Perhaps the most shocking coaching change of the offseason has taken place with the Kentucky basketball team. Head coach John Calipari left the Wildcats to go be the new head coach at Arkansas, and it left Kentucky search for a new head coach. The Wildcats missed on some of their top candidates, and they ended up landing BYU head coach Mark Pope. Pope played for Kentucky during his college days and he ended up winning a national championship there.
It was surprising to see John Calipari make the decision to leave Kentucky basketball for Arkansas. There were rumors that he might be fired after the Wildcats failed to produce in the NCAA Tournament once again. They lost in the first round against #14 seed Oakland this year. However, news dropped shortly after the loss that Kentucky would not be moving on from him. Then, Calipari himself decided that he wanted to go to Arkansas.
A lot of fans were surprised to see that move from Calipari, and so was his former player, Devin Booker. Booker is now a star in the NBA, but he spent his college days at Kentucky playing under Calipari.
“100 percent,” Devin Booker said when he was asked if he was surprised that John Calipari left Kentucky, according to an article from The Spun. “I never thought I’d see the day. Some people asked me during the season as if they knew it was coming, but I just kept thinking that I couldn’t see him leaving Lexington. It’s strange, man. It’s something that I didn’t expect, but I hope it’s a great situation for him and his family. I saw Arkansas posted a picture of him on campus. It’s a different dynamic seeing him in red, but I wish the best for him.”
A lot of people were also surprised that Kentucky basketball then hired Mark Pope. He has the Kentucky background and he won a national title as a player, but he has zero NCAA Tournament wins in his coaching career. The whole reason that Wildcats fans wanted Calipari gone was because of his lack of recent tournament success. Devin Booker, however, thinks that it was a good hire.
“I think that’s a great situation,” Booker said. “He’s someone who is familiar with Lexington and Big Blue Nation. I don’t know much abut Mark, but maybe I’ll reach out to him. I want to stay connected to the program. He seems like the right guy for the job, so fans should give him a chance. He has big shoes to fill, but maybe he’ll bring new energy to the program.”
A new era of Kentucky basketball
It is certainly going to be weird seeing a coach that isn’t John Calipari leading the Wildcats next season. Mark Pope might not have any tournament wins, but his Kentucky background is a huge positive. He understands the importance of this program to the fans and he knows exactly what success looks like at Kentucky.
So far, Pope has had a pretty solid offseason. He missed on a couple big transfer portal targets early, but he had a good week this past week landing a couple. His roster is taking shape, and there is certainly some talent to work with there.
