Derrick Rose is good. Tyreke Evans is good. John Wall is probably going to be good. What do these guys have in common other than being good? They were all coached by John Calipari. What will they probably all have in common by May 2010? They will have all only played one year of college ball before entering the NBA. And I’m all, “WTF?!” I’ve always supported kids who stay in college to improve their game even when they are likely to be first round picks. There’s little doubt in my mind that Jordan, Magic, Bird, Kareem, Walton, etc. owe part of their greatness to their experience playing in college. College is where you learn leadership and how to be a team player, how to function as part of a unit and not just a force of nature on the court with 9 other innocent bystanders. At least, that has always been my impression, but now I’m sort of confused. I’ve been watching Kentucky a lot this year, mostly because I’m fascinated at how Calipari has seemingly returned this former dynasty to title-contention in one off-season after it spent 8 or so years in obscurity. Calipari’s approach to coaching sort of boggles my mind. He is completely resigned to the fact that his best players are going to be one-and-done (freshmen stars who play the one required year of college ball before entering the NBA draft). On the Dan Patrick Show (a well-listened to national radio program), Calipari said he is already recruiting John Wall’s replacement. I noticed a fundamental difference between Kentucky and North Carolina’s teams when they faced off recently. Kentucky’s players are all very talented and athletic. All-star recruits for sure. Calipari might be unmatched in recruiting acumen. But one thing Kentucky definitely did not have was chemistry. North Carolina had chemistry. They played like a team. It’s part of their culture. Often times UNC teams will have several starters enter the draft together after a great multi-year run. They know each other’s games and work as a unit. Kentucky was playing something more like pickup basketball. And you know what? I’m not sure it mattered. Kentucky still won the game. North Carolina played well, but, somehow, Kentucky is really fucking good. Calipari isn’t coaching college ball the way I have always thought it was played, but I can’t get mad at what he’s doing with the results he continues to deliver. And his one-and-done players actually come into the NBA looking NBA-ready. Maybe it’s because Calipari treats his players more like professional athletes. Their purpose isn’t the pursuit of pure basketball or becoming a complete player or learning to work together. It’s about winning. It’s about going out on the court and doing everything you can to win. What I’m trying to say is that Calipari might have perfected the art of one-and-done recruiting. He finds the kids who really only need a year to develop in the first place and helps improve their game as much as he can in the time he is given. No hard feelings when they leave. That’s part of the deal. 30 games. Let’s go out there and try to win ‘em all. I don’t particularly like what Calipari is doing with the game of college basketball, but he’s doing it (and doing it and doing it) well.

Ill trivia:

How many Final Four appearances does coach John Calipari have?

0, as far as the NCAA is concerned. His teams did appear in the Final Four twice, once with UMass and once with Memphis, but each school’s respective appearance under Calipari was vacated after the NCAA found Calipari guilty of violating their recruitment policies in each Final Four season.