Arkansas Razorbacks head coach John Calipari was no short of a legend when it comes to his time with Kentucky, especially the sway he held over recruits. However, there came a time when even he got humbled and outsmarted.
This happened in November 2018 when James Wiseman, the No. 1 prospect in the Class of 2019, chose Penny Hardaway’s Memphis over Kentucky. Before that, the Wildcats were seen as a lock to land the 7-foot unicorn out of Memphis East High School. Also, this was just the first year of Hardaway being hired as the head coach of Memphis. Moreover, Wiseman may have chosen Hardaway over Calipari since the former was his AAU and high school coach.
Following the move, Calipari called himself “overrated” in terms of recruiting.
“I think I’m overrated as a recruiter,” Calipari said in 2018 via ESPN. “We’ve had kids that made the decision to come here, and it’s played out well for almost all of them. My thing is, I want to be able to sleep at night. I want to make sure I’m telling the truth. I want to make sure I’m sticking with guys.
“We don’t get every kid. We get the ones we are supposed to get. It just kind of plays out that way and it always has.”
Calipari also added that, on what he thinks may have played a part when high school stars commit to another program.
“It’s not changed my approach to this,” Calipari said. “Maybe because of social media and the video games and the stuff, and there’s not as much on the playgrounds and the pickup and the fight — maybe they do want to hear that it’s gonna be easier.”
John Calipari Gets Real And Comes to Terms That Not Everyone Will Choose Kentucky
The same ESPN column also mentions that John Calipari has made peace when standout recruits don’t commit to him. He said the competition in recruiting has hit another level and maybe not everyone sees his program as the best option for their future.
“I gotta be able to sleep at night knowing that I’m being honest. I’m not embellishing: ‘Here’s what it is,'” Calipari said. “I’m not saying that against anybody else, everybody recruits the way they recruit. But you’ve got good programs and good coaches, and that’s why we don’t get everybody we recruit. We’re not the only ones out there trying to get good players and trying to help kids.”
From 2009 to 2017, Kentucky, under Calipari’s guidance, ranked top two in recruiting classes. This is no mean feat and it speaks a lot about Coach Cal being placed in high regard from top high school stars at the time.
