Since starting his coaching career at UMass in the late 1980s, Calipari has guided 50 players to achieve their dream of being drafted into the NBA. His first success was with Minutemen forward Marcus Camby, who was taken No. 2 overall in 1996.
Other notable players such as Anthony Davis, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Derrick Rose, Tyreke Evans, John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, and Devin Booker have all played under Calipari before moving on to successful professional careers. This reputation has been a hallmark of Calipari’s career, and now Arkansas stands to benefit from his expertise.
Calipari is a sentimental coach who keeps track of his players’ progress and understands the key elements for effective recruiting. While society often measures greatness by championships, Calipari believes this can be an unfair standard.
Not prioritizing winning doesn’t mean a coach lacks dedication; they all want to win. Calipari focuses on developing young men both as basketball players and individuals, preparing them for the league or workforce.
“My legacy will be what they do and what they overcome. Not records and all the other stuff,” Calipari said after Kentucky’s win last season against Vanderbilt. “It is how the guys that I’m coaching overcome challenges and respond, and how that helps them throughout their lives.”
Calipari’s arrival in Fayetteville in April was met with great excitement. He has consistently won at a high level throughout his five decades in college basketball.
Arkansas will set high standards, reflecting the significant effort the athletic department put into bringing Calipari to the team. Advancing past the Elite Eight should be the Razorbacks’ next goal come tournament time.
Patience with Calipari as he establishes his program will be rewarded with lifelong appreciation. How he is treated at Arkansas will significantly influence the national perception of the program after his tenure.
“Being at Kentucky, really hard being here,” Calipari said. “You struggle, it’s an avalanche, it is. And it’s personal and it’s nasty. But it’s okay, because the other side of it is there’s no better place to build yourself, get mentally tough and strong, and present yourself on the biggest stage, which is Kentucky basketball. But it’s a difficult road.”
During his introductory press conference with Arkansas and national media, Calipari explained his coaching philosophy: there’s life after basketball.
“[Coach] Larry Brown told me early in my career, ‘If you care about the kids, authentically care about the kids, you’ll always have a job because they’ll always want to play for you, and whatever you do they’ll want to come to you. If you authentically care,’” Calipari said.
“The great thing about kids, they can smell it. They know if you’re a fraud. Do you add value? If you add value to young people, you’re always going to have a job. That means someone is going to say, ‘I want him to coach my guys.’”
“I’ve lived by two things: good people and care. Care more than anybody else. Now, caring doesn’t mean you are soft. My practices — they’re hard. I don’t swear, cuss, and throw balls. That’s not who I am, but the standard is really high. My job is to help them do things they didn’t think they could do and then let them feel good about that. That’s what I try to do.”
