Kentucky Wildcats: Julius Mays' Impact on the 2012-13 Season

John Calipari added to his 2012 recruiting class when Wright State guard Julius Mays elected to transfer to Kentucky next season. His commitment comes as a surprise after just completing a weekend visit to Purdue, who was thought to be the favorite to ink Mays' signature.

Julius Mays grew up as a lifetime Purdue Boilermaker fan, but he chose to complete his final year of college eligibility in Lexington wearing the blue and white. If he was looking for more exposure to professional scouts and a chance to play for a national championship, then he certainly made a great choice to join the Wildcats.

His commitment will make a large impact on the 2012-13 roster. After losing all five starters and two senior players, the Wildcats are extremely thin next season and are still rounding out their roster. 

A few weak spots for the roster was at backup point guard and backup shooting guard. The starters are more than likely set with N.C. State transfer Ryan Harrow filling in at the point and incoming freshman guard Archie Goodwin slotting in at the 2 spot. 

However, the only presumed backups for each spot are little-used guards Twany Beckham and Jarrod Polson. Each played on the roster last season, but they would have to make considerable improvements in order to earn more playing time.

This is where Julius Mays comes in and makes a significant improvement to the roster. He has played three seasons of major college basketball, including two seasons at North Carolina State. After his sophomore season, Mays transferred to Wright State to receive more playing time. He did just that, playing over 1000 minutes in one season comparison to the 1,000 he played during two years at N.C. State.

In addition to his valuable college experience, he has proven himself as a valuable scorer. Last season, Mays averaged 14.1 points per game, connected on 42.4 percent of his three-point attempts and converted 83.2 percent of his free-throw attempts.

Those shooting percentages are fairly consistent across his career. During Mays' freshman season, he converted on 44.8 percent of his three-point field goal attempts and shot 85.2 percent from the free-throw line. Mays only averaged 4.7 points per game, but that came in limited playing time.

All of these statistics are important for Kentucky's roster because they enter next season lacking a consistent outside shooter. Outside of Kyle Wiltjer, no other player on the team is expected to be a consistent deep threat from the three-point arc, as Goodwin and Harrow succeed more at slashing to the rim and Alex Poythress has a streaky trey at best.

In Mays, Kentucky just landed a solid combo guard who will be the first player off the bench when Harrow or Goodwin sub out. He can provide instant offense in a similar manner that Doron Lamb did for the team last season. Granted, he is not expected to match Lamb's production, but he will have great value if he can continue hitting his three-point shots at a 40 percent rate and convert on free throws down the stretch.

Kentucky will lack quality depth next season, but Julius Mays will not be a part of that problem. He will be the most experienced player on the team, and his leadership qualities and perimeter shooting will help immensely as the young Cats grow throughout the season. Julius Mays is another excellent pickup for John Calipari, as he looks to help the Wildcats in their quest for a third consecutive Final Four appearance and beyond.