John Calipari Signs 1-Year Extension With Kentucky Worth Reported $8 Million

John Calipari may be the most talked about future-NBA coach in college basketball, but Kentucky is doing all they can to keep Coach Cal from roaming away from the Bluegrass state.

According to ESPN’s Andy Katz, Kentucky has signed Calipari to a one-year extension worth a reported $8 million that would keep him in Lexington through the 2022 season. This extension is on top of a $1.6 million longevity bonus that Calipari is set to be paid on July 1.

The new extension insures keeping Calipari through the 2021-22 season, as he signed a seven-year deal prior to this season that would have kept him with the Wildcats through 2021.

When the subject of NBA coaching vacancies comes up, Calipari’s name is inevitably one of the first to appear on the list of possibilities, as it has been long thought by many that he wishes to return to the professional ranks and make amends for his failed stint with the then New Jersey Nets from 1996-99. Thus far, he has yet to be connected seriously with any vacancies.

This extension can be looked at merely as an insurance policy for Kentucky, who has had great success since Calipari arrived in 2009, making four Final Four appearances and winning the national championship in 2012. He has also brought in some of the most lauded and loaded recruiting classes in basketball history during the past few seasons.

The significance of Calipari’s recruiting prowess cannot be overlooked, as he lost seven players from his 2013-14 team, and still managed to finish with a 38-1 record, losing in the 2015 Final Four to the Wisconsin Badgers. Being able to constantly reload is a luxury that many coaches and programs don’t have.

Calipari has an 190-38 record during his tenure at Kentucky, going 82-20 against the SEC.

More from Southbound and Down