University of Kentucky head coach John Calipari denied that he has any interest in the New Orleans Pelicans' vacant head-coaching position on Tuesday, taking to Twitter to say that he doesn't want to go anywhere:
Even though Anthony and Tyreke are in NOLA, I have no interest in the Pelicans or any other job. I have a great job and I'm happy at UK.
— John Calipari (@UKCoachCalipari) May 19, 2015This is in direct opposition to a report from the the New Orleans Times-Picayune's John Reid, which asserted that Calipari has reportedly already "made it known" to the New Orleans Pelicans that he was interested in coaching Anthony Davis and Tyreke Evans again.
There have been exploratory conversations between Calipari and the Pelicans, the source said, but it doesn't appear the team would be willing to meet his financial demands to leave Kentucky.
League sources said the Pelicans are willing to pay around $4 million to $5 million per season for Monty Williams' successor. Williams was fired last week after five seasons at the helm.
But Calipari makes about $8 million annually and recently agreed to a one-year contract extension through 2022, which he hasn't yet signed. The $3 million gap in annual compensation is a major sticking point for Calipari, who would also want input on the Pelicans' roster, according to the source.
Calipari reportedly talked with the Cleveland Cavaliers last summer about an extremely lucrative deal, and you'd think it would take an incredible opportunity to pry him away from his position in Lexington. While the Pelicans would present the chance to coach Davis, who will probably be the best player on the planet in a few years, it would also carry a lot of risk. New Orleans isn't near contention, and the transition back to the NBA would be a challenging one.
There's risk from the Pelicans' perspective, too. While Calipari has been an incredible college coach, his last stint in the pros -- with the New Jersey Nets in from 1996 to 1999 -- was not successful. It might make more sense to hire someone like Alvin Gentry, who they interviewed on Monday, and pay him less than Calipari would demand. Davis and Calipari do have a great relationship, though, and perhaps that will be taken into consideration. In any case, according to the coach, there's nothing to see here.
New Orleans is also said to have interest in Chicago Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau, who worked with Davis as an assistant for Team USA.
