HawgBeat - 5 takeaways from John Calipari's introductory press conference
HawgBeat gives its five takeaways from new Arkansas head coach John Calipari's introductory press conference.
arkansas.rivals.com
Bud Walton Arena was buzzing Wednesday evening leading up to the introduction of new Arkansas head coach John Calipari.
Despite poor weather conditions, fans, local media and reporters from all over the country journied to Fayetteville to see what the Hall of Fame head coach had to say after shocking the college basketball world.
The former Kentucky Wildcats head coach was welcomed to an unfamiliar round of applause when he took the stage on Nolan Richardson Court inside Bud Walton Arena, but quickly adjusted and began telling the story of how his hire came about.
"John Tyson, he said, ‘You need to talk to my AD while you're in Phoenix. He’s in Phoenix,'" Calipari said. "'What? Well, tell him to call me and I’ll meet him tomorrow. You want me to talk about candidates?' I didn’t even know, and we met for about an hour-and-a-half, maybe less than that. Part of the time we talked about other people. Then (Hunter Yurachek) said, ‘I know that you think this is a great job. Why not you?’ Why not me? ‘Yeah, why not you?'"
Calipari touched on multiple subjects throughout the night, including his thoughts on leaving Kentucky, building a roster, NIL and more.
HawgBeat breaks things down with the five most interesting takeaways from Calipari's introductory press conference on Wednesday:
Calipari's Charisma
Charisma is a lost art among college coaches. Coach speak has become the norm in most conversations, but Calipari flipped that on its head and blasted the Bud Walton Arena crowd with his relatability through stories and kindness.
That was evident multiple times throughout the event, but especially when he interrupted himself mid-story to address a familiar face in the crowd.
"As a player, I was small, but I was slow," Calipari said. "I see (refers to the crowd) brother down there. How’s mom doing? You tell her I asked for her."
You just don't see that level of authenticity nowadays, and it's not shocking to see why Calipari has had so much success throughout his career. At the end of the day, he just tries to bring people together.
"It's what I've always tried to do," Calipari said. "When we get this thing going or we get this thing done, I want thousands of people to say, 'Without me, this doesn't happen.' Thousands. Not just one or two, not my staff.
"It was everybody came together and said, 'Without me, none of this happens.' I look at trying to create that love affair. A love affair between this program and this campus, this program and this state. I know these programs are important to the state. All these programs are important to the state."
NIL Bluff?
Once reports of Calipari's move to Fayetteville started surfacing, it wasn't long after that shockingly large NIL numbers were thrown around in the wake of his arrival. Initially reported that the Razorbacks may potentially have $5 million+ NIL for new players, that number only seemed to grow through fan gossip.
Though Arkansas does have the backing of booster John Tyson (of Tyson Foods) and could be on the verge of getting more help from the Walton family, Athletics Director Hunter Yurachek was sure to caution overeager fans on Wednesday.
"I will say that Coach Cal and I talked about NIL robustly," Yurachek said. "We talked about it on the plane. Him and I are on the same page of where it needs to be for us to be competitive. We’ve got some ways to go to get there. Reports make it sound like it is a done deal and the money’s in the bank. What I will tell you is that’s not the case.
"We’ve got a pretty good program in place but we’re going to need help from people across this state to make sure that we give Coach Cal the tools that he needs to put a great team on the floor, not only this year but next year and the following year. So him and I are on the same page for what it needs to be and it’s my job to give him the tools to make sure that he can be successful."
Roster-Building Balance
Arkansas currently has zero scholarship players on its roster thanks to transfer portal departures and one NBA Draft entree. That presents a unique challenge for a new head coach, but there isn't anyone in the country more equipped to handle it than Calipari.
"If you’re not into basketball, you won’t come here," Calipari said. "If you’re smoking, clubbing, drinking, chasing. This is about being at a place that has zeroed in on a culture that creates professional habits, and that includes academically."
In the past, Calipari has usually relied on building his rosters around talented freshmen, but that'll have to change in a transfer portal world. He'll try to flip some of the members of his No. 2 ranked 2024 high school recruiting class over to the Hogs, but the rest of the depth chart will be full of portal players.
"So, that’s one of the issues which means physical toughness and physicality matter more now than ever before," Calipari said. "Now, you can have freshmen, but they better be physically tough.
"The transfer portal, you’re getting some older players, but the other thing you have to understand, both Purdue and Connecticut had players that had been in their program three years. They didn’t leave, they were there three years. So, it’s not just go get a transfer."
Social Media (Un)savvy
Going from Eric Musselman to Calipari is going to be a shock for many when it comes to social media usage and marketing. Musselman was known for his interesting and sometimes strange antics to help promote the program, but Calipari does that by just entering a room.
“Folks, I don’t have a computer," Calipari said. "I don’t have a computer. I have an iPad because when I travel, there’s movies on it. But also that I can put film on it and tape and stuff. And I know how to get most cases. I have an iPad. I don’t have a computer. I have never done Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat, chitchat, whatever they are.
Using social media is an important tool for recruiting and staying nationally relevant, and that's exactly why Calipari has someone else handling it for him. Plus, he can avoid reading all of the hateful comments.
"I have never done those myself," Calipari said. "I’ve always had someone do it. Now, I will tell them what to put out. The responses are none of my business. If you like it, you don’t like it, it’s not my business. I don’t care. If you’d like to get nasty, have had it. Go to bed mad. But I didn’t read it. You’re asking me something, to be honest, I don’t even know what you are talking about. But I think social media is great for the fans."
Patience is Key
Look, it's completely understandable for Razorback fans to be excited and dream about the possibilities of the future. But, Calipari made it a point to slow people down and take a deep breath. After all, he hasn't coached a single game yet.
"I’m excited, the fans seem to be excited," Calipari said. "I haven’t coached a down, I don’t have a team. Please, let me get stuff together and then we’ll all be excited."
But let's be honest, that won't stop the Arkansas faithful from assuming every top transfer portal player is theirs or from making Final Four predictions for the upcoming season. And you know what? They shouldn't stop. The fan base deserves this. After an exhausting football season and disappointing basketball season, residents of the Natural State have earned some much-needed hope.
Soak it all in folks: John Calipari is the head coach of the Arkansas Razorbacks.
