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Kentucky coach John Calipari says playing without freshman point guard Andrew Harrison is like “playing withour your quarterback.”
He’s tried Aaron Harrison, Andrew’s twin brother and normally a two guard, at the point often in UK’s two exhibition games whle the point guard recovers from a bruised knee. Calipari thinks Andrew Harrison might be able to play Friday night when UK opens the regular season against UNC-Asheville, but if not he’ll likely use Aaron Harrison again at the point.
Calipari started senior Jarrod Polson at point guard against Montevallo Tuesday, but Aaron Harrison played there, too, and had 10 points, seven assists and no turnovers after starting the game at two guad.
“It was relaxing (at two guard). I got to run the floor a lot more and get the ball up the court,” said Aaron Harrison after the game. “Playing point guard is a learning experience. I just feel more comfortable running the wing. I was pretty happy to just get out and run and make plays to start the game. I guess playing the two is what I am used to playing, but if playing the one helps us, that’s fine. It’s new.”
Here’s more of what Aaron Harrison had to say after Tuesday’s game.
Question: Do you have a new appreciation for what your brother, Andrew, does at point guard?
Harrison: “I do. I guess I enjoyed it. It is a lot of running. I am pretty comfortable. I have to play it sometimes in practice. I need to be in better shape than everybody else on the team. I am getting used to it, but I am ready for Andrew to be back (from his knee injury).”
Question: Does Calipari treat point guards a bit differently than other players on the team?
Harrison: “Playing point guard, he is always on you. He definitely says something to the point guard every play. He tells you to attack and you have to get every other player involved. That’s difficult when you are not used to that.”
Question: Do you talk to Andrew about playing point guard?
Harrison: “He helps me with little stuff about getting the ball up the floor, throwing it up the floor. Just little tricks.”
Question: Is it difficult for him to watch right now and not be playing?
Harrison: “I know how he feels not being out there with us. I am sure he will be back soon.”
Question: What did you think of that incredible backward shot James Young threw into the wrong basket as he was trying to save a ball from going out of bounds?
Harrison: “That was fun. It wasn’t even our basket, but it was just fun. He didn’t say much. He was just smiling.”
Question: Where is this team on defense right now compared to where Calipari wants you to be?
Harrison: “We are probably pretty far from it. Sometimes we miscommunicate. We are getting a lot better every day. We should be where he wants us to be soon. We really haven’t worked on that much defense in practice.”
Question: Have you accepted the fact that you likely will be playing some point guard even when your brother gets back?
Harrison: “Yeah. I am starting to get the feel of getting other players involved and still attacking. That is the biggest deal with me balancing those two out. That’s the tough thing I am going through right now is when to dish it or try to take it myself.”
Question: Does seven assists, no turnovers show that you figured things out better?
Harrison: “I mean the guys finished the balls that I threw to them. They were really not tough passes. Probably tougher shots to make than passes. I guess they made me look good in the stat sheet. I enjoy playing the point sometimes. It is a learning experience.”
Question: Can you learn anything from senior Jarrod Polson about playing point guard?
Harrison: “He definitely tells me and Andrew things about what coach Cal expects and what he wants us to do. He helps a lot.”
Question: What will it take to get everybody on the team playing as a team?
Harrison: “Probably just discipline. We are all used to just getting the ball and taking it and scoring when we want to. I guess we just have to get a better feel for each other. We get along as people. That is not really a problem. We just have to have a better feel for each other.
“We are all friends. That is the biggest thing. Off the court we all hang out. We all go out to eat. Tht is the biggest part of getting together on the court is just hanging out off the court. Coach really emphasizes talking on the court, but we get along and we are all friends, so that helps with that.”
Question: Did this game help the team improve?
Harrison: “We definitely had to play hard. We weren’t reading things as well as we should have the first half. Every game we learn things and how we have to play hard every single possession with no plays off.”
Question: How much will this team still have to learn to find its identity with Andrew once he gets back?
Harrison: “Andrew knows what we to do. We all know he knows what to do. He’s a great player. I do have much more respect for what he does on the court by playing point guard. We are all excited to have him back, really.
“But we have all come a long way from the start of practice until now. We are definitely starting to share the ball a lot more and we are getting to the point that it doesn’t really matter who scores all the points. It is about how we play and just our presence on the court together.”
Question: How important to your confidence is it to make 3-point shots early in the season?
Harrison: “It is not that important. You make shots and you miss shots. I have been missing shots every day in practice and not really shooting the ball great and then I came out there and knocked shots down. It is basketball, so no big deal.”
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