[PaintsvilleTigerfan]

He may go pro but when next year's draft, it's gonna be hard too. They are reports out this morning that his dad is saying that Kyle is still a Wildcat and may return and redshirt

If he redshirted he could be awesome by the time he is a 5th year senior.

[1-3-1-press]

Josh Harrelson went?

Speaking of Harrelson, I seen where he got player of the week over in China. He had a game of something like 30 points and 23 rebounds.

[Spud6]

Wiltjer having second thoughts about leaving. Smart boy!

[cuppett777]

Wiltjer having second thoughts about leaving. Smart boy!

any links?

[RunItUpTheGut]

^
I hope not.

[Spud6]

any links?

I'll look, I saw it on twitter and it was from a legit source.

[cuppett777]

^
I hope not.

lol

[insideinfo]

I do not understand the bashing. I believe we have got spoiled thinking if Cal recruits them they must be lottery picks. He will be in the N B A lot longer than a lot of the players he has played with the last two years.

[RunItUpTheGut]

^
Were not spoiled. We just know a pansy when we see one.

[cuppett777]

Kyle Wiltjer departure not a done deal



When Kyle Wiltjer announced his plans to transfer, he -- actually, stop right there. The most notable thing about Wiltjer's 10-day-old summer transfer decision is that it wasn't actually a decision at all. Remarkably, when the rising junior forward wrote a letter to UK fans through Kentucky's athletics web site, he included plenty of qualifiers, and he made it clear that while he was exploring his options, he wasn't dead-set on leaving Kentucky.

This news was quickly followed by a blog post from his coach, John Calipari, that was at equal turns supportive and hopeful that Wiltjer would recommit himself to the Wildcats in the weeks to come. The only thing more unusual than the non-announcement open letter was how peaceful the whole thing seemed.

Despite all that, it still felt like Wiltjer's departure was a done deal. After all, other than heading off Internet rumor, why announce that you're considering transferring if there's even a small chance you might come back? Even the tone of Wiltjer's text felt less predicated on genuine uncertainty than a desire to hedge; the uses of "might" and "possibly" almost read like they were tacked on by a wary editor. (For what it's worth, my editor agreed. And he would know.)

When Wiltjer's list of potential destinations -- all but one of which, Texas, lies on the West Coast, much closer than Lexington, Ky. to Wiltjer's native Portland -- the whole foregone conclusion thing seemed official. After a campus visit, Gonzaga rumors abounded. The kid was transferring, right?

Well, maybe. But also maybe not.

That's what Wiltjer's father, Greg Wiltjer, told the Portland Tribune's Kerry Eggers this weekend, anyway, and while it isn't a departure in any meaningful way from where we were before, there is more detail on the thought process underpinning Wiltjer's desire to look around. Perhaps most surprising? Returning to Kentucky for one year remains a totally viable option, and might actually fall in line with what Greg is hoping his son will eventually chose to do:

"Kyle is midway through the college process," his father says. "The reason he chose Kentucky was a chance to win a national championship, play with the best players in the nation and be in position to have an opportunity to play beyond college. Now he's looking at what lies in front of him.

'Kyle has a great relationship with Calipari, but he's not a stereotypical Calipari player. If he were at Duke or some other place, they'd be running him off screens, but that's not the Kentucky system. And now he has all these thoroughbreds coming in. Kyle's biggest challenge is his body. He needs to get stronger and quicker, to get help with nutrition, strength and agility."

[...] "The biggest time in Kyle's career lies in the 14 to 16 months ahead," Greg says. "I'd 100 percent like him to devote the next year to working on his body, but it's his decision. He feels vested in Kentucky. It has been his life the last two years. And Kyle is a very competitive kid. He is always trying to prove people wrong."

In short: Wiltjer is understandably concerned about a lack of playing time at Kentucky in 2013-14, and he may not fit Calipari's system to a T. But he is also emotionally invested in Kentucky, and the possibility of redshirting at UK might provide the same benefit -- sitting out a season and getting shredded, essentially -- as a transfer move.

This isn't news in the strictest sense; Wiltjer still hasn't decided to do anything concrete. But it is worth noting the soft-pedaled nature of his announcement wasn't simply lip-service. From the outside, anyway, the UK forward genuinely does seem torn. And however idiosyncratic the announcement may have been, the really interesting part is what comes next.

(Oh, and just because I was curious: According to Synergy scouting data, in the last two seasons just 34 of Duke forward Ryan Kelly's 608 total possessions were initiated as the recipient of screen action. Coach K doesn't really run bigs off screens. I'm not sure how many coaches actually do.)

[Benefactor]

I wish him the best. Seems like a nice kid.

[RunItUpTheGut]

If he stays now hes just going to be a distraction.
He needs to leave.

[1-3-1-press]

Good news for the BBN if he comes back.

[vundy33]

If I thought we had much of a chance to get Dante Exum, I'd be hoping he left so that scholarship would be free, even though I like Wiltjer a lot. But, I don't think we could get Exum, so hopefully Kyle decides to stay.

[1-3-1-press]

UK has offered Exum and he plans on visiting Lexington. The way Coach Cal works that magic wand I wouldn't be surprise if UK landed Dante.

[GOREDDEVILS]

Kentucky transfer Kyle Wiltjer has decided to enroll at Gonzaga, his father confirmed to CBSSports.com on Friday.
Wiltjer, a 6-foot-10 forward, announced in late June that he was debating leaving the Wildcats, although he had second thoughts soon after his visit to Gonzaga. After going back and forth, it seems that he is officially a done deal to the Bulldogs.
The Oregon native averaged 10.2 points last season.

[GOREDDEVILS]

I read on Kentucky sports radio Kyle moved out of wildcat coal lodge last night.

[ballcrazy]

Gone he just said he will be a Bulldog,Zaga

[LeeCoUKFan]

Report: Wiltjer to transfer to Gonzaga

Brett Dawson
CatsIllustrated.com Publisher

Kyle Wiltjer, who announced last month he was considering a transfer from Kentucky, is headed to Gonzaga, CBS Sports reported on Friday.

The website cited Greg Wiltjer, Kyle's father, saying his son will transfer to the Spokane, Wash., school, a finalist in his recruitment before he signed with Kentucky two years ago.

Neither Kyle or Greg Wiltjer could be reached immediately for comment.

Wiltjer, a former McDonald's All-American from Portland, Ore., averaged 10.2 points and 4.2 rebounds as a sophomore this season. He averaged 7.3 points and 2.8 rebounds per game in 73 career games, playing in all 40 games during UK's 2012 NCAA championship season.

On June 24, Wiltjer released an open letter to Kentucky fans that said he was pondering a transfer. On the same day, coach John Calipari posted on his website that the door was open for Wiltjer to return.

At the time, Wiltjer wrote that he was seeking "a situation that will help me do this as well as play a more significant role, wherever that may be."

He wrote about "possibly" leaving UK, suggesting that he might return.

"I told Kyle I'll play whatever part he wants in his transfer, whether that's being involved and calling other schools on his behalf or not being involved in any way," Calipari wrote on his website at the time. "He expressed to me that he needs my help and advice, which I will give. Whatever Kyle chooses - and I still hope he ends up back with us - I wish him and his family the best of luck."

http://kentucky.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1526784

[GOREDDEVILS]

Dear BBN, this past month has been very emotional and challenging for me. Whether to transfer or not has been one of the toughest decisions of my life, so I would like to thank everyone for being so supportive through this process. I feel like in my basketball career I'm facing a make it or break it moment and the primary factor in this decision is transforming my body. I'm choosing to transfer to Gonzaga because i feel they have a proven plan in place to help develop players similar to me, which has seen great results. I believe with hard work I can maximize my development at Gonzaga. The last two years at UK have been a valuable experience and I'm very grateful for them. Even though I'm leaving the program, Coach Cal and I will continue our relationship and I will look to him for advice. He is more than just a coach to me. I have made many friends here and I plan to come back. My heart will always be in Lex.
Thank you BBN,
Kyle Wiltjer

[RunItUpTheGut]

Bye Kyle!!!

Have a nice and wonderful career at the mighty Gonzaga.

P.S. - your still the biggest pansy ive ever seen. You should fit in well on the west coast.

[64SUR]

:Sad04: sad to see Kyle leave best of luck.we will miss your 3 :bball::bball::bball: thank you for the 2yrs in bbn

[crazytaxidriver]

:Sad04: sad to see Kyle leave best of luck.we will miss your 3 :bball::bball::bball: thank you for the 2yrs in bbn

We missed it last year for most of the season too

[RebelPlayer10]

Glad to see a good player like Kyle go to a school like gonzaga especially since the class coming in. That moved Kyle way way down and he wouldn't have had much playing time

[Peytonplace18]

Good luck Kyle, your effort was appreciated while at UK, but the team UK has to compete for playing time... Good move...

[E's Army]

After watching this UK a couple of times I can see what made Wiltjer jump ship after the freshmen arrived on campus. Minutes would have been hard to find.

[WideRight05]

After watching this UK a couple of times I can see what made Wiltjer jump ship after the freshmen arrived on campus. Minutes would have been hard to find.

Agreed, especially with Willis being better than projected.

[dangerousdaneerfan]

Sounds like another victim of Paypal Cal and his band of One and Done's.

[RunItUpTheGut]

^
Were fine with that....just so you know.