Duke won last night because its freshmen were better than Kentucky’s veterans. Sounds familiar, right? Beating teams with elite, young talent used to be John Calipari’s calling card, but last night’s win was another reminder Mike Krzyzewski has flipped the script.
Over the past several years, Calipari has dipped his toe into the transfer pond, adding grad transfers like Julius Mays, Reid Travis, and Nate Sestina. Now that the transfer portal is whirling away and players don’t have to sit out a season, Calipari fully embraces the concept. This year’s roster features four pivotal transfers — Sahvir Wheeler, Kellan Grady, CJ Fredrick, and Oscar Tshibwe — to go along with Davion Mintz and Jacob Toppin, who joined the squad in the summer of 2020.