John Calipari

LEXINGTON - If Kentucky coach John Calipari is right, last year's NIT season was “the beginnings of success” for the upcoming season for the Wildcats. “What we're about to undertake has never been done before. Trying to put teams together like this, where you're talking a big number of players, whether it be the Lakers, the Miami Heat, it takes time,” said Calipari during his summer press conference Wednesday. “There's a learning curve. There's a galvanizing process that we have to go through.

This could be the day that Kentucky's 2013-14 basketball roster starts taking a more definite shape. From the time UK's season ended with a NIT loss at Robert Morris, speculation has been rampant about who will - and who will not - be on John Calipari's team next season. Calipari has seven incoming freshmen - Aaron and Andrew Harrison, James Young, Marcus Lee, Derek Willis, Dakari Johnson and Julius Randle - that will definitely be on the roster. That leaves six more available scholarships.

CHICAGO - On the court, Andrew Harrison is an intense competitor - a Michael Kidd-Gilchrist or Deandre Liggins type. Off the court, he's just as intense and not afraid to voice his opinion. Not only did the future Kentucky point guard say that he though the McDonald's All-American Game - he had 10 points on 5-for-5 shooting,  four assists, two rebounds and one steal in 18 minutes in Wednesday's game here - was a more prestigious event than the upcoming Jordan Brand Classic, but he's already tossing verbal barbs at Louisville.  He admitted he had picked Louisville to reach the Final Four, but then told media members, "I hope Michigan wins (the national title)

Centre College men’s basketball coach Greg Mason can’t imagine undergoing the scrutiny and living under the microscope Kentucky coach John Calipari has to endure on an almost daily basis. “Every day there’s something new. With the Internet and everything, there’s always something new. Seems like after a while it would wear you out, that kind of lifestyle,” Mason said this week during the Centre College Basketball Camp. “But the $4 million wouldn’t be bad.” And like most UK fans, Mason is amazed at the job Calipari has done hauling in the nation’s top recruiting classes for two straight seasons.

NEW ORLEANS - Not only has Kansas coach Bill Self coached against Calipari, but he joined the Kansas basketball program after Calipari left the job that gave him his start in college basketball. Self certainly praised the coaching job Calipari has done during Sunday's press conference. “I think that Cal is probably the best salesman that our sport knows. He does an unbelievable job of promoting Kentucky basketball through a variety of means. He's kind of changed recruiting in some ways for the most part through social media, a lot of different ways,” Self said.

Kentucky coach John Calipari said he gave freshman Archie Goodwin  "the information, what was out there, what we were told" before Goodwin put his name into the NBA draft. "We sat down and talked to him and he came back and said he wanted to put his name in the draft and we said, 'Great, let's go for it,'" Calipari said Wednesday. "I'm not going to sit here and give you everything I said or my opinion because I don't think, it's fair but they get everything they need and whatever decision they make - I've been on the phone right now with probably five or six NBA teams about Archie.

LEXINGTON - John Calipari has a problem any coach in the country would love to have - his Kentucky team is progressing too quickly in preseason practice. “We are cutting back a little bit because I don't want us to get too far ahead. I don't want us to be playing like its December when it's October. Some of the practices we have cut short simply because they are getting done what I want them to get done. When they hit that spot, we just stop,” said the UK coach Tuesday on the eve of the Blue-White Game tonight at 7 in Rupp Arena.

Debi White knows having Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari speak at a Telford YMCA fundraising dinner June 15 in Richmond is a huge bonus for her organization. However, since she’s also a self-proclaimed UK¿basketball fan, she admits the fan in her is even more thrilled he’s coming than she is as chief executive of the YMCA. “I¿am excited as chief executive of the Y and as a UK¿fan and I¿know I should probably say I am more excited for the Y, but it is both and probably really is more of the UK¿fan in me,” said White, who has already bought a new blue dress to wear that night.

Just in case anyone thought Kentucky coach John Calipari was going to back down from his recent comments where he indicated Kentucky was the only basketball team in Kentucky, think again. His comment naturally delighted UK¿fans and had Louisville fans and coach Rick Pitino seeing red. Pitino even blasted Calipari for his remarks and one Louisville newspaper columnist accused Calipari of being jealous of Pitino's national championship and NCAA Tournament success. Given a chance to tone down, or take back, his remark at Kentucky's Media Day on Thursday in front of state and national media members, Calipari didn't budge.

LEXINGTON - As he gets set to begin his fourth season at Kentucky, coach John Calipari says his priority remains doing all he can for his players. “You are coaching at Kentucky and you understand this is life and death for some people, but it is not life and death for me. I have told you before, I want to win championships for the state and the Commonwealth, but the most important thing is helping these kids,” said Calipari. “It is a players first program. If we do right by them and make decisions based on them, they will drag us to where we want to go. “I said three years ago and we had guys write stories and try to get people to comment on it. Those five guys going in the first round (of the NBA draft)

If there is anything Emmanuel Mudiay can't do well, his coach has not seen it. Ray Forsett, Mudiay's coach at Dallas Prime Prep Academy, said the 6-4 point guard, who is regarded as one of the top five overall players in the 2014 recruiting class, said Mudiay could play for virtually any school in the country. “He is just a special player. He can do it all from getting to the rim to shooting the ball. He's electrifying,” Forsett said. “You've got to see him play to appreciate all the special things he can do. He could go to Kentucky, Baylor, Arizona or about anywhere else because of the type player he is. “He can do it all. He can get teammates involved.

Kentucky coach John Calipari said he gave freshman Archie Goodwin  "the information, what was out there, what we were told" before Goodwin put his name into the NBA draft. "We sat down and talked to him and he came back and said he wanted to put his name in the draft and we said, 'Great, let's go for it,'" Calipari said Wednesday. "I'm not going to sit here and give you everything I said or my opinion because I don't think, it's fair but they get everything they need and whatever decision they make - I've been on the phone right now with probably five or six NBA teams about Archie.

LEXINGTON - Even though Kentucky coach John Calipari insisted Wednesday that he was “not hearing” the talk about his team being a lock to win next year's national championship, he said he could “imagine” the talk is out there. Apparently he's the only one that doesn't know for sure the talk is out there even if the Wildcats didn't get Andrew Wiggins on Tuesday. “It's probably because people are really rooting for us to do well. So that's probably part of the reason. They want us to do so well, they're putting that out there to help us build this team right,” joker Calipari.

LEXINGTON - If Kentucky coach John Calipari is right, last year's NIT season was “the beginnings of success” for the upcoming season for the Wildcats. “What we're about to undertake has never been done before. Trying to put teams together like this, where you're talking a big number of players, whether it be the Lakers, the Miami Heat, it takes time,” said Calipari during his summer press conference Wednesday. “There's a learning curve. There's a galvanizing process that we have to go through.

Kentucky missed out on Andrew Wiggins earlier this week, but John Calipari hasn't changed his mind about next year's team. Wiggins, considered the top prospect in the nation, chose Kansas over Kentucky, Florida State and North Carolina. Calipari said during a press conference Wednesday he's “as confident before and after his decision.” “I wish him well,” the Kentucky coach said. “He's a great kid, and he's going to be a terrific basketball player. It didn't change me any. I was confident in this team and the group that we had before and after.” Although Wiggins isn't part of a group of newcomers who will be arriving on campus this summer, Calipari's incoming freshmen class featuring twins Aaron and Andrew Harrison, Dominique Hawkins, Dakari Johnson, Marcus Lee, Julius Randle, Derek Willis and James Young is considered one of the top classes in the country.

Mississippi guard Devin Booker says he has “always heard about” Kentucky basketball, especially after the arrival of coach John Calipari four years ago. “I know everybody in Kentucky loves the game. That's the kind of spot where you want to play where people love the sport and pay attention to it. Some schools are only about football and don't care about basketball. At Kentucky, it's strictly basketball,” the 6-5 shooting guard, considered one of the top 25 players in the 2014 recruiting class, said.

Southeastern Conference opponents apparently are not quite ready to concede the 2014 conference title to coach John Calipari's team, much less accepting that Kentucky should be the odds-on favorite to win the national title. South Carolina signee Sidnarius Thornwell played in the Kentucky Derby Festival Basketball Classic  in Louisville last month. He had 12 points on 5-of-11 shooting, four rebounds, two assists and one steal in 16 minutes. He also made it clear that while he respected Kentucky, he didn't fear Calipari's team or No. 1 recruiting class.

He's what his coach calls an “efficient player” who doesn't mind working to make himself better, something that coaches like John Calipari of Kentucky like about Mississippi guard Devin Booker. “He is a smart player, too, along with being a hard working player,” said Moss Point (Miss.) coach Micoe Cotton. “His work ethic is non stop. He puts in hours working on his game just trying to get better at his craft. He's an excellent shooter, but the strongest part of his game is his basketball IQ and decision making.

His high school coach doesn't expect five-star recruit Stanley Johnson to make a college decisions until September at the earliest after he's had time to thoroughly evaluate and visit his top schools. The 6-7, 230-pound Johnson has a scholarship offer from Kentucky and has coach John Calipari's team on his preferred list along with UCLA, Southern California, Arizona, Florida, Oregon and Duke The standout from Mater Dei High School in Los Angeles played in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League in Hampton, Va., over the weekend and Calipari was one of many coaches there to watch him. “He is pretty wide open about college,” said Mater Dei coach Gary McKnight.

LEXINGTON - On the same day he made his intentions known about entering the NBA draft - where he could be Kentucky's third overall No. 1 pick in four years - Nerlens Noel suddenly quit thinking about his future. Instead, he was saddened by the bombings at the Boston Marathon in his hometown. “That definitely affected me. Just growing up in that city, born and raised and to see that happen, you just can't think that (there's a) human being that could do that to people that run in the Boston Marathon from all over the country.