Harrison Barnes cuts list, UK a casualty

I have always thought that Harrison Barnes was a longshot for UK to land, even with John Calipari at the helm. Today’s news bumps UK’s chances to land the consensus top 2 player in the class of 2010.

Barnes has cut his list to 6 and excluded Kentucky. He will now choose from Kansas, Duke, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Kansas and Iowa State.

I’m sure Calipari had a pretty firm grasp on his weak standing with Barnes, so he won’t miss a beat. UK needs to secure at least one quality wing in this class, and with Barnes out of the picture, my top two choices (and I believe they are Cal’s as well) are Doron Lamb and Jelan Kendrick. I think he would love to nab both.

Also, Sunday brought some good news for a former Kentucky player whom we all know well, even though we never got to see him play a game. In an unprecendented development, the NCAA has made a second consecutive logical, fair decision (Elliot Willams receiving his waiver at Memphis being the first) and allowed Matt Pilgrim to forgo the year that transfers are usually required to sit out and play for Travis Ford at Oklahoma State immediately. This is great news for Pilgrim who now will be able to play out the remaining two years of his eligibility. Also, at long last we will be able to see Pilgrim play major conference college basketball.