John Calipari, the Two Billion Dollar Man

John Calipari has obviously changed the landscape of Kentucky basketball when it comes to our pipeline to the NBA. He hasn’t been shy about letting everybody know that his main objective is to change young men’s lives. For better or worse, he has accomplished that goal by a large margin. Kentucky players had made minimal impact in the NBA before Cal arrived and now they unquestionably control the league.

I have done this post a few times during my time with KSR but not for several years so I thought it would be a good time to take account of just how much his players have raked in. All numbers are earnings through the 2022-23 season (do not include this year). Generational wealth indeed.

*Next to each player’s name is a ranking of where they stand in career earnings compared to other Calipari UK players

2010 NBA Draft

#1. John Wall: $279,950,185
#5. Eric Bledsoe: $128,101,423
#9. Demarcus Cousins: $91,920,577
#16. Patrick Patterson: $45,399,400
#37. Daniel Orton: $2,891,672
TOTAL: $548,263,257

2011 NBA Draft

#6. Enes Freedom: $104,579,345
#11. Brandon Knight: $80,442,795
#35. Deandre Liggins: $3,790,073
#44. Josh Harrellson: $1,712,094
TOTAL: $190,524,307

2012 NBA Draft

#2. Anthony Davis: $227,701,627
#12. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist: $72,760,924
#21. Darius Miller: $20,217,476
#27. Terrence Jones: $8,631,048
#36. Marquis Teague: $3,381,985
#45. Doron Lamb: $1,438,872
TOTAL: $334,131,932

2013 NBA Draft

#15. Nerlens Noel: $45,448,874
#31. Archie Goodwin: $5,721,023
TOTAL: $51,169,897

2014 NBA Draft

#8. Julius Randle: $102,646,962
#33. James Young: $5,249,520
TOTAL: $107,896,482

2015 NBA Draft

#3. Karl-Anthony Towns: $147,956,835
#4. Devin Booker: $132,221,965
#18. Trey Lyles: $26,511,049
#19. Willie Cauley Stein: $25,964,115
#39. Andrew Harrison: $2,457,611
#42. Dakari Johnson: $2,193,857
#46. Aaron Harrison: $1,075,243
TOTAL: $338,380,675

2016 NBA Draft

#7. Jamal Murray: $102,914,106
#30. Skal Labissiere: $6,385,249
#40. Tyler Ulis: $2,280,980
#47. Alex Poythress: $852,952
TOTAL: $112,433,287

2017 NBA Draft

#10. De’Aaron Fox: $83,027,787
#13. Bam Adebayo: $72,471,102
#17. Malik Monk: $26,987,522
#43. Mychal Mulder: $1,756,515
#48. Isaiah Briscoe: $838,464
#49. Isaac Humphries: $47,371
TOTAL: $185,128,761

2018 NBA Draft

#14. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: $47,878,882
#20. Kevin Knox: $21,554,698
#24. Hamidou Diallo: $14,319,177
#25. Jarred Vanderbilt: $12,293,177
#32. Wenyen Gabriel: $5,372,315
TOTAL: $101,418,249

2019 NBA Draft

#22. PJ Washington: $17,878,995
#23. Tyler Herro: $17,188,836
#26. Keldon Johnson: $10,017,385
TOTAL: $45,085,216

2020 NBA Draft

#28. Tyrese Maxey: $7,808,640
#29. Immanuel Quickley: $6,632,400
#34. Nick Richards: $4,300,602
TOTAL: $18,741,642

2021 NBA Draft

#33. Isaiah Jackson: $5,024,880
#38. Brandon Boston: $2,488,776
TOTAL: $7,513,656

2022 NBA Draft

#41. TyTy Washington: $2,210,040

GRAND TOTAL: $2,042,897,401

John Calipari Kentucky players have earned over 2 BILLION DOLLARS in NBA contracts through last season. That includes:

33 players who have earned over 5 million dollars
26 players over 10 million dollars
21 players over 20 million dollars
13 players over 70 million dollars
8 players over 100 million dollars
2 players over 200 million dollars

WHAT ABOUT 3 BILLION DOLLARS???

Now what you really have to keep in mind is how quickly John Calipari will be able to surpass the 3 billion dollar mark. Just this season alone, his players will rake in another almost $400 million dollars in salary. That’s with Tyrese Maxey on the verge of a mega-deal and potentially 4-5 players added to the league next season. I would think by the 2025-26 season, the 3 billion dollar mark will be exceeded.

2023-24 Season: $396,798,976
In Order By Salary: Davis (40.6m), Towns (36.0m), Booker (36.0m), Murray (33.8m), Shai (33.3m), Fox (32.6m), Adebayo (32.6m), Randle (28.2m), Herro (27.0m), Johnson (20.0m), P.Washington (16.8m), Monk (9.9m), Lyles (8.0m), Wall (6.8m), Wallace (5.2m), Richards (5.0m), Vanderbilt (4.6m), Maxey (4.3m), Quickley (4.1m), Jackson (2.6m), T.Washington (2.3m), Knox (1.8m), Boston (1.8m), Bledsoe (1.3m), Livingston (1.1m), Noel (300k)

NOTE: Oscar Tshiebwe’s salary is not listed on his page for 2023-24.

Whether or not you think John Calipari’s focus for this program has been appropriate during his tenure, he had a goal and accomplished that goal in spades. He has changed the lives of many, many players. His impact on the game of basketball is immeasurable.