Update: John Calipari took to Twitter (apparently from Egypt) to deny the report that someone had reached out to the Knicks on his behalf about the president position.
NO ONE has contacted the Knicks on my behalf. I am the coach at Kentucky and will be for a long time!
— John Calipari (@UKCoachCalipari) June 30, 2017
Even in Egypt I can’t escape the rumors. Are you kidding me?! It’s 5 in the morning here and this is what I wake up to?
— John Calipari (@UKCoachCalipari) June 30, 2017
Original story:
Since the Knicks parted ways with president Phil Jackson on Wednesday, several names have popped up as possible replacements. Raptors president Masai Ujiri and former Knicks president of basketball operations Isiah Thomas have been linked to the job, but now there's another name to add to the list: Kentucky coach John Calipari.
According to ESPN's Ian Begley, Calipari had his people reach out to the Knicks about the position, but they don't appear to be interested at this time. Via ESPN:
Kentucky head coach John Calipari reached out to Knicks through intermediaries to express interest in the Knicks presidency, per ESPN league sources. The Knicks do not have interest in Calipari at the moment, per league sources. Presumably, Calipari would want to coach as well if he took over as president. The Knicks parted ways with president Phil Jackson earlier this week. Current GM Steve Mills is handling the club's day-to-day operations and is expected to lead them through free agency.
Calipari has been the head coach at Kentucky since 2009 and has become known for producing NBA-ready talent. His 2012 national championship team featured current NBA players Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Terrence Jones and Kyle Wiltjer.
While the Knicks may not be interested in Calipari right now -- Ujiri is reportedly the front-runner -- the report will serve to let other teams know that Coach Cal could be pried away from his college gig for the right price.
