John Calipari Closer to Kentucky Deal

As things progress on the John Calipari-to-Kentucky coaching front, one can't help but get a feeling of inevitability. Monday, we covered the swirling rumors and now it appears Calipari is going to accept the offer any minute. According to a source for the New York Times, one claiming to be a longtime friend of Calipari's, he will accept a very lucrative deal to become the Wildcats' next coach. It's worth noting Calipari is already one of the highest paid coaches in college basketball, so he'd likely become far-and-away the highest paid coach in the nation.

More interesting, perhaps, could be the immediate impact of talent to Kentucky -- at the expense of Memphis' once vaunted recruiting class.

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Highly touted recruits Nolan Dennis, DeMarcus Cousins and Xavier Henry would reportedly likely follow Calipari to Lexington, and it's possible C.J. Henry -- Xavier's brother -- would head north as well. These moves would decimate Memphis' nationally envied recruiting class, and make Kentucky an instant power.

In addition to the extra money, not having to go through a rebuilding process would likely be attractive to Calipari.

UPDATE: In a televised report, ESPN's Andy Katz stated that Calipari is "sleeping on" an 8-year, $35 million deal. Obviously, this is a significant pay bump from Calipari's current $2.3 million annual salary.

Also, a local Memphis TV station has a streaming video and chat room running -- if you want to keep up to date with where Calipari's car is parked.