ATLANTA – Even as he's physically aged and earned long-overdue respect for his coaching acumen, the petulant child within John Calipari has never fully been subdued. In the midst of this frustrating season at Kentucky, one that started with talk of going undefeated and instead veered too often toward mediocre basketball, Calipari has been less a statesman and more the brat from 20 years ago, dispatching assistants to his media responsibilities, getting himself thrown out of games and pushing back against the scrutiny his job invites.
Calipari's insolence, though, can be his best quality as much as his worst. Though he has struggled to get a handle on his über-talented team – often believing Kentucky was on the verge of putting it together, only to watch an implosion – give Calipari this much: No matter what has transpired on the court, no matter how average the Wildcats have looked much of the season or how badly they've torpedoed their NCAA Tournament seeding with losses to the likes of South Carolina and Arkansas, he never believed this bunch was beyond repair.
Dan Wolken, USA TODAY Sports
No comments:
Post a Comment