John Calipari (2004) - Hall of Fame - University of Massachusetts Athletics

John Calipari

Induction:
2004

John Calipari led the UMass men's basketball team to an overall record of 193-71 in his eight seasons as head coach from 1988-1996. His .731 career winning percentage remains the best in school history, and he ranks second all-time at UMass in victories with 193.

Calipari led the Minutemen to five straight NCAA Tournament appearances from 1992-1996, after UMass had gone to the NCAAs only once in the first 81 years of the program. His Minutemen made the Atlantic 10's first and only Final Four appearance during the 1996 season, during which they went 35-2 overall and spent 10 weeks ranked No. 1 in the nation. Following the 1996 season, Calipari was named National Coach of the Year by the National Association of Basketball Coaches, The Sporting News and Boost / Naismith.

UMass won five straight Atlantic 10 Conference regular season and tournament titles under Calipari from 1992-1996, becoming only the second team in NCAA history to win its conference championships in the regular season and postseason for five consecutive years.

A three-time Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year selection in 1992, 1993 and 1996, Calipari coached a National Player of the Year (Marcus Camby, 1996), two first team all-Americans (Lou Roe, 1995; Camby, 1996), three Atlantic 10 Players of the Year (Harper Williams, 1992; Roe, 1995; Camby, 1996) and a total of 24 All-Atlantic 10 selections during his eight seasons at UMass.

Following his time at UMass, Calipari served as head coach of the New Jersey Nets in the National Basketball Association from 1996-1999. He led the Nets to a second-place finish in the NBA's Atlantic Division and the playoffs in 1998, ending a five-year postseason drought for the franchise with the club's highest league finish at the time. Calipari's Nets also had a 17-game turnaround in 1997-1998, the best that season in the NBA.

After spending one season as an assistant coach for the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers in 1999-2000, Calipari took over as the head men's basketball coach at the University of Memphis. He coached the Tigers for nine seasons (2000-09), compiled an overall record of 214-68, and made six NCAA Tournament fields.

He has since coached the Kentucky Wildcats to nine NCAA Tournaments in 10 seasons at the helm of the program, including the 2011-12 National Championship.