‘Time for solutions’: Calipari’s shifting his focus to systemic racism
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Coffee with Cal
University of Kentucky men’s basketball coach John Calipari is hosting a weekly show on Facebook Live called “Coffee with Cal” in which he interviews influential individuals from the worlds of sports, media, politics and beyond. The shows are designed to benefit COVID-19 relief and draw attention to the Black Lives Matter movement. Click below to read the Herald-Leader’s stories recapping previous shows.
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To borrow a basketball term, Monday’s episode of the “Coffee with Cal” Facebook show featured the transition game. After a conversation with guest Sabrina Ionescu, Kentucky Coach John Calipari announced that the program’s focus will shift from helping coronavirus relief efforts to combating systemic racism in this country.
“We’ve raised over $1 million …,” he said of the COVID-19 fundraising. “Now, it’s time for actions. Talking isn’t going to get this done. Time for solutions.”
The next “Coffee with Cal” show will be devoted to a proposal Calipari has made about UK beginning a program intended to create access and opportunities in athletics administration for minority candidates.
As a coach, Calipari said he could wield influence in such a program. But he said he did not want the effort solely associated with him. He said he had sought support from “tons” of coaches.
“Diversity attacks systemic racism,” Calipari said. “Diversity. How can we make our athletic departments more diverse? That’s what this is about.”
Caliapri said he did not want the program to be thought of as dealing with internships. “They are work experiences for minorities in athletics,” he said.
The UK coach said he had been working with the John McLendon Foundation to establish what he called a “minority leadership initiative.” McLendon, who died in 1999, was enshrined twice in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. His coaching career included working for Kentucky State.
“Let me say I am passionate about this,” Calipari said. “I’m on this. We’re talking to tons of coaches to be ambassadors, to promote, to take the point of fundraising (and) help athletic directors and athletic departments do this in a positive way.”
‘Closed shop’
Kentucky players returned to campus on Monday. The first day included testing for the coronavirus, Calipari said.
Meals will be prepared at the Wildcat Coal Lodge. “It’s going to be a closed shop,” Calipari said. “My hope is, you know, we don’t have a whole lot of issues. But you never know in this.”
Ionescu, who starred at Oregon, said that she and other WNBA players are scheduled to leave next Monday for Bradenton, Fla., where an abbreviated 2020 season will be played at one site.
Ionescu said she was tested for the coronavirus two weeks ago. She added that she expects at least three more rounds of testing before the first game.
The first such testing will be conducted when the players arrive. What follows is five days of self isolation, Ionescu said.
Triple-doubles
Playing for Oregon, Ionescu set a record for career triple-doubles. She became the only Division I player to amass 2,000 points, 1,000 assists and 1,000 rebounds in a career.
Ionescu said she did not aim for triple-doubles. Then she added, “Especially my last year, if I’d gone through a couple games (without one), I’d be, ‘All right. Maybe this next game, I’ll try a little harder to go after the long rebounds.’”
The cancellation of the women’s 2020 NCAA Tournament was difficult to take, Ionescu said.
“Our team felt it heavily just because we had been through so much adversity through the year with the Kobe situation.” Kobe Bryant had attended Oregon’s game at Southern California in 2019. After the game, he spoke to the Oregon team, Ionescu said.
Bryant and a daughter, Gianna, died in a helicopter crash on Jan. 26.
‘We were coming together’
Calipari likened the abrupt end of a season due to a loss in the NCAA Tournament to falling off a cliff.
“You don’t know it’s coming,” he said. “You don’t know if you’re going to be holding the trophy or this is the end of your season. And it may come on a buzzer shot. …
“I felt our team could win it all last year. We were coming together. I’ve done this a long time. You know.”
Calling Rhyne Howard
Ionescu said she recently spoke to Rhyne Howard, the star of UK’s women’s team.
“I got on a call with her,” Ionescu said, “and kind of talked to her about how to deal with pressure. How to deal with always wanting to do more and be more and not being satisfied.”
This story was originally published June 29, 2020 at 2:43 PM.
