And I don’t need to be tellin’ ya what I’m talkin’ ’bout.

Coach Cal was in town today to regale the Big Blue Contingent.

Tomorrow (Thursday) is U of L’s basketball luncheon. Which will be interesting if only to see how Rick Pitino is greeted by the Red & Black Nation.

So, I’m starting to get my hoops chops loosened up. And I’ve got a few questions, the answers to which Hoopsylvania fans will be seeking when the season starts. It’s just weeks away, kids.

First, a couple of rumors I can debunk from the get go.

There is no truth to gossip that the Cavs are talking to Mitch Barnhart in hopes of trading LeBron and Shaq for Walls, Cousins and a 10th grader to be named later. Nor has preseason #1 Bellarmine been established as 3 1/2 point favorite in its 11/04 exhi against U of L. Which brings us to  . . . my first query.

1. Given how slow Rick Pitino’s Cardinal squads traditionally start, do the Norris Place Knights have a legit shot at winning?

2. How will the diehards cope with UK’s first loss this season? Coach Cal spent a long time this noon, paving the way to reduced expectations.

3. Is U of L being underrated or overrated during the preseason? Most pundits have the Cards in the lower echelon of their Top 25s. The team lost two first rounders, but has a lot of experience — and talent — returning. One guy’s opinion is that it’s the most intriguing season during the Pitino era. The Cards could be Final Four . . . or out the door.

4. How improved will the Crimson and Crean be? Got to be better than last season, right?

5. Will consensus #1 Kansas overcome all the preseason team turmoil to meet the lofty expectations of Rock Chalk Jayhawk fans?

6. Is this the year Huggy Bear starts mauling conference foes in the BEast the way he did in those other conferences?

7. Is frosh Avery Bradley the kid who can finally get Rick Barnes and Texas off the Jim Boeheim schneid?

8. Is the Duke Era really, finally, at last, over?

9. Will Clemson and Oliver Purnell finally meet some post season expectations?

10. Is Siena this season’s George Mason?

11. Will ESPN finally realize that Digger Phelps is an idiot who makes no sense and send him packing?

12. Who will wilt first — Steve Welmer, Curtis Shaw or Tim Higgins — all of whom call way too many games?

13. Will the “experts” finally stop overrating Gonzaga?

14. Will Ben Howland’s Bruins play any offense at all?

15. Will Renardo Sidney play a minute for Mississippi State?

16. Whither Isaiah Thomas?

17. Are we waiting to see John Wall go head to head with Kemba Walker or what?

18. Will U of L have a new pigskin coach by the UK game? (I know, I know, this isn’t really a hoops question, but the devil made me do it.)

19. Will George Goode be Louisville’s sleeper weapon like I think he will?

20. Will Butler or Dayton be the surprise team that really isn’t a surprise? Or will it be somebody else that might really come out of the hoops wilderness?

21. Who wins on 01/02?

Okay, that’s enough to get us started. After all, it is still football season . . . isn’t it?

– Seedy K