Kentucky coach John Calipari acknowledged being white has helped him throughout his coaching career, despite not growing up with wealth.
"I'm white-privileged, even though I grew up the way I grew up," Calipari told reporters Wednesday. "I was still white, which means I had an advantage. ... I had one pair of tennis shoes. But that didn't matter."
Calipari was born and raised in Moon Township, Pennsylvania, a small city just outside of Pittsburgh, to a working-class family. He went on to play college basketball at UNC-Wilmington and Clarion University before beginning his coaching career in 1982.