Athletes - John Calipari

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	Athletes - John Calipari

John Calipari (born February 10, 1959 in the Pittsburgh suburb of Moon Township, Pennsylvania, United States) is a college and pro basketball coach. He lettered two years at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington before transferring to Clarion State, where he graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in Marketing. He played point guard at Clarion during the 1981 and 1982 seasons, leading the team in assists and free throw percentage. Calipari and his wife, Ellen, have two daughters, Erin Sue and Megan Rae, and a son, Bradley Vincent.

From 1982-85, he was an assistant coach at the University of Kansas under Ted Owens and then under Larry Brown. From 1985-88, he was an assistant coach at the University of Pittsburgh under Paul Evans. From 1988-96, he was head coach at the University of Massachusetts. In 1996, he was named Naismith & Sporting News National Coach of the Year. From 1996-99, he was head coach and Executive VP of basketball operations for the NBA's New Jersey Nets. During the 2000 season, he was an assistant coach for the Philadelphia 76ers under coach Larry Brown. From 2000-present, he is the head coach of the University of Memphis.

Collegiate Coaching Career

In 14 seasons as a collegiate head coach, Calipari's record stands at 341-130 (.724). His record in March is 67-28 (.705). His record in the NCAA tournament is 15-8 (.652) and in the NIT is 15-5 (.750). He has made eight NCAA tournaments, the Sweet Sixteen four times, the Elite Eight three times, and the Final Four one time. He has made five NITs, with one championship in 2002.

Through 13 collegiate seasons, only North Carolina coach Roy Williams, former North Carolina State legend Everett Case, Louisville Hall of Fame coach Denny Crum, Syracuse's Jim Boeheim, Kentucky's Tubby Smith and Arkansas' Nolan Richardson have won more games than Calipari. He hit the 300-win mark in February of 2005 when his Tigers upset No. 9 Louisville 85-68 in Freedom Hall.

Calipari had the fifth-best career start in NCAA history through nine and 10 seasons, the sixth-best through 11 seasons, and the seventh-best start through 12 seasons.

Building from the ground up

From 1988-96 at UMass, Calipari led the Minuteman program to numerous wins, conference titles and NCAA Tournament appearances. He finished with an 193-71 record overall, with a 91-41 record in Atlantic 10 conference games. Calipari was named Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year in 1992, 1993, and 1996. He was also named the Naismith and the Sporting News National Coach of the Year in 1996.

His passion to build a program helped accelerate the construction of the Mullins Center, UMass' basketball and hockey facility. Calipari's desire also reached out to eastern Massachusetts and Boston and brought fans back to Amherst -- located in the picturesque Pioneer Valley -- to watch a national powerhouse basketball team.

Calipari also encouraged his players to work toward earning their degrees, and many did graduate. He reached out to former UMass players and coaches, creating a bond between his squads and those of the past.

In Calipari's first six years as head coach at Memphis, he has won 148 games, posted six straight 20-win season and earned six consecutive postseason bids. Calipari's 148 victories and 24.7 wins per year are the most by a Tiger mentor in his first six seasons. The six consecutive 20-win seasons are the most for the Tigers since 1982-89 and the six consecutive postseason appearances are the most since 1988-93. Calipari won his 100th game as the Memphis head coach midway through the 2004-05 season, reaching that milestone the second fastest of any Tiger mentor. He was named Conference USA Coach of the Year in 2006.

Calipari has been largely credited with not only revitalizing the Memphis program, but also re-energizing the city's love affair with Tiger basketball -- a relationship that is the very fabric of the Memphis community.

Head coaching records

1988-96 University of Massachusetts (193-71 overall, 91-41 Atlantic 10, 11-5 NCAA, 3-3 NIT)

1996-99 New Jersey Nets (72-112 overall, 0-3 playoffs)

2000-06 University of Memphis (148-59 overall, 69-25 C-USA, 4-3 NCAA, 12-2 NIT)

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