With now former co-host Skip Bayless headed off to greener pastures at FOX Sports 1, polarizing sports pundit Stephen A. Smith is in need of a replacement to continue one of sports giant ESPN’s flagship shows.
For Thursday morning at least, that replacement will be none other than Kentucky head coach John Calipari.
TOMORROW: @UKCoachCalipari joins @stephenasmith the desk on First Take for a full hour of debate! pic.twitter.com/La1YCf1YYt
— First Take (@FirstTake) June 22, 2016
One of college basketball’s one-and-done titans, Calipari was most likely brought on the show since, rather unsurprisingly, the NBA Draft takes place Thursday night.
With former players of his in Jamal Murray, Skal Labissiere and Tyler Ulis all projected to be first-round picks in the draft, the Wildcats’ coach will likely have a lot to say regarding the day’s biggest topic.
First Take host Molly Qerim will also throw at the duo the most controversial and intriguing headlines pertaining to college basketball, something Calipari is no stranger to.
The show will undoubtedly bring up the topic of one-and-done recruiting and the ethics of it at least once. Calipari has had quite the talkative off-season, unabashedly giving his take on Rick Pitino’s fiasco over at rival Louisville and taking a slight jab at Mike Krzyzewski’s recruiting tactics at Duke.
All in all, there should be a great show lined up for us with fresh and outspoken opinions from the candid Calipari and the, as usual, unapologetic Smith.
Photo Credit: UK Athletics
