A senior plays on the varsity basketball team, He earns numerous honors and awards, He takes his team deep in the state playoffs, and his talents and skills catch the eye of one man. This specific man promises college glory, a final four appearance, national televised games, and a spot on a NBA team. This man is one of the top coaches in the game today, considered a genius by many, he goes by “Mr. One and done” a.k.a Coach John Calipari.
Dajuan Wagner, Darius Washington jr. Shawne Williams, John wall, Derrick Rose, Tyreke Evans, Demarcus Cousins and soon to be Brandin Knight are players that won the “Calipari Scholarship.” Though all aren’t currently in the league, they accomplished every step to get there and make their millions, but the longevity and smoothness of their careers fluctuate.
I have always been a fan of Coach Calipari. He brings a handful of the top players to his team and squeezes as much skill and natural ability out of them that he can, because he knows when June comes around he will watch them walk across the stage in New York and shake David Stern’s hand.
What I’m not a fan of is John Calipari as a man. He has led players into a sadistic world, uneducated, vulnerable, and too immature to handle the issues that arise with these profitable positions. Without being properly educated, disciplined and held responsible for their actions, players under Coach Calipari are given the reins to a thoroughbred, but without any horse riding lessons.
Just like Lord Palpatine, Calipari is making several Darth Vaders who once released in the NBA are guided by the league’s intriguing, but evil forces.
Shawne Williams, an extremely high risk- high reward forward, has been a headache and thorn in the side of every coaching staff he has played for while in the NBA. His assortment of disrespectful actions towards teammates coaches and to the game of basketball has led him to the New York Knick's bench.
Derrick Rose, arguably the best point guard in the NBA, isn’t even close to being the smartest or wisest of the “Calipari” bunch. Charged with academic cheating while at the University of Memphis, Rose is the prototype of a “Dumb Jock.” He even had someone else take his ACT for him at Simeon High School.
The immoral recruiting and promises made by “Emperor Calipari” have led players on a journey with no G.P.S.
Though there are players like John Wall and Brandin Knight who excel in the classrooms and courts, others haven’t come close to educational success. This lack of success can be attributed to effort from players, Calipari’s failure to push for academic excellence, influence of boosters, free time for studies, and even being blinded by the glamour of playing at a big institution.
The importance of having book and basketball smarts should be the only goal for every player and every coach. Vince Carter exhibited this by being late for a playoff game so he could walk across the stage and receive his diploma. He was ridiculed by anouncers for this, but was given hugs and praise from his mother and people that actually mattered.
Calipari needs to play every male role in these kid’s lives. Raising and fine-tuning them into being role models and men for future “one and dons”, needs to be his goal.
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