Kentucky Basketball: Are Wildcats falling behind on and off the court?

While unlikely, could Calipari head back to the NBA?

Calipari has been one of the most successful coaches in college basketball over the last 30-plus years. He has stints at three schools, UMass, Memphis, and Kentucky and that includes a national championship with Kentucky and final four trips with UMass and Memphis that were later vacated due to NCAA violations. The hall-of-fame coach has done it all and is seemingly still going strong.

After his final season with the Minutemen, he dabbled briefly in the NBA before returning to the college ranks at Memphis. He spent a little over two years as the head man of the new jersey nets where he amassed a record of 72-112 before he was fired. Following that he spent one year on the staff of the Philadelphia 76ers as his final professional stop.

As is often the case when a college coach has an abundance of success, the NBA comes calling, or at least the rumors swirl about a possible jump to the Association. Billy Donovan, Brad Stevens, and John Beilein are recent examples of coaches that made the jump, and some might wonder if might be a good time for Calipari to try his hand at the NBA if he wanted.

I would think that if he wanted to make the jump it would have to be for just the right situation. In recent days there has been speculation that the right situation may have opened up, in Los Angeles. The Lakers recently fired frank Vogel leaving the storied franchise with an opening they could fill with an attention-grabbing name like Calipari. The job could also appeal to the coach because of the history of success with the Lakers and the opportunity to coach one of the greatest players in the history of the game, Lebron James.

While it is more likely that Calipari stays at Kentucky, the allure of the Lakers could certainly make for an interesting decision.