John Calipari quickly shoots down any talk of him leaving to coach Pelicans

John Calipari has been the subject of so many NBA rumors that he’s going out of his way to try to shut them down before they even get started now.

After two of his former Kentucky players, DeMarcus Cousins and Anthony Davis, were reunited with the New Orleans Pelicans, Calipari responded to a non-serious question about leaving Kentucky to coach New Orleans with a very serious answer.

“Not happening,” Calipari said Monday on the Dan Patrick Show, via Jon Hale of the Courier-Journal.

In fact, Calipari said his former players don’t want to see him in the NBA.

“I’ve held every player I coached back, if you ask them,” Calipari said. “I’d rather be in the situation I’m in to be help, to be a mentor, whatever they need me to be.”

Calipari does think Cousins and Davis can work together, but cautioned that it will probably take some time to come together.

“(Cousins) and Anthony are going to have to figure it out together, and it takes time,” Calipari said. “It’s just not gonna happen in a week. It just doesn’t. … They’re two players that want to win, that like each other.”

Calipari was often linked to Sacramento when Cousins was there. He doesn’t sound very interested in those links continuing.