Mark Pope may be the new man in town in Lexington, Kentucky but the newly-minted Wildcats coach sees “no reason” to talk down on what John Calipari was able to accomplish at the school.
Discussing his relationship with Coach Cal on the “College Hoops Today” podcast with CBS’ Jon Rothstein, Pope expressed gratitude for what Calipari was able to give to the University of Kentucky.
“Yeah, I mean, listen. I’ll forever be grateful to Coach Cal,” Pope said. “I’ll be grateful for what he did at my alma mater at the University of Kentucky. There’s no reason for my heart not to be full of gratitude to him. He’s also one of the greatest coaches to ever coach in college basketball.”
Pope also spoke on Calipari taking the Arkansas job and remaining in the SEC.
“For him to be in this league is great for basketball. It’s going to be great for Arkansas fans and certainly great for Big Blue Nation,” the coach continued. “It’s going to be a battle. It is going to have some things become super personal. [But] what he has done for college basketball as a whole and what he has done specifically for Kentucky Basketball? I couldn’t appreciate it any more.”
Pope and Calipari will meet each other at least twice next season and all eyes will certainly be on those matchups.