Basketball in August: Cats invade Canada.

Never has August been more fun around these parts. The Cincinnati Reds are tied with the St. Louis Cardinals for 1st place in a very wild and incredibly tight NL Central race, Terrell Owens has joined fellow endzone diva Chad Ochocinco with the Bengals, and Sports Illustrated has picked Joker's first UK football team to finish 2nd place in the SEC East, tied with Georgia and just behind Florida.

If all of that wasn't enough to excite local sports fans, John Calipari has brought his Kentucky basketball squad to Canada for Big Blue basketball...in August! In the middle of all of this madness of football season approaching and the Reds fighting for their first playoff birth in 15 years, we will get to see a very early summer's glimpse of the Cats' upcoming basketball team for 3 straight days this Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday. The games can be seen on FSN South and FSN Ohio in 14 states, or online anywhere in the world at http://www.ukathletics.com/. They can also be heard on the radio on any of the flagship stations of the Big Blue Network. Basketball in August. This is fun, isn't it?

Unfortunately, freshman Center Enes Kanter will not make the trip as UK is still waiting for a word back from the NCAA regarding his amateur eligibility status after his participation with "Club teams" in his home-nation of Turkey. But fans will get to see a good look at returning players Josh Harrelson and DeAndre Liggins. Harrelson and Liggins have shown a marked improvement according to Calipari and he looks for the two to step up in starting roles, along with fellow returnee Darius Miller. Besides Kanter, the other freshman who will play big roles this year that WILL be making the trip to Canada are Brandon Knight, Doron Lamb, and Terrence Jones.

I appologize for a slow summer here on the site, but I'm ready for football season to begin and I'm equally excited for these summer basketball games in Canada. The site will pick things up right where we left off last March and will grow to be even bigger with more features than ever before.

Tomorrow will be a fun day. The Reds look to sweep the Marlins tomorrow afternoon and the Bengals will be playing their home preseason opener. But, of course, I won't be watching the Bengals because at 7:00 the Cats will tip it off vs. Windsor University and we'll wrap up all the action right here at Wildcat Wrap!

Larry Johnson Press Conference

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Here is a link to the video of Larry Johnson's Press Conference from yesterday as he was officially introduced as a Cincinnati Bengal. It's funny to hear him say he is excited to join a good team when talking about the Bengals. Here's to hoping LJ can help carry Cincinnati deep into the playoffs.

Bengals sign Johnson to One Year Deal

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Following a few days of speculation, the Bengals officially signed former Kansas City Pro-Bowl running back Larry Johnson to a one year deal. Basically, this deal boils down to a seven game contract since the team's plans with the running back is unclear after this year.

There have been arguments on both sides of the fence for this signing. On one hand, the Bengals have sured up their running back position. Starting running back, and MVP candidate, Cedric Benson left the game Sunday in Pittsburgh with a hip injury. The injury shouldn't keep Benson out of the lineup for too long, if at all, but Johnson provides some security at the position.

On the other hand, Johnson adds another player to the roster that has been trouble in the locker room in the past. It is no secret that Johnson had problems in Kansas City and was run out of town following a gay slur directed toward his former coach. Luckily, the Bengals have not had the personnel problems they have had in the past, so maybe Marvin Lewis and the front office feel that they can handle bringing Johnson into the mix.

I'm interested to hear what the Bengals' fans in cyberspace think about this signing. Personally, I'm split on this decision. Johnson is a former Pro-Bowler who the Bengals are getting at a huge discount (the Bengals will only pay him $255,290 for the remainder of the season). However, I am a big believer locker room chemistry and how it can affect the team, so I don't know if this was the best decision for the Bengals to make.

What do you all think?