Building John Calipari's Dynasty: This Ain't Your Daddy's Wildcats

Adolph Rupp allegedly once said, "You show me a good loser, and I'll show you a loser". He hated to lose, he hated especially to lose to those who looked down their noses at us Kentucky folk. We of the marrying our second cousins ilk. We of the truck drivin', coon huntin', Americana,  Kentucky bourbon and the V.F.W. Rupp couldn't stand anyone who thought less of the Cats because of where they were from. After all, we had Kentucky boys playing. We had shy kids from Hazard, Harlan, Middlesboro, Owensboro, Monkey's Eyebrow playing against young men from places like Brooklyn, Los Angeles, Boston, Philadelphia, and the like. Or at least that's what everyone assumed. Fast forward to today and my oh my, how the world has changed.

When John Calipari flew in from Memphis and accepted this job he made some really good speeches. I mean really good. We are talking Gettysburg Address level stuff for Cats fans, most of whom had not heard that kind of oratorical ability since the days of Rick Pitino. And Pitino wasn't all that known for being oratorical, but he knew how to turn a phrase, and when the opportunity presented itself, how to reach into the hearts and souls of the Wildcat faithful and tell them what they needed to hear. That is not John Calipari's style. Calipari is the guy who could make Lizzie believe in rain, could make an all grown up Virginia believe once again that there is indeed a Santa Claus, and when he put his mind to it, he instilled hope, belief, and swagger into a fanbase that was begging for Moses to lead them once again to the promised land. So when he stood behind that podium and gave his famous "State Of The Union" speech at Big Blue Madness, the fans once again started to believe. And then, he went to work.

After all, a lot of speeches and interviews and ESPN snippets are just so much hot air unless you are going to back it up. And Calipari, while playing to the masses here in Kentucky, never forgot to point out the obvious to everyone who heard his voice that he only had a bunch of kids fresh out of high school, and they were not ready to take over the world. They couldn't play defense, they couldn't pass, they couldn't put forth a team effort he would say. And then they would go out and prove him wrong, and he would make some excuse as to why it happened. Even going so far as to claim when his Cats were in the middle of a 10 game winning streak that they actually lost 4-5 of those games and the score just didn't say so. That's his way. He is self-depreciating, unassuming, and ready to give credit everywhere else to keep the light that he shined so bright on his kids away from their minor shortcomings and focused on his.

 But then he won in his first year, and his second, improving each time. And now his third year's team, which is by most accounts his very best so far may very well be ready to change the world of college basketball, it's expectations and it's accepted norms of how things are supposed to be done. He takes advice from everyone he talks to. He listens to each and every one and applies what he can use. He is anything but rigid in how he coaches. Not that he allows the kids to do as they please, no, more that he himself learns to adapt to his talent. He brought his amazing DDMO to Kentucky with him, but has not been able to use it the way he would like, because his talent level has prevented it. When you have the talent he has seen come through Kentucky, you learn really quick that making a post up shooter try to drive the ball is a waste of talent and time. But you also learn that there are things you must teach. Defense, disciplined effort, attention to detail, on court presence, and team play are all staples of Calipari coached teams. If you don't want to do those things, no matter how talented you are, go somewhere else.

That foundation is where Calipari is building his new Kentucky dynasty. And while no one yet knows how many banners are going to be added to the rafters of Rupp Arena, we already know how he is going to do it. We know that he will take the very best talent he can get, use them the best way he can, and make them the very best they can be. That will be the Calipari Dynasty. Year after year of the best of the best suiting up in Kentucky Blue and White to chase what others can only dream about. They are not going to win it all every year. They may not even win it all very often. But they will win it all. Calipari is right in his dream, and he will prove it to the world. They won't all be Kentucky boys either, but they will be a part of it. These ain't your daddy's Wildcats. They will be from Brooklyn, Los Angeles, Baltimore, Miami, and anywhere else he can get them. They will come to Lexington because it is now once again the center of the world of college basketball. They will come to John Calipari to help him build this new dynasty. They will come to play in TV, they will come to play the best of the best, and they will come to go to the NBA. But they will come. The tide is rising faster than anyone ever expected. The perfect storm of John Calipari and Kentucky will go down in history as the next major change in college basketball, as it becomes the student-athlete's game. And it's not just about the NCAA either. When Adolph Rupp ran UK he was the center of the world when it came to basketball and what it could do for a kid in college. And now that John Calipari is in charge, it has happened again. Kentucky has been a sleeping giant for the last 10 years or so. The game almost slipped by us and all of the great things that happen along the way with it. That will never happen again as Coach Cal has put Kentucky first. And no one is going to change it while he is at the helm. 

We are standing at the threshold of greatness once again. And not just being good at playing basketball, that would be reward enough. But Cal is not going to settle for that. He is going to turn the world into one huge Kentucky fanbase, and he is doing it in droves. So don't wait or hesitate to enjoy this as much as you can for as long as it possible to do it. The world is waiting. The sleeper must awaken.