DESTIN, Fla. — The most jarring image at the SEC meetings in Destin has been John Calipari walking through the hotel lobby with the Arkansas logo on his jersey.
The most discordant sound Wednesday came from Calipari admitting that a new “formula” will be needed to win the NCAA Tournament after persistent postseason failures in recent seasons at Kentucky.
Calipari, in his first SEC meetings as coach at Arkansas, referenced third-seeded Kentucky's loss to No. 14 Oakland in the first round of the 2024 NCAA tournament. It included a 32-point outburst by a 24-year-old Division II transfer named Jack Gohlke.
“The lesson was that you can't do this now with seven freshmen,” he said. “You just can't. You're going to hit a team that's an average 25 years old, one was 26, and that team is going to get you physically, so now we have a couple of transfers that are older, some kids that transferred from Kentucky and they went through it, and they're a year older and some freshmen.”
While Calipari's age estimates contain some of his tendency to exaggerate, the point of him addressing his postseason failures and making a concise pivot in his team's formation is significant.
Calipari left Kentucky after just one NCAA tournament victory in the last four seasons and a weak 1-4 record in SEC tournaments over the same period. NCAA Tournament highlights included a loss to No. 15 seed Saint Peter's in the 2022 first round.
In the wake of those postseason failures, Calipari admitted that his formula of assembling a group of top high school talent doesn't work in modern college basketball. He is making a direct effort to skew seniors and accept more transfers.
“We're not going to take six or seven freshmen right now,” Calipari said. “There will be three or four. We hope to retain some, get a couple of transfers, and that's the formula.”
He added with a smile: “That might not work. And then you'll say, 'Well, you said…' Well, I changed my mind. I didn't like the way it looked.”
Calipari said the new job in Arkansas energizes him and called it a “breath of fresh air.” He called his time at UK “15 great years” and defended his final season at Kentucky, saying “we did a lot” amid a 23-10 season that included a second-place finish in the SEC.
Calipari reflected on his tenure at Arkansas, which officially began on April 10. He said there was “no team” and “no schedule” when he started, and emphasized that there were no players.
He joked that he was glad when the roster grew to five players, since it meant Arkansas could field a team this year. He said the Razorbacks now have eight players and are potentially looking for one more.
The incoming class includes three players in the top 40 in ESPN's high school recruiting rankings, led by Boogie Fland, a guard from New York who is ranked No. 15.
The transfer class includes three Kentucky transfers, highlighted by guard DJ Wagner, who came to Kentucky as a top-five player in 2023 before a disappointing freshman year. He averaged 9.9 points.
Calipari defended the idea of not filling the 13 scholarships with recruited players, saying they would likely end up with nine.
“The ninth? It depends on who it is,” he said. “That's what we're looking for. Is he a shooter? Is he a 4-man who can shoot? Is he physically strong?” [presence]? Is he a defensive guy? Or I can just breathe now because we have eight and I hope it will be nine. But what if there isn't? Someone said, 'Well, what if you have injuries?' “If the wrong guy gets hurt on any team in this country, you're done.”
