Jay Wright gives 'firm' answer when asked about Kentucky head coaching vacancy
Jay Wright is not interested in Kentucky’s head coaching job, he said Monday night.
Wright, who won 2 national championships during his time at Villanova, was mentioned by numerous parties this week as a potential candidate for UK’s vacancy. John Calipari is reportedly expected to be announced as Arkansas’ next head coach on Tuesday after 15 years in Lexington.
While appearing on the pregame show before national championship game, Wright spoke about the Kentucky job glowingly, but said he doesn’t have any interest in the job himself. He also spoke highly of the job that Calipari did while in Lexington.
“The guy that replaces him is going to be in a really difficult position to cover all the areas of college basketball,” Wright said. “He’s a college basketball genius. What he did in recruiting, in bringing in all those pros … it makes that program as strong as ever. Whoever goes in there is coming into a super strong program.
When pressed by Seth Davis on set for a “firm no,” Wright gave him one.
Here’s video of some of Wright’s comments on the Kentucky job:
Jay Wright with some strong words about the Kentucky HC Vacancy
Finished with a strong “No” to whether he’d be interested in the job pic.twitter.com/bZzgUZ1f9t
— Big Blue Nation #BBN (@UKBasketbalI) April 9, 2024
Wright joins Alabama’s Nate Oats as coaches who have publicly removed themselves from the Kentucky conversation on Monday. Wright is often mentioned when big-time college basketball jobs come available, but has so far not seriously entertained any of them since retiring from Villanova. Wright made similar comments about the Ohio State job — while declining any potential interest — earlier this season.
Kentucky is still expected to have an attractive pool of potential coaching candidates to choose from. Baylor’s Scott Drew, who led the Bears to the national championship in 2021, headlines the group of potential candidates.
Calipari is expected to be announced as Arkansas’ next head coach on Tuesday.
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That wasn’t quite as “firm” as this article acts like it is!
Too much heat in the kitchen for him. Could fly under the radar in the non vintage Big East and be a small fish in Philly.
i like your 1st sentence more than your 2nd. i don’t think wright is insecure or afraid of a challenge, but i believe he believes that calipari by and large did a good job in lexington and immediately following him is a tougher challenge than is being recognized.
i get the uk fan base wanting a change, but even with the recent early tourn exits, calipari has big shoes to fill.
I like Jay Wright. From all accounts, he liked the anonymity of being able to walk around and live his life. He has multiple championships, so no disrespect there. When he finally broke through in the last couple of years of national dominance, he could still fly under the radar because the Big East was no longer the primetime college basketball Big East compared to when he started at Villanova. Also, very different records in that period.
And UK has always had big shoes to fill as a basketball brand. It’s the Kentucky logo, not the Calipari logo.
no question that the uk job is high-profile. i further agree that it’s more about the ‘uk’ logo than any one coach. one of the better brands in all of college sports.
my intent was more centered on the fact that following calipari is more of a challenge than say following gillespie, of whom, as you know, calipari followed. i believe wright was alluding to the current situation.
I think that Wright, being retired, would just like to remain retired, as I will likely do in a few more years. Otherwise, he might be interested.
More click-Bait & we clicked.
If I had written this article, I would have entitled it, “Jay Wright Not Interested in the Kentucky Job.” Then you would not need to read the article to find out what you wanted to know. That’s why I’m not a journalist, I guess.
Nice way of saying he wants no part of a crazy fan base with unrealistic expectations. Kentucky lives off memories
and the responses of “just like TN in football” coming in 1, 2, 3…
I think you mean tradition. Not getting past the first round against double digit seeds in multiple years, and 1 tournament win in 5+ years is hardly unrealistic.