John Calipari is leaving Kentucky after 15 seasons to become the next head coach of Arkansas. Who should be hired as Calipari’s replacement? Below, we examine the candidates for the next head coach of Kentucky.
Dan Hurley
BREAKING: @JackPilgrimKSR says he has heard that Dan Hurley would be interested in the Kentucky Job if he received that call 👀🤯pic.twitter.com/6NRRxkwCfc
— Blue Chips (@UKBlueChips) April 8, 2024
Kentucky’s list of replacements for Calipari should start with Dan Hurley. The UConn head coach is looking to win his second straight championship with the Huskies playing Purdue on Monday night.
After missing the NCAA Tournament in his first two seasons at UConn, Hurley has turned the Huskies into a perennial power, with a strong claim to be the best college basketball program of the last four years.
After leading UConn to their fifth national title in 2023, the university rewarded Hurley with a six-year, $32.1 million contract extension through 2028-2029.
If Hurley’s Huskies win the championship for a second straight season, the 51-year-old coach would be in line for another raise. Kentucky could pay Hurley around $8–$10 million a year. Would UConn be able to match that?
Nate Oats
Paul Finebaum says to keep an eye on Nate Oats for the Kentucky head coaching job. pic.twitter.com/LmQxSwuT4k
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) April 8, 2024
The best coach in the SEC is Alabama’s Nate Oats. Since coming to Alabama in 2019, Oats has turned the Crimson Tide into one of the SEC’s best basketball programs.
Oats has led Alabama to the NCAA Tournament in four straight seasons, culminating with the school’s first Final Four appearance in 2024.
With a philosophy of layups and 3-pointers, Oats and his Alabama teams are consistently at the top of the offensive rankings.
Oats, 49, agreed to a contract extension in March 2024 that will make him one of the five highest-paid coaches in the country.
— Greg Byrne (@Greg_Byrne) March 15, 2024
Scott Drew
I asked 4 SEC head coaches to anonymously rank the following 6 Kentucky candidates:
“Who do you fear the most?”
Here are the results:
1. Scott Drew
2. Bruce Pearl
3. Nate Oats
4. Billy Donovan
5. Sean Miller
6. Chris Beard— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) April 8, 2024
Keep an eye on Baylor’s Scott Drew.
In his 20-plus years at Baylor, Drew, 53, executed one of the greatest rebuilds in college basketball history after the 2003 murder of Baylor basketball player Patrick Dennehy.
Under Drew, Baylor has made 10 of the last 12 NCAA Tournaments, highlighted by the school’s first national title in 2021.
Billy Donovan
Billy Donovan is expected to show interest in the Kentucky job, per @CBKReport.
All signs point to Donovan not returning to Chicago next season. pic.twitter.com/nBeAbgI9By
— Die-Hard Chicago Bulls Fans (@DieHardCBfans) April 8, 2024
Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan is expected to have interest in the Kentucky job, per College Basketball Report.
Donovan, 58, has been a head coach in the NBA with the Oklahoma City Thunder (2015–2016) and Chicago Bulls (2020–present).
However, Donovan is best known as the head coach of the Florida Gators from 1996 to 2015. Donovan won back-to-back National Championships in Florida from 2005–2007.
If the Bulls do not make it out of the Play-In Tournament, Donovan may be fired, opening the door for him to return to college.
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