The mere mention of Kentucky's rabid fan base elicits a good-natured laugh from G.J. Vilarino.

Even from a distance, the point guard from McKinney, Texas, has already felt the love, scrutiny and obsessive behavior of some UK fans.

From the moment he verbally committed to become a Wildcat in April of 2007, days after Billy Gillispie was introduced as the 21st head coach in UK history, Vilarino has been bombarded by eager fans through cyberspace on both his myspace and facebook pages.

Some of them ask to be his "friend," while others send him well wishes.

"I know that they are really passionate about basketball, that's their main interest down there," Vilarino said over the phone. "They just tell me they can't wait for me to go there and all that stuff.

"It makes me feel good."

Vilarino, who has been on campus twice, plans to take an official visit to UK on Oct. 17, according to his father, Gerry Vilarino.

Before Vilarino can return the favor by helping the Wildcats win games, he has spent the summer preparing for his senior season at McKinney High.

He competed for the Texas Select traveling team and participated at different events including the LeBron James Skills Academy and Steve Nash Skills Academy. In addition, he traveled to Paris as part of the adidas U.S. national team that competed against players from other countries.

"It was a really good summer for me," said Vilarino, who averaged about 20 points per game and five assists per game as a junior.  "I worked on a lot of things.

"I was just trying to get better at all of my skills. I got to travel a lot. I had a lot fun. I'm used to playing against people from the U.S. so the best part was playing people from different countries."

Vilarino and 6-feet-6 swingman Jon Hood, of Madisonville, KY, are the only two players from the class of 2009 who have orally committed to UK so far.

But he is the one who has received the most criticism from fans who are skeptical about his ability perhaps because they have never gotten a chance to watch him play.

It's worth noting that you don't get invited to the skills academies or to play on the adidas national team alongside Derrick Favors, Lance Stephenson and Louisville-bound Peyton Siva if you're absolutely worthless.

Jonathan Givony, president of draftexpress.com that tracks potential NBA players noted that Vilarino was probably the least heralded player on the adidas 2009 national team roster, but wrote that Vilarino "probably had one of the best all-around performances of any of the 2009 high school players, which should give Kentucky fans some room for optimism that help is on the way." Givony attended the adidas Nations basketball experience and observed that Vilarino made great passes and showed a lot of toughness.

Though very quiet by nature, Vilarino had no problem addressing the negative comments he has heard about himself.

"A lot of people, they assume things and go by word of mouth and they haven't seen me play," Vilarino said. "I think I will surprise people.

"I know I can compete, I don't think that's a question. I've just heard or seen it that people might not think I'm good enough or maybe they've seen me play and I didn't have a great game."

Vilarino is not boastful when it comes to assessing his skill level, but exudes confidence every point guard needs to be an effective leader.

He considers himself an aggressive player who likes to run the floor and flourishes in an up-tempo game.

Having followed Gillispie when he was the head coach at Texas A&M, his previous post, Vilarino said he was honored to be offered a scholarship to UK.

"The school has a great history of winning and is one of the top programs in the country," Vilarino said. "I like coach Gillispie's system and how his teams play.

"That was a big factor. I've seen him play at A&M, how he runs the team. I just felt like I'd fit in perfectly with the system."

His two favorite NBA point guards are Nash and Allen Iverson, who have two distinct styles that he tries to learn from.

"Steve Nash, he's just a real smart player," Vilarino said. "He knows how to get in the cracks of the defense.

"He's not very fast but knows how to use his body and different angles to make great passes. A.I. is just a scoring point guard. I just like his mentality of scoring the ball and how is just aggressive and uses his quickness."

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