John Calipari is fresh off a loss in the NCAA basketball championship game and already he is being asked about his coaching future. The man could not even get out of the arena before being asked about rumors that he would be headed to the NBA next season, departing from Kentucky. Calipari is denying any and all rumors of that report being true.
Sometime during the championship game, Rex Champman, former Kentucky/NBA player and current announcer, tweeted that Calipari taking over the Los Angeles Lakers was pretty much a "done deal" according to "NBA sources." He "reported" on Twitter that "Cal 2 La-La-Land 2 coach Mamba's Lakers. #BS." Naturally, the media took that tweet and ran with it, asking Calipari if the rumor was true.
"The Lakers have a basketball coach. Kentucky has a basketball coach. I got the best job in the country. I'm not going to even dignify that stuff," Calipari said, via CBSSports.com.
The Lakers were quick to respond about the report that Calipari could possibly be replacing Mike D'Antoni next season. Mitch Kupchak told the Los Angeles Times that there have been no conversations regarding the team's coaching future. Just recently, the Los Angeles Times reported that it appeared the Lakers were leaning towards retaining D'Antoni for at least one more season. Financially that would make the most sense. D'Antoni has one more year guaranteed on his contract, so the team must pay him regardless.
However, numerous players have spoken out against D'Antoni. Kobe Bryant said the team needs several adjustments that begin with the coaching staff and front office personnel. Steve Nash said he believed D'Antoni and Bryant were simply a bad fit for one another and that has hurt success. Pau Gasol has publically criticized the head coach for certain play calls. Would hiring Calipari please the marquee players?
Calipari certainly has a name that pulls some weight. He has experience with NBA players while coaching for international teams. Most of his roster departs for the NBA every season, proving he can coach up talent. Landing the Kentucky coach could be the move Los Angeles needs to attract big stars to the Lakers in free agency. Right now, nothing is happening, but do not rule it out for the future.
