Coach Calipari issues warning to NBA teams ahead of draft
Like many Kentucky fans, coach John Calipari is eagerly waiting to hear if three of his players will return to the team next season or head to the NBA.
PJ Washington, Jarred Vanderbilt and Wenyen Gabriel all declared for the NBA draft but have until May 30 to withdraw in order to maintain their college eligibility.
But Calipari feels an obligation to those players to find out the truth about their draft stocks so they make the best decisions.
Speaking about Washington, who was the only of the three to attend the NBA combine, Calipari stressed that he won’t put up with NBA teams lying to him about a prospect’s draft range.
“I gotta make sure that he has an opportunity in the first round if that’s what he chooses to do, and someone’s not lying to him and then they’re going to take him at 50. That’s what I’m here for to make sure because if an NBA team would lie to me, you’re not coming in my gym,” Calipari said, according to USA Today. “So the guys, they’re not coming out and telling me we’re taking, but they’re going to be honest. The guys that I know in this league, they know I give them carte blanche in our building at the games, whatever they need.”
Like other top college programs, Kentucky and Calipari allow NBA personnel to attend their games to scout players. But if those same people aren’t truthful regarding a player’s draft stock, then he’s threatening to restrict their access.
In the NBA, only first-round draft picks get guaranteed contracts. They all sign four-year deals, with the first two years being fully guaranteed and the last two being team options.
Second-round picks aren’t assured of any guaranteed seasons, and there is no rookie scale on contracts like there is with first rounders. Ten of the 30 second round picks from the 2017 draft have failed to appear in an NBA game.
“I’m not holding these kids back but just be honest, don’t drag a kid in this that doesn’t need to be in it,” Calipari said.
“And most of the guys here, I’ll probably call 10 or 12 teams for them and they’ll be honest, and if there’s really interest in four of them, I’m going to sit down with them and just say, ‘look, there’s four teams that I think there’s a chance that will take you in the first round,'” he added.
Calipari also took another shot at the NBA and the way they evaluate players as compared to how Kentucky evaluates recruits coming out of high school.
Recuits have many college options, but there is only one NBA, so the league is allowed to do things that collegiate programs aren’t.
“If I went in and interviewed a kid and asked probing questions in front of his parents, I’m probably not getting that kid,” Calipari said, according to the Lexington Herald Leader. “If I made him take a psychological test, for some reason I think they’d look at me like I’m nuts.
“So we probably have less tools to make the decision (than the NBA). But, you know, we’re only offering seven, eight scholarships a year. Of those seven or eight, we’re hoping we get three or four.”
In addition to the three NBA hopefuls from Kentucky, the school also has two players who could end up being lottery picks: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Kevin Knox.
Kentucky could lose six of its top seven scorers from last season, but they will reload with the second-ranked recruiting class of 2018.
Even with the roster turnover, Calipari isn’t worried. He’s used to this by now, and said Kentucky may still add a few of more players, the Louisville Courier Journal reported.
“We’re fine,” he said. “We’re not overloaded with scholarships, we’ll be fine. We could add two or three guys and be fine.”
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