John Calipari had to rebuild his career in the college ranks after his first professional stint with the Nets flamed out spectacularly. That story was detailed in a 30 for 30 this spring, along with just how he’s reestablished Kentucky as a premier program for five-star talent, winning a national championship in the process.
Calipari has been at Kentucky for eight seasons now, and though his name has been floated in NBA rumors in the past (notably, perhaps, when he was supposedly being considered to take over LeBron’s Cavs), nothing concrete has emerged over that stretch of time. In the wake of Phil Jackson’s Knicks tenure imploding, though, there’s an ESPN report from Ian Begley saying Calipari is seriously exploring that opportunity:
Kentucky head coach John Calipari reached out to knicks (sic) through intermediaries to express interest in the Knicks presidency, per ESPN league sources. The Knicks do not have interest in Calipari at the moment, per league sources. Presumably, Calipari would want to coach as well if he took over as president.
Calipari previously had control over basketball ops in New Jersey, as well as coaching the team, but the league has evolved to a point where such arrangements are scarce. Gregg Popovich has sway over roster decisions in San Antonio, but relies upon a universally respected executive in R.C. Buford. Doc Rivers, Tom Thibodeau, Stan Van Gundy, and Mike Budenholzer are the only coaches who also officially have that power, while Rick Carlisle and Jason Kidd also have a lot of personnel influence, if not complete control.
Calipari certainly spent a long time assembling high-level teams at the college level, and does have pro experience. His time over the past decade in college, scouting, coaching, and coaching against the players who now make up the bulk of the NBA’s talent, would certainly seem to serve him well. But the Knicks just spent years being led by Phil Jackson, who was clearly not qualified to run a modern NBA franchise, and in the not-so-distant past were led by Isiah Thomas, who is pretty clearly not qualified to run a modern Arby’s franchise. (That he may have been a candidate for his old job does not bode well for James Dolan’s decision-making prowess, though we all pretty much knew where he lives on that scale.)
Could Calipari coach at the NBA level? Absolutely. The success of Brad Stevens, and the fact that Calipari at the very least seems to be able to connect with players, while running a pro-style system, would mean the Knicks could do worse. But they already have a coach in Jeff Hornacek who’s been stuck with Jackson’s triangle offense, a far cry from what Hornacek ran in Phoenix that got him the job to begin with.
It would seem prudent for the Knicks to create a stable front office situation, which would be a first in a very long time for the franchise. That likely means hiring a real, honest-to-God modern NBA GM, who can come in and steady the ship, making the right calls for both the short and long-term health of the team, while evaluating Hornacek under conditions that might actually allow him to succeed. (Maybe even…gasp…Sam Hinkie? Think about it!)
Cal’s interest in the job makes sense; resurrecting the Knicks would be a marquee accomplishment. But the Knicks already did one smart thing by firing Jackson before he could do more damage.
Maybe James Dolan can do the smart thing twice in a row for the first time ever.
UPDATE: Predictably, Calipari has denied this overture, which is the whole point of having intermediaries.
