MKG is one of the top 5 defenders I have watched

Question

I would rank him up there with Hawkins, Liggins and a few other outstanding defenders in kentucky history.

Originally posted on Rupp Rafters by smooth as butter.

Answer 1

Hes better than those guys because he is so strong and long. Liggins was good at slowing guys down but I havent seen many who could shut down guys like Gilchrist. Prince could shut down some guys with his length and quickness but he doesnt have the quickness to guard anybody like MKG can. How many 6'7 guys who have his strength can defend elite guards? Very few.

Originally posted on Rupp Rafters by mrbassky1.

Answer 2

Liggins was the best UK guy I've seen in taking charges. He was great on the ball. Gilchrist is longer, and affects opponents' shots just as well.

It's a toss-up between the two; I just wish I could have witnessed them playing TOGETHER.

The thought still haunts me.

Originally posted on Rupp Rafters by Son_Of_Saul.

Answer 3

MKG for his size,length and guickness plus his scoring he is by him self.

Originally posted on Rupp Rafters by Bigblueforever.

Answer 4

For me personally I'd rank Davis or Hawkins 1 and 2, with MKG and Liggins as 3 and 4. Not sure which I'd rank over the other there either.

Originally posted on Rupp Rafters by brianboone99.

Answer 5

OP, you said you're a Maryland fan right? You seem to follow UK pretty closely.

Originally posted on Rupp Rafters by brianboone99.

Answer 6

I give you strength, MKG is definitely stronger than Liggins but length and quickness were comparable. I mean Liggins was quick and 6'6'. They are both excellent defenders.

Originally posted on Rupp Rafters by Chiggler.

Answer 7

Lol what does being a maryland fn have to do with me follwing kentucky. man I been a cats fan since the Davis of roger harden, James blackmon, sam bowie ,etc lollll.

Originally posted on Rupp Rafters by smooth as butter.

Answer 8

Gillie and Liggins on the same team would have made some player on some team along the way cry....and I am not kidding.

Originally posted on Rupp Rafters by Nawlij.

Answer 9

As great as it would have been to have Knight's shooting back with this team, I wish Liggins would have returned just so that we would have had 2 lock down defenders plus Davis waiting to block anything that got past anyone else.

Originally posted on Rupp Rafters by calscats8105.

Answer 10

Play the last 3 seconds of the IU game now, and they would have never got that shot off. MKG would have slammed the door in some place, I'm sure..

Originally posted on Rupp Rafters by ColonelCat.

Answer 11

One thing I think is understated, is all of those other guys were not nearly the defender MKG is their freshman years. Now, I understand this is a much different time and when a lot of those guys played, freshmen usually had pretty limited roles, but it is hard to get freshmen to buy into playing lockdown defense every night. That is impressive.

Originally posted on Rupp Rafters by joey009852.

Answer 12

Could you imagine the defensive team we would have with Davis and Jones blocking shots, mkg and liggins locking up the perimeter. The opposing PG would dribble the shot clock out every possession

Originally posted on Rupp Rafters by Chino1176.

Answer 13

Cal said he should have put MKG on Bost earlier.
I'm sure that's what he will do next time against a hot shooter.

Originally posted on Rupp Rafters by new era cat.

Answer 14

The word "perimeter" should probably be added to this. While MKG is almost certainly one of the 5 best perimeter defenders UK has ever had, he's the 2nd best defender on the team. Anthony Davis is very possibly one of the 5 best defenders in college basketball history.

I'll be interested to see how MKG plays against Taylor on Saturday. In all honesty, he struggled against Taylor, and had one of his worst games of the season. I'm betting that, now that he's seen him once, that changes dramatically the 2nd time around.

Originally posted on Rupp Rafters by mj2k10.

Answer 15

Could not agree more.

Originally posted on Rupp Rafters by Guitarman8003.

Answer 16

Cliff Hawkins was a great defender who could take away the drive and punished you if you showed him the ball. Just remembering him doing that makes it seem more impressive than Liggins and MKG now but we were so different ideologically on defense back then. MKG or Liggins can give up the lane now and it's not bad because we are set up to rotate and have excellent shot-blocking unlike the Hawkins era.

I think the greatest thing about the size of MKG and Liggins on the perimeter is the amount of passing angle they take away with their wingspan and lateral quickness. That gives extra time for chasing defenders to catch up to the guy getting the pass etc.

Another thing is just how involved they both get, even when they are off the ball. If you get a chance and want to see something cool watch the first half of the UF game and keep an eye on MKG. His head is constantly on a swivel checking for cutters in the lane, checking his guy, checking the ball for a pass or shot. He might make three or four moves to go be ready to step into a passing lane or a rebounding position while his guy is camped out in the corner. Reminded me of how a good tennis player looks anticipating a return based on the shape the opponent has relative to the ball.

Originally posted on Rupp Rafters by ky22ishuge.