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  • Tyler Ulis, show-time player

    By: LARRY VAUGHT


    LEXINGTON — All his life Tyler Ulis remembers being told he was too short to play big-time basketball.

    “I never really paid any attention to it. I knew I could play and just kept pushing, working hard and I’m here where I am now,” said the University of Kentucky freshman. “I just love the game and I just love to play. The guys I did look up to growing up were Allen Iverson and Chris Paul. I watched those guys all the time. Iverson’s the reason I wear No. 3 and one of the main reasons that I love the game right now.”

    Even Kentucky coach John Calipari was a bit hesitant to offer the 5-10 Ulis a scholarship because of his size.

    “I watched this kid play and I couldn't believe his fight and the fire he had and his ability to play to win. I kept watching him based on one thing: his size. Just one thing held me back from going all out was his size,” Calipari said. “But I had him come down to Kentucky and I said to him: 'If you don't have pro aspirations, do not come here.'

    “And the second thing is: 'If you think you're going to be here four years, don't you come here.' In other words, people were telling me, 'Wow, you get him, you got a four-year point guard.' Why? Why does that have to be the case, unless Tyler wants it to be the case.”

    Calipari again told on the Southeastern Conference coaches teleconference how he met with NBA point guard Isaiah Thomas to see how he compensated for his lack of size.

    “I sat down with him and said, 'Tell me what I've got to do and what this young man has to do to be in your league.' He gave me some ideas,” Calipari said. “I talked to (NBA coach) Doc Rivers. 'Can a 5-10 point guard play in your league?' He said, 'Absolutely, if he does these three things,' and they're three things that Tyler does.

    “Now, he's not healthy right now. Second thing, he's gotta gain weight. He's gotta get stronger. You gotta have some weight to you. So there are things that he's gotta do. He's gotta be a more consistent shooter, especially free-throw shooter. Things that he can do. But I'll tell you, the kid's fight and desire to win and how he plays as a teammate, he's outstanding."

    Ulis has played through shin splints and other issues this year without missing a game. Calipari recently estimated he was playing at about 75 percent health-wise.

    "A lot of teams at this point of the year are going through a lot of injuries. You get nicked up two-thirds of the way through the season. Tyler's a guy that leaves it all out on the floor,” UK assistant coach Barry Rohrssen said. “You just love to watch him play.

    “He's fearless, he's reckless, he gives everything he has every minute he's out on the court. You know you're going to catch some injuries along the way there, but he's a fighter. He battles through it and he may go from one injury to another injury, but he still comes back."

    Freshman center Karl-Anthony Towns calls Ulis, who made a nifty behind-the-back pass from long range to Willie Cauley-Stein for a dazzling dunk against Auburn last week, a “show-time player” because of his skills.

    “I mean, he’s big, he’s a playmaker. He knows how to make the ball go from side to side, he can score, he’s the whole package. That’s why everyone just loves him, it’s not just because of his size, but what he can do with it,” Towns said. “I think he gets a lot of credit just for his size and he should. I mean, a person like him, at his size, doing what he does over 7-footers every day — doing it is something special. If I was home I would love watching him.”

    Teammate Andrew Harrison, who often shares playing time with Ulis, calls him a “great kid” the team needs.

    “His personality fits in with everyone else’s. He brings a lot of defensive intensity to the game and puts pressure on the ball,” Harrison said.

    The sophomore point guard said Ulis’ size even gives him some advantages.

    “He’s quick and low to the ground and stuff. He takes what he has,” Harrison said.

    Sophomore Aaron Harrison says Ulis’ play motivates UK, but not because of his size.

    “I don’t think it’s motivating because we know what he can do. He’s here for a reason and of course he’s a great player, so we expect that out of him,” Aaron Harrison said.

    Towns joked he would “maybe be a 3-point shooter” if he was Ulis’ size instead of 7-feet tall. However, like Aaron Harrison, said there is no special admiration among teammates for Ulis.

    “Admiration? No. Because, you know, the thing about admiration is that you feel like he was given a chance to be here. He deserved to be here,” Towns said. “That’s one the things, he works hard. He works real hard to get to be where he’s at right now. So admiration, no, but just appreciation, yes.”

    Ulis said Calipari’s honesty sold him on Kentucky.

    “I felt like I could be the best player I could be coming here with the guards he’s had like John Wall, Derrick Rose, (Eric) Bledsoe, guys like that. Coming in here going against Andrew every day is just helping me grow a lot as a player,” Ulis said.

    Now he’s happy to do his job for unbeaten Kentucky.

    “That’s my job, to get people involved. I’m the point guard. Attacking the lane, making things happen, being a playmaker,” Ulis said.

    He says he’s learned plenty about himself and his teammates during UK’s 27-0 run.

    “We learned as a team we’re going to fight through it,” Ulis said. “We have a lot of guys who are going to fight to win. We have a lot of guys who want to win really bad. No one wants to lose. I feel like in the long run that’s going to help us.”
    Comments 1 Comment
    1. dan_bgblue's Avatar
      dan_bgblue -
      My daughter and I often text back and forth during the game, and she went nuts texting about the behind the back pass to Willie. I told her that I had always loved watching short guys with the heart of a lion play the game. He fits that bill and I am tickled to death he chose UK.
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