John Calipari on Kentucky's run: "We've got to enjoy this"

There are only seven regular-season games remaining. One month from today, the postseason begins with the SEC Tournament down in Tampa. Even before you have time to process those results, the NCAA Tournament tips off and it’s win-or-go-home, a countdown clock you don’t notice until it’s ringing in your ears.

After the 86-76 win vs. South Carolina — another gritty, grind-it-out performance on the road — John Calipari took a moment to pause and reflect on what is shaping up to be a special season. He’s encouraging his players to do the same.

“What’s happening now, these kids are — phew. And they’re for each other. They’re helping each other. They’re picking up each other. It’s been a good run.

“What’s gonna happen is, this is going to end too fast. In other words, last night at the meeting, I said, do you understand how fast this has gone? We’ve got eight games left. The next time we turn around we’re going to be in Florida in the [SEC] tournament. The next time we turn around, we’re going to be starting a run for something special. Like in the blink of an eye. We’ve got to enjoy this.”

That’s advice we all should heed.

The right team at the right time

In hearing Calipari’s comments, it’s hard not to flashback to 2020, when another lovable Kentucky team was rolling into the SEC Tournament. What looked to be a special run was stopped in its tracks by the coronavirus. Instead of chasing their dreams, the 2019-20 Cats boarded a bus back to Lexington and played a final game of pick-up, laughs mixed with tears as they tried to process the abrupt and unfair end to their time together.

Due to the pandemic, the 2020-21 team never really got to write their story. Safety protocols robbed a new group of players of the chance to bond with each other and the Big Blue Nation, which showed in the 9-16 record. Calipari calls the 2020-21 season a fluke, a throw-away due to the unique circumstances. Add in the tragic deaths of Ben Jordan and Terrence Clarke and basketball was trivial. When speaking of that group, Calipari almost always begins with mental health, which became his primary focus in guiding his players — “other people’s children,” he reminds us — through an impossible situation.

Last year’s struggles are even more reason to appreciate this season’s success. Faced with the most important rebuild of his tenure at Kentucky, John Calipari used the transfer portal to put together the most experienced team in program history. “Old guys” like Oscar Tshiebwe, Kellan Grady, and Sahvir Wheeler came in from other squads, ready to finish their college careers under the sport’s biggest spotlight. Keion Brooks, Davion Mintz, Jacob Toppin, and Lance Ware returned, eager to get the taste of last season out of their mouths. Freshman TyTy Washington is mature beyond his years on the court but dances off it, a breath of fresh air in a room that had turned stale and musty.

It’s no wonder Calipari is so enamored with this group. As the season goes on, you can hear the excitement in his voice build. Like his best teams, they’ve never had a bad practice. After a brutally physical game vs. Vanderbilt last week, Calipari confessed he didn’t want to leave his armchair for practice the next day but did anyway; his team similarly answered the bell, turning in a productive hour. On Saturday night after the win at Alabama, he gave his players the highest compliment, telling Tom Leach they lock into a game plan and execute it better than any group he’s ever had. Nowadays, his postgame remarks almost always include an aside about how they have the ingredients to win it all.

“We’ve got a chance,” he told ESPN last night. “We’ve got point guards, a bunch of them, we’ve got some guys that can make shots. And we’ve got the beast inside, who’s doing good stuff and he continues to run.”

Kentucky’s ability to win in a variety of ways may be its biggest strength thus far. As Seth Davis put it on Twitter after the 66-55 win at Alabama, they can beat you in the 90s or beat you in the 60s. Calipari knows how vital that is heading into March.

“I don’t think we made a lot of threes, but we scored 80 some points,” he told Tom Leach last night. “You make some but we’re playing basketball. If we happen to make a bunch of threes, we beat you by 30.”

“Everything is, how do you win in March? Now if you’ve never played in March or coached in March, you don’t know how to win in March. But it becomes, can you play fast to create separation? Can you grind it out if you need to? Do you have tough, hard-nosed, mentally tough kids that can make free throws and plays as it winds down? So, you need to be in games like this.”

“This is what we are: Kentucky Basketball”

The play on the court is obviously thrilling. Watching this team fly in transition, punish on the boards, and dash dreams from the three-point line is the cold drink of water we’ve needed for so long. Maybe even more important is what they’re doing off the court. The best teams in the Calipari era were able to form a bond with fans despite their stars’ short tenures in Lexington. Between Oscar Tshiebwe’s faith, Kellan Grady’s wisdom, Davion Mintz’s perseverance, TyTy Washington’s joy, and the obvious love they have for one another, this team is impossible to root against.

“I think the fans really just love us because of not only the way we play basketball, the way we share with each other, but I feel like the fans can really see on our faces that we’re really brothers here,” TyTy Washington said last week. “We all care for each other, we don’t care who has the most points. We all have the same common goal, and it just shows. We’re always laughing on the court. The game could be really close and you’ll find me and Sahvir at the free-throw line laughing with each other. You can find Granddad (Kellan Grady) having his little grin. We’re just always going out there with happy spirits, going out there with a smile on our face.”

That, according to Calipari, has helped the program return to its rightful spot in the eyes of the sport and the hearts of the fans.

“We’ve got to know that this is what we are: Kentucky Basketball. This is what our fans love about it. And they’re loving these players. And they know. I’ve been here 13 years. You kind of know what you’re getting from me. But it’s having a group of young people like this? It’s been fun.”

So, no matter the ending, that’s why we’ve got to enjoy this.