Rick Pitino demands Kentucky fans applaud John Calipari with ‘respect and admiration’ in return to Rupp Arena
Ahead of the return of John Calipari to Kentucky, another former head coach of the Wildcats has weighed in on what reception that he’s deserving of in Rupp Arena on Saturday.
Rick Pitino posted a video on Twitter on Thursday to share his take on how the Big Blue Nation should respond when Calipari retakes the court in Lexington. He hopes to see the fanbase remember the best times of his tenure at UK and, as such, welcome him with a standing ovation ahead of Arkansas vs. No. 12 Kentucky.
“I didn’t steer you wrong with Mark Pope when I sent out that last video and I certainly won’t steer you wrong with this video,” Pitino began.
“This is different. And, as you all know, I’m not best friends with John Calipari. I respect him, certainly. But it was a mutual thing. The fans wanted a change. John read the tea leaves. He needed a change. And he really didn’t want to leave. But what did he do for you? He brought the best talent in the history of the game, of any university in America, to Lexington. He also won a national championship. He also – his style of play was extremely entertaining,” said Pitino. “He’s coming back on Saturday and I want all of you to show the great class that you have – 23,000-plus people giving him a huge standing ovation. Show him what respect and admiration is all about. I know you have the class. I’ve always believed in you. Do it once again.”
With that, Pitino compared it to other past coaches coming back to their former programs, including his own return to the bluegrass as the head coach of Louisville on December 29th, 2001.
“Toughest day of my coaching career at Louisville was when I had to walk into Rupp Arena. Tried not to show it but, when I went home, the reception? It tore me up apart because I loved that place so much,” said Pitino. “It’s interesting because I was speaking to Ed Cooley just recently about Providence and he said he almost was brought to tears because of the bad feelings that he got going back there.”
This report will be updated further
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