Men's Basketball

John Calipari’s “Baby Son” is Graduating This Weekend

Published

7 years ago

May 2, 2019

There are not many more things more special than a father-son relationship, and during his time at Kentucky John Calipari has not been shy about showing his love for son Brad Calipari, from kissing him on the cheek to encouraging and pushing him to be a better basketball player.

Brad will graduate this weekend in just three years, an impressive feat and John Calipari wrote a letter to discuss just how proud he is of Brad’s accomplishments.

Here are some quotes from Cal’s emotional letter.

Ellen and I could not be more proud of the young man Brad has grown to be. He knows what it means to be committed and driven toward a goal. He’s humble when he wins and he learns from failure as much as he does from winning.

For me as a father, to be able to be with my son the last three years, to have him in every practice, to watch him play in games, to travel with him across the country, has been a true blessing.

As a father, if I had a choice, there’s no other young man I’d want to be my son other than Brad. With graduation on the horizon, he has his entire future ahead of him. We don’t know the turns or how fate will intervene. We don’t know how Brad’s story will end. I do know though that he prepared to write his own story and be his own man. Most people know Brad as John Calipari’s son. I can’t wait until the day when the world knows me as John, Brad Calipari’s father.
Congratulations, Brad. We’re all so proud of you.

As a part of the Big Blue Nation, we often see Cal yelling and ranting on the sidelines as he pushes his players, but it’s refreshing to see the emotional and fatherly side of Coach Cal.

While nothing has been reported or said, Brad still has two seasons of eligibility left and could transfer to another school and play next season. However, Brad has discussed his interest in coaching and there are not many many coaches better to learn from than his father.

No matter what Brad chooses, Brad has brought some style to the sidelines and brought out a rarely seen side of Coach Cal, Good Luck Brad!

The rest of the Letter can be read on CoachCal.com.

Related Topics:Brad Calipari John Calipari

Men's Basketball

Kentucky’s Otega Oweh Selected No. 41 Overall in Second Round of the NBA Draft

Published

6 hours ago

June 24, 2026

Kai McClelland

Photo via Tristan Pharis

It’s sad to say goodbye to a superstar, a player who always had the ball in his hands when the clock ticked away, created countless memories and who’s name will always carry weight in any given conversation.

That superstar is Kentucky’s Otega Oweh, with his dream to play professional basketball coming true on the night of Wednesday, June 24.

Selected with the No. 41 overall pick, the Miami Heat originally had rights to Oweh but would quickly move him to the Oklahoma City Thunder via trade.

The New Jersey native was a standout player in the NBA Combine in May, leaving behind an impressive body of work at Kentucky with 1,255 career points as a Wildcat. Oweh will more than likely be a two-player under league contract, but members of the Big Blue Nation know very well that he’s the type of personality to fight his way to the top.

Joining former Wildcats Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Cason Wallace, Oweh will now be the third member of the team to go from the bluegrass to the bright lights of the NBA.

The 6-foot-5 guard is now Mark Pope’s fourth draft pick ever, joining teammates Koby Brea (No. 41, Suns, 2025), Amari Williams (No. 46, Celtics, 2025) and Jayden Quaintance (No. 20, Spurs, 2026).

Men's Basketball

Mark Pope Compares Justin McBride to Former Kentucky Star

Published

17 hours ago

June 24, 2026

Tristan Pharis

Mark Pope says Justin McBride gives him "Julius Randle vibes." The James Madison transfer has shed 10+ lbs and is a Kentucky basketball early surprise.

UK Athletics

The Kentucky basketball team started practicing earlier this month, and one of the biggest surprise performers thus far has been James Madison transfer Justin McBride. One reason for that is the offseason work he has put in before arriving in Lexington.

McBride, who previously played for Oklahoma State, Nevada, and most recently, James Madison, is listed at 6’8 and 250 pounds on Kentucky’s roster list. Those listed numbers are bigger than any of his previous stops, but he is currently in the best shape of his career.

According to one source, McBride has lost 10-12 pounds of fat from his top playing weight at James Madison. That has allowed him to be more mobile in practice, a pleasant surprise to what the staff was expecting of him coming in.

Mark Pope had a comparison for McBride in a ‘Mark Pope vs. the Shot Clock’ segment on UK Sports Network.

“Julius Randle vibes, seriously,” Pope said.

Randle was the SEC Rookie of the Year and an All-American in his one season at Kentucky, so high praise for McBride. However, Pope is not comparing McBride to Randle in terms of talent, but in terms of style.

McBride grades excellent as a catch-and-shoot guy in analytics, shooting 40% from deep last season, an ability that Randle has shown in the NBA. Also similar to Randle, he can use his size to get to his spots in the paint and muscle his way for a rebound.

Having a bully-ball kind of player, who is also efficient from three-point range, is a welcome addition for a Kentucky program that has struggled with physicality in recent seasons.

Mark Pope vs. the Shot Clock ⏱️

Meet your 2026 @KentuckyMBB team in 30 seconds pic.twitter.com/NLexvGpySl— UK Sports Network (@UKSportsNetwork) June 23, 2026

Also posted on A Sea of Blue.

Men's Basketball

Kentucky’s Jayden Quaintance Drafted First Round by the San Antonio Spurs

Published

1 day ago

June 23, 2026

Kai McClelland

Brett Davis | IMAGN Images

It’s every kids dream to play professionally one day, let alone be able to play for the University of Kentucky on the way to the next level.

Although Jayden Quaintance’s time with the Wildcats ended anticlimactically, his NBA dreams have officially come true at just 18 years old.

The Cleveland, Ohio native began his collegiate career with the Arizona State Sun Devils, starting in all 24 games he played in. Before his unfortunate knee injury, Quaintance was good for nearly a nightly double-double, averaging 9.4 points and 7.9 rebounds per game to go along with 2.6 blocks a night.

He would transfer to Kentucky ahead of his sophomore season, making his first appearance on Dec. 20 against St. John’s. Finishing the game with 10 points, eight rebounds and two blocks, many members of the Big Blue Nation were confident that their superstar had finally debuted.

Only appearing in three more games for the 2025-26 season, it was quite clear that his eyes were set on playing at the next level, not taking any chances of another injury.

Selecting Quaintance with the No. 20 overall pick, the Spurs have now added on to their elite front court and will likely utilize him as a two-way player. They drafted UConn’s Tarris Reed Jr. just six picks later, proving that they plan to utilize some form of paint beast to go alongside superstar Victor Wembanyama.

Quaintance is Mark Pope’s first first-round pick in the NBA Draft ever, following Koby Brea and Amari Williams from Pope’s first season in the bluegrass, who both went early in the second round of the 2025 NBA Draft.