Kentucky Basketball: 8 potential candidates to become next HC if John Calipari leaves

Eric Musselman

Thirty-nine years ago the Wildcats hired Eddie Sutton as their new head coach, luring him away from Arkansas in 1985. Wouldn’t it be something if Kentucky raids their SEC rivals a second time for a new head coach? It’s not as wild as it seems, as Musselman is certainly a rising name in the sport based on his success in recent years.

Musselman bounced around as a coach all over the place, coaching in the NBA, CBA, and G-League, including stints as head coach of the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings. He created immense success including a Sweet Sixteen run in four years at Nevada before Arkansas hired him in 2019. Musselman would then lead the Razorbacks to the Elite Eight in the first two seasons after the pandemic and a Sweet Sixteen last season.

This year has been tough at Arkansas for Musselman and his program, but he’s showed his merit across these nine years as a collegiate head coach. He’s won significantly more Tournament games than Calipari in recent years, has four second weekend trips at March Madness, and has shown he can build teams that can compete in this day and age. We’ll just have to see if he’s happy at Arkansas or looking for a bigger challenge with the Wildcats.