John Calipari

John Calipari is a Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer and head coach of the University of Arkansas men’s basketball team. He joined the University of Arkansas after 15 years at the University of Kentucky where he guided six teams to the Final Four and led the 2011-12 UK team to a national championship. Calipari has helped over 50 players earn selection in the NBA Draft during his 31-year college coaching career. 

The second winningest coach in UK program history has a 387-113 record at Kentucky with four Final Four appearances, six Southeastern Conference regular-season championships, and six league tournament titles. 

Calipari is one of just two coaches to win Naismith Coach of the Year three times and, with an 832-253 on-court record, he ranks among the top 10 in all-time Division I victories.  

Motivated by the drive to draw others to a good cause, Calipari has tried to lead by example and instill servant leadership as one of the pillars of his program. He continually encourages his players to lead with a kind heart and has included them in a number of causes throughout his career. Those experiences, while a player under Calipari, have paved the way for the likes of Devin Booker, DeMarcus Cousins, and John Wall to earn the NBA Cares Community Assist Award. 

Calipari has spearheaded the creation of the John McLendon Minority Leadership Initiative, a nationwide coach-driven initiative to provide minorities a jump-start to their careers through practical experiences, opportunities to build their network, and instilling the values of John McLendon: integrity, education, leadership, and mentorship. Participants in the initiative will be known as MLI Future Leaders.

Just last November, Calipari also was recognized for his work in putting others first when he received the Jefferson Award for Outstanding Public Service in Sports by Multiplying Good. The organization, which has honored many of the country’s most significant trailblazers and changemakers for more than 50 years, is the world’s most foremost and highly-celebrated organization focused on and honoring public service.

Author of five books, including the New York Times Best Seller “Players First: Coaching from the Inside Out,” Calipari is a master of communication and maximizing talent. He lives by the motto that “it’s never a matter of how far you have fallen, but instead it’s about how high you bounce back.”

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