Don't look for the Hogan's or the Bradley's to be sending X-Mas cards to the Smith's. The Commonwealth has been rocking because Hogan and Bradley left in the same week. The truth is that Hogan was released from his scholarship a day before Bradley. The truth is that the parents of both players were very strong in their efforts to make sure their kids would no longer be at UK. The truth is Tubby would not have recruited Ryan Hogan, Michael Bradley or Myron Anthony to UK. There is nothing negative towards either side with that comment. It is just the way it is. The three Pitino recruits knew that, and it always stayed with them. Today, they are all gone.

. In a wide open offense----like Pitino ball----Hogan and Bradley would be much better players. Don't tell me about their slow feet. Hogan and Bradley are not any slower than Farmer, Feldhaus and Pelphrey. Seems to me they had wonderful careers under Pitino. Hogan and Bradley are smart, tough players. Their basketball IQ's are unusually high. It doesn't make Tubby a bad guy that he would recruit more athletic players. It doesn't make Pitino a bad guy because he would not have recruited Saul Smith. Different strokes for different folks. But, players have careers to protect. Try and look at this like a parent, not as a fan. Most players who don't get P.T., playing time---believe it is the coach who overlooked their talents. Sometimes the players are right, sometimes they are wrong. Yes, it is possible that coaches are wrong. At times we put them on such a high pedistal that we forget that they are human----with the same kind of feelings and hangups as the rest of us. It is human nature to feel closer to those that you recruit. It is also very natural that a player would feel a lot more insecure dealing with a coach who didn't recruit him. What we often forget is that college basketball players are just kids. They deal with tremendous highs and lows----and, they can be a lot more insecure than we realize. We forget because they might be 6-feet-10 inches tall.

Months ago, Scott Padgett told me that Michael Bradley was one of the best shooters on the team. When I gave him this look of disbelief, he really came at me-----saying that just because Bradley doesn't shoot from the outside during games, don't let that mislead you. Bradley had a practice where he made 60 of 100 shots from three point land. We all complained about UK's shooting from downtown last year ! Although Bradley led the nation in field goal percentage for part of the season, he felt restricted with not being able to play at least part of the time facing the basket. When his P.T. started disappearing after the Arkansas game, so did his confidence.

Who wants to play for a coach who you believe took your confidence away ? If Bradley's P.T. at UK started next season the way last season ended, his shot at the NBA disappears. Why should any player show loyalty towards any school if the opportunity they dreamed about is literally disappearing right in front of their eyes ? And, you are playing for a coach that in your heart you don't believe---believes in you. If Bradley is smart, he will use the year off to work out 2 or 3 hours a day. Although he improved physically from his rookie year at UK, he has a long ways to go. In reality, if he works that hard during his time off----it could really enhance his NBA opportunities.

Ryan Hogan is a long shot to make the NBA. If he stays at UK, he had NO shot ! Don't tell me about his slow feet------Steve Kerr isn't any quicker. Kerr makes seven figures a year because he can really shoot. Kerr iced an NBA championship. Kerr has plenty of friends in the NBA who aren't any quicker. Ryan Hogan can really shoot. He can't do that without P.T. He can't do that with the fear of being 'yanked' from a game if he makes a mistake.

UK Athletics director C.M. Newton talks about players having loyalty to their schools. C.M. Newton wants to make it tougher for players to transfer. I say when a coach breaks a contract to take another job, any player should be able to leave without sitting out a year that is now required by the NCAA. C.M. Newton wants players to tell a school quickly after a season if they are going to return. That's fair. But, I say a school should also tell a player quickly after a season if they want him to return. Scholarships are one year contracts.

Years ago, when I broke the story about Roderick Rhodes not being offered a scholarship to continue at UK, the paperwork was done in August. I say make it equal for players and coaches. Make them communicate to each other on the same day----shortly after the season. It doesn't matter what I like. The truth is that college basketball has changed. With hundreds of sports talk stations, millions of basketball internet messages a year and ESPN getting stronger, players know they have more choices. The good old days are gone. Think of all the players who might have had an opportunity had they followed their heart and tried another school. Think about being the parent of one of those kids.