(Photo by Justin K. Aller / Getty Images)
Kentucky secured a commitment to the biggest transfer possibility available in the country, as center-back Oscar Tshiebwe in West Virginia announced that he will play for John Calipari in Lexington in the 2021-22 season.
Tshiebwe, a 6-foot-9, 260-pound center originally outside the Congo, chose Wildcats over offers and interest from Illinois, North Carolina, Miami (FL) and Tennessee, among others.
“I am grateful for the time I spent in West Virginia and the lessons I learned,” wrote Tshiebwe on his social media pages. “I spent a lot of time praying to God to help me make the best decision for my future. I am excited for this new chapter of my life. I will continue my career at the University of Kentucky. “
I am grateful for the time I spent in West Virginia and the lessons I learned. I spent a lot of time praying to God to help me make the best decision for my future. I am excited for this new chapter of my life. I will continue my career at the University of Kentucky #BBN pic.twitter.com/rm08UwtDBI
– Big O (@ Oscartshiebwe34) January 11, 2021
But what does the latest addition of Wildcat mean for the program?
Immediate practice player
Before we worry about Tshieb, we can and will do for the team Next year, it is important to note that the talented transferee is planning to apply for the second semester and will go to Lexington immediately. Although he is not eligible to play for the remainder of the 2020-21 season, he will nevertheless be able to practice with the team and work with the team’s strength and conditioning program immediately.
This means that Olivier Sarr, Keion Brooks Jr., Isaiah Jackson, Lance Ware and Jacob Toppin will be able to face Tshiebwe – an absolute man – every day in practice, helping the current group to prepare for the strong, physical players on the court attack that the team will continue to see during the conference game.
Kentucky is already full of fellows – 11 now with Brooks back on the rotation – but the addition of Tshiebwe will ensure that Calipari no longer has to worry about having enough bodies to train in practice. Now, he has extras.
Junkyard dog in paint
As for Tshiebwe’s presence on the court after he was declared eligible in 2021-22, it’s pretty clear what Kentucky is getting: a strong, physical workhorse with an endless engine.
At 1.80 m, 260 pounds and with a wingspan of 2.13 m, Tshiebwe already has a body ready for the NBA. He is an anchor on the attacking court, literally and figuratively. But the reason there was so much excitement about the ex-five-star contender after school ended was that he simply outworked everyone on the floor, and this remained his staple in his time in West Virginia. Whether diving for lost balls, struggling for tough rebounds or running ahead of the competition in counterattacks, Tshiebwe is not beaten by anyone.
This quote from the old Mountaineer center says it all:
“I am a machine,” said Tshiebwe in West Virginia Life as a climber series of videos. “The way I play, most people we play against, they ask me the same thing during games. “Mano, how can you not get tired?” I say: “I get tired, but I don’t stop when I’m tired. I stop when I’m done. “
Tshiebwe remains a little raw on the offensive side – he is relatively new to the sport – but he makes up for it by doing the dirty work on both ends of the floor. There’s a reason why he almost averaged a double-double – 11.2 points and 9.3 rebounds per game – like a freshman, after all.
Next year’s attack court may be complete
So, Kentucky’s attacking pitch for the coming season looks well loaded.
We are not sure what will happen to Keion Brooks Jr. in terms of his decision in the NBA Draft, and Olivier Sarr (graduation) and Isaiah Jackson (NBA Draft) could leave the program, but the expectation is that Jacob Toppin and Lance Ware The two are back next season and Kentucky have already signed center-back Daimion Collins and striker Bryce Hopkins in the 2021 class.
With Tshiebwe officially added to the image, space is already limited on the UK’s attacking court, and that’s a good thing. There is no glaring hole down there as it is with the five likely pieces in Tshiebwe, Toppin, Ware, Collins and Hopkins, and if Brooks or Jackson returns, the sky is the limit down there.
You can’t always solidify a top-of-the-line attack court a full year in advance, but Calipari did just that by adding Tshiebwe to the mix.
Someone who wants to be in Kentucky
In addition to what he brings to the table as a player, Tshiebwe is someone who has loved the Kentucky basketball program since he was in high school. As a recruit, Tshiebwe had deep ties to the West Virginia program, making it almost certain that he would end up in Morgantown, regardless of who called him.
But make no mistake, Tshiebwe liked what Calipari and the UK program had to offer for the first time.
“It was a tough decision because I like Kentucky and I love Coach Calipari,” Tshiebwe told KSR at McDonald’s All-American Game in 2019. “But I ended up in West Virginia because it’s a school I used to think about (grow up with) I like the way they play, I like the coach, I like the program. That’s why I ended up going there. “
If he hadn’t signed with the Mountaineers, Tshiebwe told KSR that he was going to Lexington.
“Coach Calipari was saying to me,“ I want to train you! Come play for me! I will train you and help you become a great player. I will help you achieve your dreams. … Kentucky was second. ”
Two years later, Tshiebwe is finally a Kentucky Wildcat.