John Calipari has built his reputation by consistently being able to recruit some of the best players in the country to come play for him. From Derrick Rose to John Wall and Anthony Davis, many of the best NBA players over the past few decades have played for Cal.
So what is it about him that makes him so appealing? Wall, who played for Calipari at Kentucky in 2010 before becoming the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft, did his best to explain that in a recent interview.
Appearing on a “Social Distance” interview with 247 Sports, Wall shared what makes Calipari an appealing coach.
"He's just real." – @JohnWall explains what makes @UKCoachCalipari different
Get more of John's insightful conversation with @EvanDaniels here: https://t.co/i3y1lQdgnC pic.twitter.com/0OmcamryhU
— CoachCal.com (@CoachCalDotCom) May 19, 2020
“I think he’s just real. He’ll go anywhere to go visit you — he’ll go to the hood,” Wall said.
Wall says Calipari doesn’t focus on basketball when recruiting players, but tries to find out about their lives. He also makes his players earn their positions.
“He’s like a father figure to people,” Wall said. “He’s really there for his players.”
Wall believes Calipari genuinely cares about his players and wants them to succeed. Once a player/recruit is convinced that a coach has their best interests in mind, it’s easy to trust him from there.
It seems that’s what Wall was getting at — Calipari earns the trust of his players. And that’s part of why his players have made over a billion dollars in the NBA!
