A lot is being made of Louisville and Tennessee doing big-time work in the portal. And I totally get it, they are getting dudes.
But the disappointing ending to last season has a lot of people looking at Kentucky Basketball’s roster through hazy goggles.
Are there deficiencies? Sure. Are there questions? I think everyone will agree there are. But there is also a ton of real potential, and some have shone brighter than the guys who are being praised because they signed with Louisville.
Jackson Shelstad
is a great player, but Zoom Diallo has outpaced him when the two have played against each other.
Zoom Diallo has the tools to be elite
Zoom Diallo can get downhill against anyone. He is strong; he has an explosive attribute that you just can’t teach. He reminds me of 90’s NBA point guards who can pull up off the dribble and bang in midrange shots all day. Now, with modern analytics that may be a bad thing, but give me a made shot over a missed one any day.
He reads the game well, can set up his teammates, and he has shown improvement as a player from year 1 to year 2. But he isn’t even being talked about in a way that you would think a player of his caliber would be.
When Louisville signed Shelstad, it was like a crowning achievement. But look at the two times the two point guards have squared off:
January 21st, 2025:
Shelstad- 11 points, 0 assists, 4 rebounds
Diallo- 18 points, 3 assists, 3 rebounds
March 9th, 2025:
Shelstad- 4 points, 5 assists, 3 rebounds
Diallo- 13 points, 4 assists, 4 rebounds
Now, Washington did lose both of those games, but Oregon was a 5-seed that year and nearly got to the Sweet 16. Washington was just 13-18. So Diallo was on a worse team and still performed better.
And they obviously didn’t face off last season after Shelstad missed most of the season due to injury, while Diallo appeared in every game for the Huskies.
I am not trying to tell you that Shelstad won’t be great. I think he will be a really good player. But don’t let the taste that last year left in your mouth sour your opinion on the guys who are coming in.
It’s okay to have questions, I think that’s only fair. But don’t throw in the towel because the unknown is still the unknown. We don’t know how they will play, but we can look back and see that these guys coming in are talented.
And we can all take a breath and realize that maybe, just maybe, things will be okay.
