players’ progress at this relatively early point in the preseason.

Obviously, it’s still August, so there won’t be a ton of relevant information gleaned from these exhibitions. That said, here are five questions about the 2022-23 Kentucky basketball season that could have some answers by the Bahamas finale Sunday afternoon.

How will Wheeler and Wallace co-exist?

Calipari should know exactly what he’s going to get at the “5” spot, with reigning national player of the year Oscar Tshiebwe back for another season. It’s surely a relief to have that position settled, especially with someone as reliable and talented as Tshiebwe.

What about the point guard spot?

Sahvir Wheeler returns for his second year as a Kentucky Wildcat after leading the Southeastern Conference in assists per game the past two seasons — first at Georgia, and then as a transfer at UK. For the most part, Wheeler was an engine that helped drive the Cats last season, keeping the offense moving and pestering ball-handlers on the other end of the court. He played well against the two teams that ultimately competed for the national title — Kansas and North Carolina — scoring 26 points against UNC, dishing out eight assists in each game and committing just five total turnovers across 66 minutes.

There were also mishaps and moments of frustration, however, especially in late-game situations. The most notable example was the shocking loss to Saint Peter’s to end the season, a game that was marred for Wheeler by turnovers, missed free throws and ill-advised decisions in the final minutes.

He starts this season with the keys to the offense once again, but the arrival of projected NBA lottery pick Cason Wallace certainly makes things interesting. The McDonald’s All-American from Texas was viewed by some analysts as the best floor leader in high school basketball last season, and the 6-foot-4 combo guard certainly looks and plays more like the prototypical Calipari point guard than the 5-9 Wheeler.

Wallace can play off the ball, too, but he excels with it in his hands, often willing his team to buckets and victories. So, what will the Kentucky coach do with this pair? Wallace and Wheeler both spoke to the Herald-Leader a few days before leaving for the Bahamas, and both sounded excited about the opportunity to play alongside each other against outside competition for the first time.

How Calipari decides to deploy this duo over the course of the season will likely go a long way in dictating this team’s overall success. We’ll get a first look at his plans this week.

What will CJ Fredrick look like?

CJ Fredrick — a Cincinnati native but former Kentucky high school basketball standout at Covington Catholic — generated plenty of fanfare when he decided to transfer from Iowa to UK last year. Sure, Kentucky fans always love it when a local kid ends up playing for the Cats. But the bigger reason for the excitement around Fredrick’s arrival was for what he can do on the court. The guy can flat out shoot the basketball.

Fredrick sat out his first year at Iowa as a redshirt and then immediately emerged as a key player, starting all 52 games he played over two seasons despite a series of nagging injuries. In that time, he made 83 of 178 three-point attempts. That’s a 46.6 percent clip. In the history of UK basketball, only two players — Doron Lamb and Cameron Mills — have hit at a higher rate.

Of course, Kentucky fans didn’t get to see Fredrick on the court last season. He was sidelined for his entire first year in Lexington due to a devastating hamstring injury.

Now, the 6-3 guard is back on the practice floor and eagerly awaiting his Wildcats debut.

Kentucky’s coaches are trying to temper expectations. UK assistant Orlando Antigua said recently that Fredrick is still “in the process of working his way back to being up to full capacity.”

But fans should finally get a good look at him this week. His importance to this 2022-23 team cannot be overstated.

Fredrick is billed by his coaches as an all-around player — not just a shooter — but it’s clear that he has an ability to score from outside that few can match. And that could be the biggest question mark for these Cats going into the season.

Antonio Reeves, who transferred to UK from Illinois State, was a 39-percent shooter last season, but he made just 66 of 213 three-point attempts (30.9 percent) in his first two years as a college player. Sahvir Wheeler has never shot better than 32.0 percent from deep in three seasons of college. Cason Wallace projects as a capable outside threat, but until it’s proven at the college level, it can’t be counted upon. Ditto for fellow McDonald’s All-American recruit Chris Livingston.

Simply put, Fredrick is, by far, this team’s greatest three-point threat. And the Cats are going to need him. Kellan Grady had that role on last season’s team, making 88 threes, double the number of the next-best Wildcat. Yet, he had to play injured down the stretch. Grady was 6-for-29 from deep over his last seven games and 1-for-7 in the loss to Saint Peter’s, and the Cats just didn’t look the same as he struggled.

A healthy Fredrick in March will be a major key to the Cats playing in April.

Can Jacob Toppin put it together?

There are a few intriguing players on this Kentucky team, guys that seem to be right on the cusp of taking that next step in development that vaults them into a much larger role.

There’s arguably no Wildcat more interesting than Jacob Toppin, who possesses incredible athleticism and has, in spurts, shown enviable skill — a combination that could make him a superstar if he can tap into it consistently.

Toppin was the top forward off the bench for Kentucky last season and someone Calipari often relied on defensively. His offensive game left a little something to be desired, except for the times it didn’t. And those times offered up some where-did-this-guy-come-from moments.

The buzz around the Craft Center this summer — for whatever that annual buzz is worth — is that Toppin has been consistently showing a new side of his game.

Consider this, from Oscar Tshiebwe:

“He is, right now, like our best player. He’s unstoppable this year. Nobody can stop him.”

That’s national player of the year Oscar Tshiebwe. Calling someone else the best player on his own team. That’s quite something.

Last week, UK held an open practice at Rupp Arena for Eastern Kentucky flood relief efforts. There wasn’t a whole lot to learn from a basketball perspective, but those flashes from Toppin were certainly there. On one play, he took a little stepback, fadeaway jumper from the baseline over Tshiebwe — nothing but net. It’s a shot that cannot be defended, and Toppin pulled it off with ease. A few moments later, he streaked down the court in transition and threw down a blink-and-you-missed-it windmill dunk. His outside shot is better. His passing is better. His defense continues to improve. His focus and intensity are there on both ends. He’s playing more physically. His rebounding technique is different. This is all coming from his coaches and teammates, mind you, not optimistic boasting from the player himself.

Toppin’s older brother, Obi, was a late-bloomer, too. He was 22 years old by the time he was named the national player of the year at Dayton. That’s the same age Jacob turned in May.

What’s new with Daimion Collins?

Another one of those highly intriguing long-term prospects, Daimion Collins came to Lexington as a McDonald’s All-American last year and played just 7.5 minutes per game, scoring more than two points just twice after New Year’s Day.

And it shouldn’t have been much of a surprise to anyone who was paying attention. It was known when Collins signed with Kentucky the previous November that he was still very much a project. He terrorized high school opponents in rural east Texas, but he was painfully thin to body up with college big men and still developing from a skills perspective.

Calipari didn’t bring the 6-9 forward aboard to be an instant-impact, one-and-done recruit. He brought Collins to Lexington for what appeared to be possible in the longer term.

Keion Brooks said it best last fall: “He does a lot of stuff that normal people just can’t do.”

There weren’t many in-game examples of it last season. One exception was Collins’ performance against Alabama — 10 points in nine minutes — that featured a series of lob plays the Crimson Tide had no way to combat.

That game showcased Collins’ freakish athleticism, and then he was basically back on the bench, not ready from a basketball standpoint to compete in the season’s stretch run.

While not hyping him up as 30-minute-a-night guy, UK’s coaches have talked about a changed player coming into this season. He’s gained more confidence in his time in college, and that should allow him to be more comfortable on the court. His bread and butter for the time being will be utilizing that athleticism to clean up around the rim and clean the glass defensively, but there’s also been talk this summer of dribble pull-ups, three-point shooting, and other moves that take a little more skill to execute.

Oscar Tshiebwe does a lot of things well, but playing above the rim isn’t really his game. Collins could add a different element to this frontcourt, and this week should be telling in how far he’s really progressed since the end of last season.

How does Chris Livingston fit in?

There were times out on the recruiting trail over the past couple of years when Chris Livingston looked like he might just be the No. 1 overall prospect in the 2022 class.

And then there were times when he basically disappeared.

He’s often been an enigma of a player. One minute, dominating. The next, unfocused and unengaged. When he plays hard, there’s no one on the court who plays harder. But that effort hasn’t always been there.

At Kentucky, he’ll need to bring it on a consistent basis. Or he might slide down the bench, especially if guys like Jacob Toppin and Daimion Collins continue to develop.

Projecting Livingston’s role is an interesting endeavor. With three seasoned college guards and one projected lottery pick in the backcourt, UK could employ a three-guard lineup at times. Toppin can play the “3” and the “4”, and Collins will get some run. Oscar Tshiebwe should play around 30 minutes at the “5” spot, and Lance Ware will also have a frontcourt role.

Where it leaves the powerful, athletic and versatile Livingston — a 6-6 wing who plays bigger than that — remains to be seen. He has shown an ability to play on the perimeter with his ball-handling, shooting and passing abilities. Some analysts who have followed his game think that — at the college level, at least — small-ball “4” might be his best fit, due to his physical approach, readiness to bang in the paint with bigger players, and skill level for the position.

Calipari got to see him plenty on the recruiting trail — he was on UK’s radar early in the 2022 cycle — and he’s now had Livingston in Lexington for several weeks to get an even closer look at his game. If the UK coach, known for his motivational skills with young players, can get the most out of Livingston, it shouldn’t surprise anyone if he’s a lottery pick after this season.

How and where Calipari sees him fitting into his versatile lineup will be something to watch.

Bahamas schedule

Wednesday: Kentucky vs. Dominican Republic National Select Team, 7 p.m. (SEC)

Thursday: Kentucky vs. Tec de Monterrey, 7 p.m. (SEC)

Saturday: Kentucky vs. Carleton University, 6 p.m. (SEC)

Sunday: Kentucky vs. Bahamas National Team, noon (SEC)

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