USA TODAY International Edition
Calipari excited to watch pro UK pupils
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – Heat coach Erik Spoelstra joked that Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari will use the 2020 NBA Finals as a “great recruiting pitch.”
“I’m not sure he’s going to maximize that,” Spoelstra said sarcastically about four former Kentucky players in the Finals.
All- Stars Anthony Davis of the Lakers and Bam Adebayo of the Heat and emerging Heat star Tyler Herro played for Calipari at Kentucky.
“Coach Cal, he really runs his practices and that program like an NBA program,” Davis said Tuesday. “Obviously, he coached in the league, so he knows what it takes to get there. That’s an advantage for all players who go to Kentucky. He’s able to get you ready in one, two years, and most of the time how you be successful.”
Calipari is beaming, and he spent more than 40 minutes on Tuesday talking about his former players. Denver’s Jamal Murray also played at Kentucky and starred in the NBA’s restart.
“When I look at all of these guys and how they played, I’m not surprised that guys would be able to stand up to this,” Calipari said.
“The environment here, everything about it is preparing them for the NBA. It’s an NBA environment. How we practice, the competitiveness in practice, the games, the shots. Every shot matters here.”
No matter who wins the series, it will be the first time a Caliparicoached player wins an NBA championship.
There are more Kentucky connections in the Finals. Heat President Pat Riley and Lakers guard Rajon Rondo also played at Kentucky, and Lakers coach Frank Vogel was a student manager for Rick Pitino at Kentucky.
“Well, we have to have a few Kentucky guys on our team because of my boss,” Spoelstra said. “That’s like a prerequisite. Somehow, some way we’ve got to get somebody from his alma mater on our roster. ...
“We love Kentucky players because you’re there to get better, to be pushed, to understand what it means to play for a team, play a role and to train to become a pro at this level. You’re going to face good competition in practice. You’re going to be expected to work. It’s an environment that, as much as it possibly can, prepares you for the pros, even though it’s at the collegiate level.”
Calipari on Herro: “This kid is fearless because of his confidence. I’m not the one who built his confidence.”
On Davis: “He wants to win a world championship and he will have an impact on the game because he is in the game. He will have an impact. I’ll just give you a couple reasons. One, if he runs to the rim and you don’t go with him, it is a dunk 100% of the time. So that creates, any cut to the basket creates help. Second thing, he may not block every shot, but he is going to change shots, which means instead of you making all those, you’re going to miss some.”
On Adebayo: “Bam, he created a position, point- center. He’s a point- center. Did you see them open the court and he go one- on- one at ( Boston’s Daniel) Theis like he was the point guard? His assists, his ability to make plays for his teammates, he is a pointcenter. We teach our bigs, to start like a guard and finish like a big. All of them. That’s how we teach here. And so, when you see all of this stuff, you’re looking like, ‘ Wow.’ ”