John Calipari: If players are only interested in NIL, 'there are other places they can go'

When John Calipari took over at Arkansas this offseason, the Razorbacks got an NIL boost, On3’s Pete Nakos reported at the time. It was a way to give the new coach support to build a roster – one which, in his words, didn’t exist when he held his introductory press conference.

But when it comes to putting that money to use, Calipari said he hears the conversations about how much players might want. In that case, he told legendary Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski, he moves on.

Calipari noted the changing landscape of college basketball, especially since NIL can now be discussed in the recruiting process. That came as a result of a preliminary injunction earlier this year, sparked by a lawsuit from the Tennessee and Virginia attorneys general in February.

“If a kid says to me, ‘Well, what’s the number?’ Well, I’m probably not taking that kid,” Calipari said on Krzyzewski’s SiriusXM radio show. “What’s the number? My phone number? What number are we talking about? If that’s all it’s about – NIL – there are other places they can go.”

Under previous NCAA rules, NIL could not be discussed in the recruiting process and third-party collectives could not be involved. But the NCAA issued updated guidance after the preliminary injunction pausing all investigations involving collectives would stop.

As for what’s next, John Calipari called on the NCAA to put athletes first. He said their needs should be front and center when deciding on pressing issues.

“I’ll say this to you, Coach. I’ve tried to tell the NCAA, they’ve obviously never listened to me, but if they made decisions all based on the kids, they’ll all be right decisions,” Calipari said. “But they don’t. They make decisions on authority and controlling and other sports and all this [other stuff]. … The reason we’re doing this is for them.

“We have to make this better for them, and it’s not. And it’s not only better for them, it’s screwing up the sport.”