Former Cats sensed Coach Cal's departure was coming, but believe Mark Pope was 'perfect hire'

Everyone had the same reaction when those first reports of John Calipari‘s talks with Arkansas hit social media, sports radio and television last spring. It’s not that his departure was a stunner — we all know how toxic things had gotten in Lexington due to recent postseason results — but the timing and location couldn’t have been bigger surprises, during the Final Four and to an SEC rival.

That led to an all-time week of rumors and rumblings before Kentucky landed on Mark Pope to lead the men’s basketball program. It was a polarizing decision at the time, but one that ultimately paid off in a big way, history made in year one with eight top-15 wins to tie an all-time college basketball record and a return to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2019.

We got plenty of immediate reactions from Coach Cal’s former players as it all unfolded, but how about a year removed from the change, knowing what we know about Pope’s debut season with the Wildcats?

Doron Lamb, the leading scorer in Kentucky’s national title game in 2012, could feel the breakup coming. Knowing Calipari after spending two years with him in college and staying in regular contact afterward, the former sharpshooter saw the frustration within the fanbase and felt his old coach would push for a fresh start.

“I mean, I knew Cal was gonna leave. I had a feeling because the fans were really on him, and I know Coach Cal don’t like that,” Lamb told KSR. “I already had a feeling he was gonna leave.”

For DeAndre Liggins, it was about deja vu — he had seen it all before with Billy Gillispie’s departure, leading to his two years with Coach Cal.

“When I first heard that, I didn’t believe it,” the former Wildcat wing said of Calipari’s move to Arkansas. “I saw Coach Cal taking the garbage out at his house with reporters there, and I was like, ‘Oh, this is real.’ I saw reporters do that to Gillispie, so I knew he was leaving.”

The transition ended up working out for everyone, Calipari finding success in Fayetteville and Pope doing the same in Lexington, both making it to the Sweet 16.

It was proof breakups don’t always have to be ugly and all parties involved can be better off.

“Mark Pope is doing a great job. He’s a great coach who knows what he’s doing with his guys. I wish good things for him,” Lamb continued. “… Coach Cal did a great job, got a lot of NBA guys to come here, won a championship, went to a lot of Final Fours — a lot of great memories. Mark Pope is a great coach. He just got here, but he’s off to a great start. We all wish the best for him.

“I was surprised (how well Pope did) because that first year with a new team, everyone is brand new. It’s hard like that, but he did a great job, ranked the whole season and won a lot of big games that nobody expected. They did a great job and I think next year he’s gonna do big things, too.”

“Pope was a perfect hire. That was the right hire,” Liggins added. “His first year, he did a fantastic job getting to the Sweet 16 after battling through injuries. I think he’s done a great job here and is gonna continue to do a great job.”

Another former Wildcat, Archie Goodwin — who, like Lamb and Liggins, will be suiting up for La Familia in The Basketball Tournament this summer — says doing what Pope did is harder than it looks. Just ask Memphis, who still hasn’t been to a second weekend since Calipari’s last year with the Tigers in 2009.

Seven appearances, three combined wins.

“I think Pope did an amazing job this first year. It’s hard to follow up behind a guy like Coach Cal because of who he is and what he means to organizations,” Goodwin said. “You see how Memphis had a couple of down years once he left. When he leaves, it’s such a drastic change because of what he is and what he does for folks.”

In his eyes, Pope had a team capable of winning a national championship — and maybe could’ve gotten there without the injury bug biting. It all worked because he did his own thing rather than recreating what Coach Cal did and made him elite.

He pushed different buttons and it led to history.

“To come in and do what he did last year, that was a great thing. They had a chance to win a championship, in my opinion,” Goodwin continued. “I think he’s done an amazing job and I think that he’s going to continue to do an amazing job here. And he’s doing it his own way. Trying to follow behind what Coach Cal does wouldn’t necessarily work for him — because they’re not the same person, they are two different personalities.

“For him to do it his way and have the success that he had doing it his way, I think that’s going to be great.”