“Doesn’t yell or curse”: Kentucky player Ansley Almonor heaps praise on Mark Pope for his “different” coaching style

Mark Pope saw his coaching career take a surge when he was given the head coach role in Kentucky. He had a tough job on his hands when he found a roster he had to rebuild. However, that part of his job is done now.

Now, Pope's job is to instill a winning culture at Kentucky by bringing the new players together. There is a need to spark camaraderie, and according to Kentucky's Ansley Almonor, Pope is doing a brilliant job.

"He talks to all of us like we're the best player ever," Almonor said (per Kentucky Sports Radio's Jack Pilgrim). "He allows the guys to play, pumps a lot of confidence into his players. Mark Pope doesn't yell or curse - and it's been different - but his coaching approach is working with his guys."

Maybe this is Pope's way of coaching, which he talked about when he was compared with John Calipari, the former Kentucky coach.

"He's [Calipari] one of the best to ever do it, went to four Final Fours in five years. ... You just have to coach you. I have to be me. I can't be Tubby, I can't be Coach P, I can't be Cal. ... I love getting to coach me," Pope said.

Mark Pope's Kentucky gets a special visit from Coach Tubby

NCAA Basketball: High Point at Kentucky

Kentucky basketball and Mark Pope would use anything to help the new faces come along with each other before the new season. Their former head coach Tubby Smith paid a surprise visit on Friday.

On his visit, Pope pointed to the national title-winning banners and told his players:

"We talk about banner behaviors all the time," Pope said. "We talk about assignment No. 9. Coach Tubby Smith is on of these guys that gets to walk in this room and he gets to point up there at this banner."

Smith coached Kentucky from 1997 to 2007. He was named the AP College Coach of the Year in 2003 and led the Wildcats to a national title in 1998.

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