By LARRY VAUGHT
(LEXINGTON, Ky.)-The first time Greg Williams, the father of Kentucky freshman Kam Williams, saw Mo Dioubate at a UK summer camp he knew who the team’s leader was going to be.
“There was just something about the way he carried himself. He had a commanding presence about him and certainly passes the look test to be a team’s leader,” Greg Williams said.
Kentucky coach Mark Pope believes some players are born with leadership capability and others develop leadership skills. He just wants to make sure he has leaders on his team.
“People and coaches used to sit around and complain about having guys who can play but not having anybody on the team who talks. I don’t have any leaders on my team,” said the Kentucky coach. “To me, that’s our job as coaches is to develop leaders. That’s what we do, or should do. Our job is to grow and develop leaders.
“You have some guys who have natural inclinations to be leaders. You have guys that roll onto your campus that have some experience in leadership positions and have characteristics that could make them great leaders. And you have guys that roll into campus that can lead in different ways. You find that you have a bunch of guys that can lead all in different slices of your leadership package.”
Pope said Dioubate, a 6-foot-7, 220-pound transfer from Alabama, has his “own little unique cadence” when it comes to leadership.
“I think he’s going to be a physical leader on our team. I think he’s going to be, in some ways, a really great emotional leader for our team,” Pope said.
Pope sees a “little slice” of Amari Williams, last season’s starting center for Kentucky, when it comes to leadership.
“They are a little alike in terms of being a caretaker. He wants to watch out for his guys,” the Kentucky coach said. “There’s that instinct in him to just take care of his family that I think runs really deep for him. I think it’s partly part of his faith. I think it’s partly a part of this makeup. I’ve seen him do that with his own family.
“I think he’s got some chances because his skill set is so unique. So with the way we play, I think he has a way to exude a special type of leadership.”
Assistant coach Mikhail McLean emphasizes that Dioubate’s physical present at the power forward spot will benefit UK’s bigs. ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas named Dioubate to his preseason all-defensive team.
“He’s one of the best rebounders in the country and he will do a lot of special things to open things up for our bigs,” McLean said.
He played in a Final Four his freshman season at Alabama and in the Elite Eight last season when he played in all 37 games and averaged 7.2 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. He had six double-doubles, including four against SEC opponents.
Dioubate liked Pope’s recruiting pitch to just be himself at Kentucky and do what he does best.
“Anthony Davis, Bam Adebayo, Tayshaun Prince—those guys came through here. I respect that history,” Dioubate said during the summer. “But I’m not trying to be them. I’m trying to be the first Mo Dioubate to come out of Kentucky.”
Former UK All-American thinks the “first Mo Dioubate” is a perfect fit for this team as he showed in the exhibition win over Purdue.
“He led the team in rebounding with nine, blocked two shots and had two steals. He did a little bit of everything and that’s what you want your leader to do. And obviously I love the way he defended and that’s something he will always do,” Givens said.
PHOTO COURTESY-Vicky Graff
