Kentucky is keeping John Calipari another year, and fans couldn't believe it
Despite another shocking early men’s NCAA tournament exit, Kentucky is reportedly keeping coach John Calipari for the upcoming season.
Kentucky Sports Radio’s Matt Jones reported on Tuesday that Calipari met with the school and will be retained for the 2024-25 season. Kentucky athletic director Mitch Barnhart later confirmed the news.
“As we normally do at the end of every season, Coach Calipari and I have had conversations about the direction of our men's basketball program and I can confirm that he will return for his 16th season as our head coach,” Barnhart wrote on Twitter (X).
Even though he’s one of the best coaches the school has ever had and won a national title with the Wildcats in 2012, the program has been on a steady decline in recent years despite producing elite NBA draft prospects.
However, Calipari’s astronomical buyout in a firing (nearly $35 million) and his star-studded 2024 recruiting class likely convinced Kentucky to give its long-time coach another chance this fall.
That didn’t stop basketball fans from expressing their disbelief at the news (and making a few jokes in the process).