The Kentucky Wildcats are moving in a new direction with their basketball program. After his second first-round exit in the last three tournaments and his third straight March Madness appearance without a Sweet 16 berth, longtime Wildcats head coach John Calipari will not be returning to the sidelines. The longtime Kentucky head coach is finalizing a deal to become the next head coach at Arkansas, a position left vacant after Eric Musselman took the USC opening when Andy Enfield moved to SMU.
Sources: John Calipari is finalizing a five-year deal to become the next coach at Arkansas. The deal is expected to be completed in the next 24 hours.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) April 8, 2024
Here’s a look at the top candidates to replace Calipari in what is arguably the biggest college basketball job in the country. Kentucky is going to be able to get any coach it wants on the phone, so the question will be whether the Wildcats will offer enough to pull a top guy away from his current program.
Bruce Pearl, Auburn
Entering the 2024 NCAA Tournament, Pearl is 214-118 at Auburn. After a few rough years getting the program going, the head coach has turned the Tigers into an absolute powerhouse. Auburn has dominated the SEC behind Pearl’s ability to recruit at a high level and make great adjustments during games. Of course, there are some questionable tactics but that’s a relic of the past with NIL being more prevalent and the transfer portal being more open. Pearl shouldn’t have any trouble re-tooling Kentucky, especially with a boost in resources. He’s had success everywhere he’s gone and the off-court stuff won’t matter as long as he’s winning games. He’s the top choice, with the only question being if he’ll leave Auburn after what he’s built there.
Dan Hurley, UConn
Hurley leaving UConn seems unlikely, especially since he’s from the Northeast and has achieved tremendous success with the Huskies. He brought this program back to prominence after some time in the wilderness, and there appears to be no stopping him going forward. He’ll absolutely pick up the phone for Kentucky but this will have to be an amazing offer. After developing good teams at Rhode Island and UConn, Hurley would be a great candidate to remodel the entire Kentucky program.
T.J. Otzelberger, Iowa State
Otzelberger has built up the Iowa State program after Fred Hoiberg left, making the NCAA tournament in each of his three seasons and advancing to the Sweet 16 twice. He’s got a good reputation as a defensive mastermind, and he’s going to be able to recruit at a high level with Kentucky. The Wildcats have been on the “one and done” train for too long now and need a change in direction, which Otzelberger provides. He doesn’t have any SEC ties but he’s been successful in the college game recently and likely would make the jump.
Scott Drew, Baylor
Calipari is out because of his failure to win games in the tournament consistently. Drew built up Baylor from nothing and has routinely made March runs, even winning a title in 2020-21. He’s only lost in the first round of the tournament three times, although he only has one Final Four appearance which came when the Bears won it all. Drew should be able to continue getting NBA talent at Kentucky but has been a bit more consistent of late in the big dance than Calipari.
Mark Few, Gonzaga
Few appears to be a lifer at Gonzaga, content with his gig despite some pretty sizable failures. He’s proven the Bulldogs can win a national title, so there’s not really any reason to go elsewhere. However, Gonzaga is not going to be able to hold out in conference realignment talks much longer and there’s not an obvious fit with the Pac-12 suddenly going up in smoke. There’s a chance Few is tempted by Kentucky’s vast resources, and he’s got a great resume when it comes to building title contenders. The approach will be completely different from Calipari’s but isn’t that what people want?
Billy Donovan, Chicago Bulls
There have been some rumblings about Donovan returning to the college ranks since Calipari left. Donovan exited Florida after nearly 20 seasons to go coach the Oklahoma City Thunder after 2015. He’s been the coach of the Bulls since 2020 and Chicago hasn’t really gone anywhere. The Kentucky job would be very appealing to Donovan and he’s familiar with the school and SEC. It really comes down to whether or not Donovan wants to give up on his quest to win an NBA Championship.