1. Hall of Fame coach Jim Calhoun has earned the right to decide when he’s going to retire. He also should be given his space to recover from surgery to repair a fractured hip. But he also is well aware that practice starts in a month. His staff needs to know if Calhoun is going to coach UConn this season sooner than later. His athletic director Warde Manuel also needs to be told what Calhoun wants to do. None of that had happened through Monday. Calhoun sounded like someone who was definitely coming back shortly after the bike accident in early August. But his tone apparently has changed a bit since, according to those close to him. No one is quite sure what he’s going to do for this season. The indecision needs to stop. The players and staff deserve to know this close to the start of practice if he’s going to coach.
2. Kentucky coach John Calipari loves to toss out platitudes of his newcomers before practice stars. He’s very impressionable and more times than not his hype sticks. He raved about Doron Lamb's potential last summer and ultimately Lamb proved to be as vital a part of the national title run as any other player not named Anthony Davis. Well, the latest to receive the plug is freshman guard Archie Goodwin. Calipari said that Goodwin has a motor like Michael Kidd-Gilchrist. That’s high praise since MKG’s motor was one of the reasons he was selected in the top 10 in the NBA draft. Goodwin is one of four freshmen (Nerlens Noel, Willie Cauley, Alex Poythress) expected to play major minutes this season.
3. The NCAA said that 346 teams will count in the RPI this season, 345 full Division I members. Northern Kentucky is a provisional member of Division I this season but counts in the RPI. There are 10 programs not eligible for the NCAA tournament due to either APR or NCAA infractions penalties (UConn, UNC Wilmington, Towson, Central Florida, Toledo, UC Riverside, Jacksonville State, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Mississippi Valley State, Arkansas-Pine Bluff).