By Metz Camfield
All I have to say is, for once I’m happy I am not an incoming superstar freshman basketball player at UK.
Why? Simple, I don’t have near impossible expectations to live up to.
Sure, I’m great at layups, sometimes I can even make them with my left hand, and when I’m feeling lucky 3-pointers are straight cash in my pocket. But I’m not nearly as good as Brandon Knight, Rivals.com‘s No. 1 recruit in the country. And Knight is not nearly as good as John Wall.
In time, Big Blue Nation, analysts, coaches and you and I will realize just how good John Calipari’s 2009 recruiting class was. Hell, he had four players ranked in the top 25 coming out of high school! Never have we seen a class this highly touted since Michigan’s Fab Five in the early ’90s.
And ya know what? Calipari’s 2010 class might end up being one of the top three ranked classes in the country, but they still won’t be nearly as good as the 2009 class.
The ’09 class had everything. There was charisma, energy, hype, flare, talent and perhaps most importantly, a once-proud program that was looking for a stimulus package after falling into a recession.
They were that package, they embraced it and they thrived in it.

Two of the freshmen from the ’09 class were named All-Americans by the Associated Press, another was named to the Southeastern Conference All-Freshman team and a was so good in his nine minutes, three points per game average that he’s projected to be a first round draft pick in this summer’s NBA Draft.
So what do ya got 2010? Or perhaps it would be more appropriate to ask, who do ya got?
Stacey Poole has signed a Letter of Intent and Enes Kanter has given his verbal commitment to the Cats. Kanter is an animal in the paint and will do a great job at filling one of the three voids left by Patrick Patterson, DeMarcus Cousins and Daniel Orton.
Knight, who is expected to give a verbal commitment to the Cats Wednesday, C.J. Leslie, Terrence Jones, Doron Lamb, Josh Selby and Terrence Ross are all possible other recruits that could play in Lexington next year. But not all of them will sign, and the ones that choose not to won’t have to fill the Cousins-sized shoes left behind by the ’09 class.
Think about what they’re going up against.
Who’s creating the next dance craze that will ignite rap songs and ESPN features? Who’s going to start the new fashion statements and get their “Peter Parker Swag” on? How many dunks, alley-oops and passes are the next backcourt duo going to perform? Are they going to play another big role in the community? How many magazine covers will they dawn?
All those questions will be answered in time, but as of now we can start a quick checklist of things to do:
First, defeat North Carolina, Indiana and Louisville.
Second, win the SEC Regular Season Championship.
Third, win the SEC Tournament Championship.
Fourth, and most importantly, go to the Final Four.
Once you do all that, class of 2010, you’ll have surpassed the class of 2009.
Good luck.