John Calipari, 66, is entering his second season as head coach of the Arkansas Razorbacks, his fourth stop in college basketball. With a brief NBA stint mixed in, Calipari can truly say he’s seen it all.
However, his time in the NBA wasn’t a resounding success. During his tenure with the New Jersey Nets, he won just 72 of 184 games and made the playoffs only once. While he’s found his groove in the college game, the allure of another shot at the NBA might still linger.
Calipari was linked to the New York Knicks job back in 2020 before Tom Thibodeau was ultimately hired. Now, with the position open again, Calipari’s name has resurfaced among possible candidates.
Adam Zagoria of NJ.com recently covered the speculation and Calipari’s response.
“I’ve been at Arkansas for one year," Calipari said on ‘Golic and Golic’ via FanDuel Sports Network. "People are totally committed to me personally. I’m coaching at Arkansas. But they [the Knicks] have a great organization and a terrific team. But it’s not for everybody. You guys know coaching the Knicks is like coaching some college teams; it’s not for everybody. But you have everything you need to win, and you have New York City. Someone’s going to get a hell of a job.”
Arkansas Razorbacks head coach John Calipari.
Arkansas Razorbacks head coach John Calipari.
Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images
Calipari has built a Hall of Fame résumé. Inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015, he led Arkansas to a 22-14 record and a Sweet 16 appearance last season.
Before that, he spent 15 years at Kentucky, where he piled up 410 wins and reached the Final Four with four different teams. His 2011-12 squad won the national title, while the 2013-14 team finished as runners-up. The Wildcats also made the Final Four in 2010-11 and 2014-15, and reached the Elite Eight in six out of eight seasons during that run.
Calipari was named the AP College Coach of the Year in 2015. He’s also earned Naismith College Coach of the Year honors three times (1996, 2008 and 2015) and was named Coach of the Year twice by Basketball Times (1996, 2009).
Despite his name being floated for the Knicks vacancy, it seems Calipari is content staying put in Fayetteville, for now.