On Tuesday, head Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari took to social media to deny all reports of him being interested in the head coaching vacancy with the New Orleans Pelicans. Late Wednesday afternoon, Calipari is back in the news as the news of his contract extension with the Wildcats has become public.
How’s that for denying all NBA rumors? According to The Courier-Journal in Lexington, the contract is for seven years, $54 million, which locks him in until 2022. As was with his old contract, Calipari earns no bonuses for the team’s on-court performance, but maintaining a 950 in the NCAA’s Academic Progress Rate would earn him an extra $50,000 per year.
In the last five seasons, Calipari has led his team to four Final Four appearances, two of which the team played in the title game. The Wildcats won the 2012 National Championship and last year became the first major conference team to enter the NCAA Tournament undefeated since Indiana did in 1971.
Before Calipari, Kentucky had never had the number one pick in the NBA Draft and are now set to tie Duke for the most number one picks all-time.
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*Featured Photo (above) credit to USA TODAY Sports
