KEITH TAYLOR

Kentucky Today

Oscar Tshiebwe is expected to undergo a minor procedure on his knee ahead of Big Blue Madness scheduled for Friday night.

Kentucky coach John Calipari said in a social media post on Monday that he had “good news and bad news” on his standout senior forward and the reigning college basketball Player of the Year.

“Good news is Oscar had an unbelievable performance at Pro Day and the scouts loved what they saw,” the Kentucky coach said. “He came back to develop his game and become a more complete player and that’s exactly what he displayed Sunday night. They loved it.”

The bad news?

“I kept him out of practice Saturday with knee stuff,” Calipari said. “He refused to sit out Pro Day and balled out. I made him sit out Monday and get examined as a precaution. He’s going to have a minor 15-minute procedure to clean some things up. Not a big deal, but no dancing at Madness.”

On Sunday, 30 NBA teams were represented at the Pro Day session at the Joe Craft Center.

The team’s roster, which features a solid nucleus of veterans and newcomers, is a mix that Tshiebwe has embraced this summer. The freshman class, which features Cason Wallace, Chris Livingston and Adou Thiero, has impressed Tshiebwe.

“I feel like this year that the freshmen, especially offensively, are more ready than last year,” he said. “They are working and giving everything (they have) and seem more ready to go than last year.”

Earlier this summer, Tshiebwe said the returnees — Sahvir Wheeler, CJ Fredrick, Damion Collins, Lance Ware and Jacob Toppin have equally been just as impressive this summer.

“It’s been great,” he said. “I’m loving my team and everything is going good. We’re working and getting better.” I love the competition. We play 5-on-5 and it’s not easy and you can get easy buckets. They just play, (they’re physical) and I love that.”

Personally, Tshiebwe has been working various parts of his game to complement his rebounding skills and ability to maneuver around the basket in the post.

“I’ve been working on my passing and my dribbling,” he said. “I’m spending more time (in the gym and working on my game.”