Kentucky Basketball: Final Grades for the Wildcats' 2014-15 Season

Kentucky put together the best start to a season in college basketball history, winning its first 38 games. But because the 2014-15 campaign ended without a national championship, coming up two victories short, the Wildcats' magical performance this year is going to be considered by some to be a major disappointment.

We beg to differ.

What Kentucky accomplished this year, and how it did it, simply cannot be looked at as anything short of amazing. Though the Wildcats didn't win the title, instead falling 71-64 to Wisconsin in Saturday's national semifinals, they were still the best overall team in the country.

They just aren't going to be the champions.

Though the wounds are still fresh for Kentucky, there's no better time to grade out how this season went. We break down 2014-15 for the Wildcats to see what their final report card looks like, both individually and as a team.

Devin Booker

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Year: Freshman

Position: Guard

Final stats: 10.0 PPG, 2.0 RPG, 1.1 APG, 0.5 SPG, 0.1 BPG, 47.0% FG, 41.1% 3-pt FG, 82.8% FT

With one of the best-looking shots in the game, Devin Booker often inserted the dagger during some of Kentucky's many big runs during his first (and possibly only) college season. Few players got as hot as quickly as Booker did from outside, but when he got cold, he also showed the ability to score in other ways.

This is what enabled him to become the Wildcats' top reserve, and not just the spot-up shooter that he could have ended up being in a rotation that kept his minutes far below what they would have been at any other program. The confidence the 6'6" Booker exuded kept him from ever getting rattled or down on himself if the shot didn't fall.

"The dude's confidence is so high that him missing shots is not doing anything to him," teammate Willie Cauley-Stein said prior to the Sweet 16, per Kyle Tucker of The (Louisville) Courier-Journal. "He knows that as a shooter you've gotta have a short memory. He definitely does."

Final grade: A-

Willie Cauley-Stein

David J. Phillip/Associated Press

Year: Junior

Position: Center

Final stats: 8.9 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 1.0 APG, 1.2 SPG, 1.7 BPG, 56.9% FG, 0.0% 3-pt FG, 61.7% FT

Because of how many people contributed to Kentucky's season, it was hard to single out one who was the best of the group. His numbers can't really show it, because of the system, but Willie Cauley-Stein played a part in more facets of the Wildcats' success than any other player, which was why he managed to get named to various All-American teams despite such a low scoring average.

And scoring was where Cauley-Stein was least involved, as his game outside of five feet was limited despite attempts to be more aggressive on offense. This wasn't needed, though, since he was so adept on defense with his rare combination of shot-blocking and turnover-forcing, the skills that are going to land him a nice NBA paycheck in a few months.

Cauley-Stein was also the rare veteran on this underclassman-fueled team, and he took this responsibility to heart by being the heart and soul of the Wildcats as well as their unquestioned leader.

Final grade: A-

Aaron Harrison

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Year: Sophomore

Position: Guard

Final stats: 11.0 PPG, 2.6 RPG, 1.4 APG, 1.1 SPG, 0.2 BPG, 39.5% FG, 31.6% 3-pt FG, 78.2% FT

Aaron Harrison's built his career at Kentucky on a number of huge three-pointers made in some of the biggest games of the past two seasons, which seems hard to believe considering how low his shooting numbers were.

Harrison was a 42.3 percent shooter as a freshman, making more than 35 percent of his threes, and this season those numbers dipped despite taking fewer overall shots. He became more of a jump-shooter than in the previous season, and it didn't always pay off. Plus, the lack of a more well-rounded offensive game made him an offensive liability in many games.

Harrison also took fewer chances in traffic overall, resulting in his not getting to the line as much. In some ways, it seemed like the fame that came from the big threes to beat Michigan and Wisconsin in last year's NCAA tournament made him feel that's all he should be trying to do, and it didn't lead to constant success.

Final grade: B-

Andrew Harrison

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Year: Sophomore

Position: Guard

Final stats: 9.3 PPG, 2.2 RPG, 3.6 APG, 1.0 SPG, 0.2 BPG, 37.8% FG, 38.3% 3-pt FG, 79.2% FT

Kentucky's starting point guard for the second straight season, Andrew Harrison finished second on the team in assists (just edged out by backup Tyler Ulis) but was a far better facilitator than he was the year before. This was because he was much more careful with the ball than as a freshman, improving his assist-to-turnover ratio from 1.46-1 to 2.17-1.

That was a huge uptick, considering that Kentucky was a far more balanced team than the previous year and thus Harrison had to distribute to more options. That scenario didn't lead to disaster because of how Harrison handled his role.

Harrison did have struggles, though, with scoring consistency. He wavered back and forth between different approaches to scoring, either being super-aggressive or not taking many shots. He will need to work on that area at the next level.

Final grade: B+

Dakari Johnson

David J. Phillip/Associated Press

Year: Sophomore

Position: Forward

Final stats: 6.4 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 0.7 APG, 0.4 SPG, 0.9 BPG, 50.6% FG, 0.0% 3-pt FG, 62.5% FT

A strong defender and great at being a physical presence, Dakari Johnson's role with the second unit was clearly defined. He wasn't asked to do much on the offensive end unless it involved an offensive putback, and he performed well in that area, as only Marcus Lee and Karl-Anthony Towns had higher offensive rebound percentages, per Sports-Reference.com.

Often playing with scorers Tyler Ulis and Devin Booker but also when in with the Harrison twins, Johnson's touches off non-misses were few and far between. Because of this, it's hard to say how effective the 7-footer would have been if he had had the opportunities that Kentucky's other post players received. He wasn't in there to score, though, so we can't count it as a deficiency.

Still, it would have helped him to be more aggressive inside.

Final grade: B-

Marcus Lee

John Bazemore/Associated Press

Year: Sophomore

Position: Forward

Final stats: 2.6 PPG, 2.7 RPG, 0.3 APG, 0.1 SPG, 0.7 BPG, 64.4% FG, 0.0% 3-pt FG, 32.0% FT

Thanks to John Calipari's devotion to a platoon system for most of this year, Marcus Lee managed to get playing time. But when it came time to pick the lineup for clutch situations, Lee rarely got the call.

The 6'9" Lee showed off great dunking ability and pulled down some big rebounds, particularly on the offensive boards. But he rarely put together extended stretches of strong play, and as a result he was the least-used of Kentucky's nine-man rotation.

If Lee opts to return for a third year, in order to become a more integral part of the equation, he'll need to be a much more complete player who's not just in there to spell others.

Final grade: C

Trey Lyles

Chris Steppig/Associated Press

Year: Freshman

Position: Forward

Final stats: 8.7 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 1.1 APG, 0.5 SPG, 0.4 BPG, 48.8% FG, 13.8% 3-pt FG, 73.5% FT

Trey Lyles was probably Kentucky's most underrated player when it came to the starters—a job he intermittently had early on and then assumed on a full-time basis midway through the season. While he was solid in nearly every area, because the Wildcats had someone better individually in each way, it felt at times like Lyles was the forgotten man.

But look closer at his performance and you'll see a player who was just scratching the surface of his abilities this year. More of a jump-shooter and a driver than a power-to-the-basket guy, Lyles' finesse game looked great when it was clicking but also led to some off-shooting nights.

All he lacked was the mean streak needed to be a true force inside, something he'll have to work on as he sets out on an NBA career later this year.

Final grade: B+

Karl-Anthony Towns

Chris Steppig/Associated Press

Year: Freshman

Position: Forward

Final stats: 10.3 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 1.1 APG, 0.5 SPG, 2.3 BPG, 56.6% FG, 25.0% 3-pt FG, 81.3% FT

Though no single player was more important than the rest on this Wildcats team, Karl-Anthony Towns was as close to being such an entity as anyone else. It's why he's rocketed to the top of most draft boards, surpassing Duke's Jahlil Okafor as the presumptive No. 1 overall pick in projections by NBADraft.net and others.

He was Kentucky's leading rebounder and shot-blocker, finishing second in scoring and free-throw shooting while also shooting at a healthy clip. And he did all that in just over 21 minutes per game, which ranked sixth on the team despite him being a full-time starter.

Spread Towns' numbers over 40 minutes—19.1 points, 12.4 rebounds, 4.3 blocks—and they're downright scary. Even add just a few more minutes and he'd have been absolutely unstoppable, but that would have required him to avoid the foul trouble that he seemed to get into in nearly every game.

Towns had 16 points, nine rebounds and two blocks in 31 minutes on Saturday. He tied a career high in playing time despite picking up two fouls in the game's first 11 minutes.

Final grade: A

Tyler Ulis

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Year: Freshman

Position: Guard

Final stats: 5.6 PPG, 1.8 RPG, 3.6 APG, 1.0 SPG, 0.1 BPG, 40.6% FG, 42.9% 3-pt FG, 80.8% FT

Size didn't matter when it came to Tyler Ulis, who often played far bigger than his generously listed 5'9" frame because of a killer shot, great ball skills and a tenacious approach to defense. He was Kentucky's most consistent player in the second unit, even if this didn't show in his scoring numbers.

Ulis led the Wildcats in assists and also took great care of the ball, finishing with a 3.58-1 assist-to-turnover ratio. And while he didn't take many, most of Ulis' three-point shots seemed to come at the biggest moments.

"Tyler Ulis has been this year's Aaron Harrison," Bleacher Report's Kerry Miller tweeted during the Final Four. "Hits so many clutch threes."

Ulis also more than made up for his lack of height with quick hands, boasting one of the best steal rates on the team.

Final grade: A-

John Calipari

David J. Phillip/Associated Press

Title or no title, John Calipari put together one of the greatest coaching performances in NCAA history. It didn't matter that he had more talent than any other team and more resources at his disposal than most programs; Calipari still had to do a lot to get this amazing group of players to perform at such a high level.

Think about it: Kentucky was so deep with skilled players that its second unit likely would have made the Sweet 16 if it were another team. Knowing he was facing a unique situation with so many great assets, he instituted a platoon system in order to spread the minutes out (mostly) evenly among nine or 10 players.

While this probably looked great in theory, for the practice to work without any hurdles required Calipari to get everyone to buy in. And that, more than anything else, is why his work with Kentucky this season is so deserving of accolades.

Final grade: A+

Overall

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These grades are based on the overall performance of Kentucky's season, not whether it met its ultimate goal and won a national title with a perfect record. And because of this, the Wildcats passed with flying colors, but they won't get the equivalent of a perfect score on the SAT because they didn't go all the way.

"38-1 is a massive achievement, but there will always be the what-ifs," Bleacher Report's Joe Tansey tweeted after Saturday's loss. 

Putting the loss aside, we need to applaud the way this team put aside individual goals and aspirations for the team aspect, especially during the many times when the adversity of tough games popped up. That's when hero ball could have become an option for some players, but we never saw that, which is a testament both to John Calipari's coaching and to how every member of the Wildcats bought into what they needed to do in order to be successful.

Final grade: A

Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.