Devin Askew returning to Kentucky for a sophomore season, according to his father. After the worst season in modern Kentucky basketball season came to an end in the SEC Tournament, it was reported by KentuckySportsRadio that the young guard will be coming back to Lexington. While this isn’t a surprise to many, it is a huge sigh of relief for Wildcats fans that have seen guys leave who should have maybe stayed.
Devin’s father told KSR the news on Friday afternoon.
Askew had a good freshman season. While it wasn’t a Lottery Pick-type performance for the year, his game developed over the year. For those who feel burned out on the one-and-done carousel, this is a player that will stay and develop in the system. The freshman guard averaged 6.5 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.9 assists a game. He averaged 29 minutes a game.
The season was a bit of a rollercoaster for Askew. He scored in double digits seven times over the course of the season. There were times that Askew would start and get 30+ minutes and then other stretches where he played as little as 22 minutes. There is a lot to like about his game.
Over the course of the season, his pass-making decisions improved drastically. Askew wants to drive and get inside the paint, and draw fouls. He shot over 80% from the free-throw line on the year. Many times during the season he settled for bad shots. However, I can see a sophomore Askew that is stronger and able to bully his 6’3″ body in the paint. He likes to throw up floaters and would get good looks this way, but didn’t hit them as much as you would like to see. If he can bring his 34.5% field goal percentage up to 40%, he will have a really good sophomore year.
In my mind when watching him play at times this season, I saw Isaiah Briscoe in his game. While Briscoe was a bit quicker, he liked to barrel into the lane, hug the baseline for a kick out or reverse layup. I think that Askew should aspire to play a game similar to Briscoe’s. He has the potential to turn the ball over a lot less than Isaiah and shoot it better as well.
John Calipari has one returning player and it is only March 12! Usually, Cats fans have to wait until April or May for the first promise to come back. The Sacramento, CA native is “locked in” and ready to run it back for year two.
