Oscar Tshiebwe's Selflessness, Bond with Teammates Pushing Kentucky in Right Direction
Kentucky basketball's 2022-23 season is one that's been filled with turmoil.
Coach John Calipari's teams haven't always been known for smooth sailing from November to March, but this year's team has whooshed around the rockiest of seas, only comparable to something out of a "Pirates of the Caribbean" movie.
Calipari isn't exactly the Jack Sparrow type, but he does usually find a way to get the ship to its destination — or in his words, land the plane.
Kentucky left the dock at point-A with great expectations, reliant upon a touted crew, containing a mixture of experienced deckhands and a few new mates, all of whom originally set sail towards prestigious treasure: a ninth National Championship.
But, thanks to a few wrong turns, some stormy nights and a lack of cohesion from the crew, the Wildcats were quickly sinking, cannonballing downward towards another disappointing season in Lexington. Point-B has since been altered to a different, much more attainable treasure: making the NCAA Tournament.
Likely not the location that Captain Calipari was anticipating amidst his team's first battle on Nov. 7 at home against Howard, but anything beats drowning in the rugged waters of SEC play.
Lucky for Calipari, his quartermaster happens to be the reigning National Player of the Year, Oscar Tshiebwe. Since coming aboard in the 2021-22 season, the charismatic swashbuckler has often been the reason that UK's missions turn successful.
Not only is Tshiebwe a bucket-getting, board-banging buccaneer, but he's also the glue that keeps his crewmates banded together as a unit, on and off the ship.
(Okay, enough with the pirate metaphors.)
On a much more serious note, Tshiebwe has — almost — always been a glass half-full, praiseful and cheery-eyed individual, who's had nothing but positive things to say when addressing the good and the bad surrounding Kentucky hoops over the last two years.
If there's any real indication as to how hard this season had gotten for UK, then it came after the loss to South Carolina at home, when even Tshiebwe couldn't find that needle of positivity amidst the haystack of horrendous basketball that the Wildcats were playing through.
"Some of us — we’re not willing to fight, some of my teammates, we just got to be able to fight. I told them you put on (the) Kentucky (jersey) for good reason. Kentucky in front of you means a lot, you come here to chase greatness. If you’re not willing to fight in this place, it’s gonna be tough,” Tshiebwe told reporters after what he labeled as 'the worst loss in the history of Kentucky'. “Some of us are taking things for granted."
Being the leader that he is, Tshiebwe then issued an apology to his teammates, though the message was sent. From that game onward, Kentucky has had the make-up of an entirely different basketball team, one that carries poise, grit and determination, even if it still isn't putting out an amazing product night-in and night-out.
At the forefront of the new side of the Wildcats has been none other than Tshiebwe. Whether it's putting the team on his back via a 37-point, 24-rebound performance, or hosting his teammates to chat about religion, life and working through the kinks, he's doing what he can to bring his fellow Cats together. So much so, that he feels like he — the best rebounder in basketball and candidate to repeat as NPOY — doesn't need to be on the court during games as much, instead wishing for his teammates to play more:
"I just want to see everybody happy and everybody coming here to play. I'm playing a lot of minutes, but I don't think I should play all of the minutes. For me myself, I feel like it's selfish because there's some people on the bench who need minutes. This place is a place for everybody to come in and share minutes," Tshiebwe said. "I want success for everybody. They come here for a very good reason. I'm not a selfish person who just wants everything for myself, I want everybody to achieve ,I want everybody to get something little because they came here for a reason."
One of those teammates is sophomore Daimion Collins. The Atlanta, Texas native was once tabbed as a crucial role player for Kentucky in the lead-up to the season, but he's since had to go through hell and back, dealing with the loss of his father, Ben, who passed away unexpectedly on Nov. 1.
Ben had just moved to Lexington to be with Daimion, and was even rebounding for his son on campus the night before he suddenly died. Daimion would step away from the team, missing UK's final exhibition and the first two games of the regular season.
Upon returning, he would feature somewhat frequently off the bench throughout the beginning of the non-conference schedule, but began to get lost in the shuffle as SEC play neared.
The former 5-star prospect hadn't been able to squeeze into the rotation, not playing in UK's next five games after the South Carolina defeat. That streak would end on Tuesday in Oxford, as Collins nabbed a couple of minutes in the Wildcats' 75-66 win over Ole Miss.
While his time on the court was minimal, he still managed an impressive highlight dunk to add to his college reel:
He would go on to sink two free throws before heading back to the bench, giving Kentucky a much-needed spark. Tshiebwe wasn't on the court when Collins dropped the hammer, but if he was, he would've been the first one to high-five his teammate.
Calipari never put Collins back in the game after Tshiebwe checked in, despite Tshiebwe pleading otherwise, wanting to let the 6-foot-9 forward stay on the court.
"I was happy for (Collins) to get in and do what he does," Tshiebwe told reporters on Friday. "Coach was telling me 'go get him,' I said 'coach he's doing good. Let him play, let him play.'"
The pair of big men have spent plenty of time around each other this season. Tshiebwe is often the aggressor in shootaround and warmups pregame, enjoying a playful shoving match, joking around and doing what he can to get a rise out of Collins.
While it could be looked at as just a budding friendship, Tshiebwe now carries a deep and unfortunate relation to Collins through the loss of a father.
Tshiebwe's father was a pastor, a man who instilled faith into the heart of Oscar, a man whom Oscar labeled "my hero." He was poisoned and died when Tshiebwe was just 12.
Knowing the painstaking feelings and emotions that Collins has been dealing with, Tshiebwe has made it a point to do whatever he can to be there for his brother. Often times that's getting him to focus on basketball.
"Every time I see him, I just go and hug him because I can see how much pain he has but doesn't show, because I went through that," he said. "I want to get him to forget about things, I want to get him to have fun. That's why sometimes I go hug him and say 'come here, bro, you're my brother, I love you.'"
"I think it affected my mind for a couple years — for me to be normal it took so many years," Tshiebwe continued about the loss of his father. "I'm just praying for him, because I can see him now to start learning how to let it go. It's going to take a little while to heal, but we just need people to keep praying for him. He will be good. He's a kid who loves basketball. He works hard all the time."
Collins' 4-point outburst in Oxford on Tuesday was a reminder that he can still be a contributing piece to Kentucky, as it seeks to reach its goals at the end of this season. Tshiebwe will be the first one to tell him just that.
Tshiebwe is the motor, the heart, the leader — whatever you want to call it — for Kentucky and his teammates. Through selflessness, faith and confidence, he's doing whatever it takes to will the Wildcats together, and it just so happens that it's also paying dividends on the court.
With nine games left in the regular season, Kentucky continues its trek to making the NCAA Tournament this Saturday, hosting the Florida Gators. Tipoff is set for 8:30 p.m. EST.
More on Kentucky's win over Ole Miss HERE.
Game notes from the victory can be found HERE.
WATCH: Antonio Reeves, Chris Livingston speak following Ole Miss win.
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