How impressive is John Calipari’s eleven-year tenure at Kentucky? ESPN’s John Gasaway ranked the 25 best coaching hires in college basketball in the past 25 years, and Calipari to Kentucky came in at No. 5.
“Prior to Kentucky in 2015, the last undefeated team to make it to the Final Four was UNLV in 1991,” Gasaway noted. “The Wildcats didn’t win the title that year, of course, but they did in 2012. They’ve reached three Final Fours under Calipari (and, perhaps even more incredibly, six Elite Eights), and UK’s recruiting classes ranked either No. 1 or 2 at ESPN.