John Calipari agrees to lifetime contract with Kentucky

Kentucky suffered an upset loss in the NCAA Tournament to conference rival Auburn, marking a fourth straight season that the Wildcats have fallen short of the Final Four, but university officials seem satisfied with coach John Calipari’s job performance.

How satisfied? Calipari, a Moon native, confirmed Monday that he has agreed to what is being described as a lifetime contract with the school.

Speaking on his University of Kentucky radio show, the 60-year-old coach said of the pact reportedly offered to him by school officials, “They presented it to me, and I appreciated it… . They want me to be here till I’m done coaching.”

Since John Calipari took over as Kentucky's head coach, the Wildcats have the most wins in Division I. pic.twitter.com/2rrqmKAmPv

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) April 1, 2019

According to The Athletic’s Seth Davis, the contract “would include a 10-year term as coach plus a promise to serve as a paid ambassador for the school after his retirement.” Calipari’s current contract, which runs through 2024, reportedly paid him $9.2 million this year, with several millions more available in bonuses.

Davis reported that, according to a source, Kentucky was motivated to lock Calipari up after learning of “serious” interest from UCLA, including a six-year contract offer worth about $48 million. UCLA has been looking for a new head coach since firing Steve Alford in December; Murry Bartow finished the season as the Bruins’ interim coach.

Saying his agreement with Kentucky had “nothing to do with all the other stuff,” Calipari said, “Every year that I’m here, something at the end of the year happens… . People call at the end of every year, you get calls, but the reality of it is, this has been in the works for a while.”

“This is a situation and a culture that’s taken time to build,” he added, “and where else would I want to coach?”

Kentucky spokesman confirms to @Stadium John Calipari agrees to a long-term deal with the school to “finish his career at Kentucky.” There was NO shot Cal was ever going to UCLA. Only way he leaves UK is for an NBA job — and it would have to be a good NBA job.

— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) April 1, 2019

Since arriving in Lexington in 2009, Calipari has gone 305-71, leading the Wildcats to the NCAA Tournament in nine of 10 seasons, with four Final Four appearances and a national title in 2012, plus two other Elite Eight appearances. Kentucky has also won the SEC Tournament six times under his watch.

Overall, Calipari has an official NCAA record of 708-209 in a career that included successful stints at Massachusetts and Memphis. However, a Final Four run with each of those schools was vacated after allegations of player improprieties, and Calipari lost a total of 42 wins from his record.