by Alex Schwartz

When John Calipari left his spot as Head Coach at Memphis to take the same position at Kentucky, I wrote an article on it, discussing all of the implications the move would have. A key focus of that piece was that Cal would be giving up arguably the greatest recruiting class in recent history (contingent upon John Wall '09 having gone there). Well now that Calipari is in Lexington, it looks as though his move did not really effect his ability to recruit. The Wildcats have inked a six-man group considered by just about everyone to be the best in the NCAA, and thought of as the best ever by some. The question, in my mind, is not whether UK's class is tops in 09 (the answer is clearly yes), but rather, is it better than the class John Calipari would have had at Memphis?

Assuming John Wall of Word of God (NC) had indeed committed to Memphis if Coach Cal (it seems he would have, as he really wanted to play for Calipari), then Memphis would have had a half dozen players in coming in next year. Kentucky will have that same number coming in. Both groups include John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins '09 of LeFlore (AL), and Darnell Dodson of Miami-Dade JC (FL), so those three are a wash for each. Cousins and Dodson chose to follow Calipari to the traditional SEC powerhouse. The other three players that Calipari will bring in are Jon Hood '09 of Madisonville North Hopkins (KY), Daniel Orton '09 of Bishop McGuinness (OK), and Eric Bledsoe of Parker (AL). Hood and Orton are carryovers from Billy Gillispie's class (the other signee, GJ Vilarino '09 of McKinney (TX) is headed to Gonzaga now), while Bledsoe—he had committed to Ole Miss for a few hours at one point—was undecided when Cal came to UK. At Memphis, Coach Calipari's other three recruits would have been Xavier Henry '09 of Putnam City (OK), Nolan Dennis '09 of Richland Hills (TX), and Will Coleman of Miami-Dade JC. Henry has since decided to go to Kansas, while Dennis is headed to Baylor, and Coleman has elected to stick with Memphis.

Due to the fact that there are three players that cancel each other out, it's really a three vs. three competition when comparing the two classes: Henry, Coleman, and Dennis vs. Orton, Hood, and Bledsoe. It is very difficult to "rank" these players, especially because Coleman is a JuCo baller, which throws things off a bit. A couples things are clear though: Xavier Henry is the best player of the six, and Daniel Orton is a notch below. Just look back at Northstar Basketball's Class of 2009 Terrific 35 for proof. On that list, I had Henry as the #5 player in the nation and Orton as the #13 baller. Besides Wall (#1) and Cousins (#3), the only other player listed is Eric Bledsoe, who I put as "Just Missed," making him between #36 and #39. So far that means we have Henry, Orton, then Bledsoe. Dennis and Hood are quality recruits who are both thought of similarly on a national level, though I'd probably put Dennis a bit higher. Coleman is the wild card because he is two years above the others, as a JuCo player. Right now, he is probably more advanced than the others because he is older and has more experience. Thus, let's put him just above Dennis and Hood, but not by much. Really though, it's not that important, as those three are all solid players, but not superstars or elite level recruits. Thus, when it comes down to it, we are really comparing Henry with Orton and Bledsoe, though the others do have some significance.

The ranking of those six would be Henry, Orton, Bledsoe, Coleman, Dennis, and Hood. Adding those up, number-wise, Memphis' is just one rank better (Memphis: 1+4+5=10, Kentucky: 2+3+6=11), so it's definitely close. The question becomes, of the three top-notch players on that list, would you rather get two of them, or the best of the bunch? Again, it's Henry vs. Orton and Bledsoe. The numbers say Memphis' class was better, but it's really an opinion thing, because some people would rather take Orton and Bledsoe over Henry, citing power in numbers. One thing that is important to mention is that Memphis' class here is that two of the players come from the JuCo ranks, meaning the Tigers would have only had them both for two years, while Kentucky's group has just one. At the same time though, Memphis would have been in a win-now mode and those to JuCo kids would have been immediate contributors, which is what Memphis was likely looking for.

So, which class is better? It's hard to say. Again, the numbers above say it's Memphis, but then again, that's just my ranking of the six, and people can really put them anyway they want. Frankly, it's a matter of preference when deciding which class is better. It's nearly impossible to tell, and only time will tell, once these players have completed their college careers.

Note- photo is of John Calipari and is from http://www.nydailynews.com/