Kentucky the next basketball mountain Georgia transfer Sahvir Wheeler intends to climb

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Sahvir Wheeler, whose transfer from Georgia to Kentucky was announced Monday, was a fifth-grader when he met his future high school coach.

That coach, Ron Crandall, has not forgotten the first impression Wheeler made.

“He’s just this little dude,” Crandall said this week. But Wheeler, whose height Georgia listed as 5-foot-10, had big ambitions.

“I’m going to the NBA and I’m going to be a general manager of an NBA team,” Crandall recalled Wheeler telling him.

Crandall’s initial reaction? “That’s really cool, Sahvir, I’m thinking to myself,” he said. “But have you looked in a mirror recently?”

Wheeler’s combination of speed, savvy, single-minded ambition and what Crandall called “unbelievable killer instinct” eventually made the Houston Christian High School coach a believer.

“I thought, I wouldn’t put it past this kid,” Crandall said of his later reassessment. “He’s going to make it happen.”

Wheeler averaged a team-high 34.7 minutes per game for Georgia last season. So, a desire for more playing time did not drive the decision to transfer. Crandall put the move to Kentucky in the context of an unquenchable desire some people have to achieve.

“They climb this mountain, they’re ready to climb another mountain,” Crandall said.

Wheeler said just that in explaining his decision Monday in a UK news release.

“I chose the University of Kentucky because it gives me the best opportunity to make a run at a national championship and pursue my dreams of playing in the NBA,” Wheeler said. “I can’t wait to get to Lexington and get to work.”

Wheeler’s sophomore season of 2020-21 for Georgia saw him named Second Team All-Southeastern Conference. His average of 7.4 assists led the SEC and ranked fifth among Division I players. The closest another league player came to Wheeler’s average was Vanderbilt’s Scotty Pippen Jr., at 4.9.

“Sahvir is the kind of player that dictates the pace of the game, who gets easy baskets for himself and his teammates, and who can be disruptive defensively,” UK head coach John Calipari said in the release. “He is what you look for in a point guard in that he puts his teammates in positions to score, yet he can score the ball in bunches when he needs to. ... I am excited for him to be a part of this program and my guess is our players will be, too.”

And Wheeler — whose assist average was the best by an SEC player since Mississippi State’s Chuck Evans’ 8.1 apg in 1992-93 — did not get maximum help from his teammates. Georgia ranked 10th among SEC schools in three-point shooting accuracy (or three spots worse than Kentucky’s much-lamented shooting from beyond the arc).

Wheeler contributed to the misfires, making only 26.2 percent of his three-point shots (34 of 130) in two seasons for Georgia.

Becoming a better shooter is the next metaphorical mountain Wheeler intends to climb. “He’s in my gym right now,” Crandall said. “He was in my gym last night. He’s getting in all those threes before he gets in some of his skill work.”

Wheeler’s goal is to make 36 percent of his three-point shots next season, Crandall said.

Wheeler’s seven double-doubles in points and assists last season equaled the most by an SEC player in the 2000s. Another supposedly under-sized player, Tyler Ulis of Kentucky, had seven in 2015-16.

Against LSU on Feb. 23, Wheeler posted the only triple-double in Georgia’s 116 basketball seasons. His 14 points, 11 rebounds and 13 assists made him the shortest SEC player to ever post a triple-double.

When asked to describe Wheeler’s style of play, Crandall said, “If you ask him, he’s going to call himself a dynamic playmaker. He’s not going to say he’s a point guard. He’s not going to say he’s a playmaker. He’s going to be a dynamic playmaker.”

It might have sounded paradoxical, but Crandall saluted Wheeler’s ability to dutifully execute a called play while also having the courage to audible on the fly.

“He’s the captain on the court,” the high school coach said. “He’s an extension of the coach. He’s going to sometimes look off Coach Cal and go, ‘No, Coach, we’re not running that. We’re running this.’ And Cal’s going to have to go, ‘OK, run that. I’m fine with that.’

“That’s just the way Sahvir is.”

Calipari’s willingness to let players play was a factor in Wheeler choosing Kentucky over Kansas, LSU and Oklahoma State as a transfer destination, Crandall said.

“He’s, like, really faster with the ball in his hands, if that’s possible. . . . (Calipari) wants to play fast, and that’s right in Sahvir’s wheelhouse.”

Earlier this spring, Wheeler entered his name in the 2021 NBA Draft.

“I’ve decided to declare for the NBA Draft because of the success I had individually this year,” he told ESPN on April 20. “I am hoping to get in front of NBA personnel so they find out more about me and what I could bring to an NBA franchise.”

Wheeler also announced that he would explore the transfer option.

“I entered the transfer portal at the same time to evaluate all my options as I try to determine my path of realizing my dreams of winning at the highest level and playing in the NBA,” he said.

Wheeler becomes the fourth transfer to join the Kentucky team. He followed shooting guards Kellan Grady (Davidson) and CJ Fredrick (Iowa), plus forward Oscar Tshiebwe (West Virginia).

“The one piece lacking is a point guard,” the website Bustingbrackets.com posted last week. “The Wildcats have been linked to both Wheeler and five-star guard TyTy Washington, and it seems almost evident at this point they will get at least one, if not both.”

Washington committed to Kentucky last week.

“We already know that Wheeler can play in the SEC, and just how good he can be at times,” the website posted. “If the Wildcats can add Wheeler as their starting point guard, could they return to the top of the SEC next season?”

Washington and Wheeler both arrive at Kentucky with histories playing point guard. Is there room enough for both?

After making his announcement Monday on Jeff Goodman’s “The Field of 68” podcast, Wheeler cited numerous examples of Calipari starting backcourts with multiple playmakers.

“Coach Cal has always been straight up with me about who he’s recruiting and how I would fit,” Wheeler said. “Ultimately, he wants to get back to winning. Winning is a big thing for me as well.”

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