Rumors swirled the last couple of days in regards to the future whereabouts of basketball coach John Calipari.
Some said he was on a plane en route for Raleigh, N.C. to tour the basketball facilities at North Carolina State.
Others said he was enjoying a half-chicken at Central BBQ just down the road from The University of Memphis campus.
My sources told me that he was aboard a spaceship headed to the moon to meet with secret service agents about highly classified matters.
Of course, those rumors mean nothing now.
Calipari will remain in Memphis as head coach of the Tigers for at least one more season thanks to a restructured contract, according to reports, that will up his base salary from $1.1 million to $1.3 million, not including incentives that boost the package to $1.7 million. The new deal also stipulates a raise for Calipari's assistants and improvements to the Finch Center.
It was recently brought to my attention in an ESPN.com column by Pat Forde that George Mason coach Jim Larranaga has won as many NCAA tournament games (4) in one year as Calipari has won in six years at Memphis. But that isn't the issue here.
College basketball is a business and coaches have every right to negotiate for more dollars. Calipari did, after all, put Memphis basketball back on the map and had the Tigers ranked in the top-five for much of last season. If he wants more money, fine.
But the problem with the whole ordeal lies within Calipari's snake oil methods of negotiation. A few weeks ago he said he wanted to stay with the Tigers as long as The University treated him fairly. However, when N.C. State officials came knocking on his door, the last thing Calipari had in mind was fairness. He manipulated the situation and made the trip to Raleigh for the sole purpose of flexing his muscles and bullying U of M athletic director R.C. Johnson: Meet my demands or I'll leave.
This is not the first time Calipari has pulled such a stunt. In 2001, he used a South Carolina offer as leverage to increase his salary at Memphis from $550,000 to $1 million. And that was after the Tigers recorded a third-place finish in the NIT.
You might be thinking, if it's money he's after, why didn't Calipari just take the $2 million to coach the Wolfpack?
Simple. It's for the same reason he didn't go to South Carolina or Pittsburgh, his hometown, when he had the chance. He knows he can't be successful in a big-time conference like the ACC. His recruiting abilities alone would not be enough to compete with teams like Duke and North Carolina that are loaded with talent every year. He'd have to rely on his coaching abilities. Roy Williams and Mike Krzyzewski would have their teams running circles around Calipari's squad. Enough said.
Despite popular opinion, Johnson is not to blame for the recent saga. The bulk of coach's salaries come from booster contributions. It wasn't like Johnson had a stash of $1 billion hidden in a vault in the athletic offices. He didn't simply refuse Calipari's demands. Johnson most likely scrambled to lobby high profile boosters to give more money so Calipari would stay. And, in the end, Calipari is still here, isn't he? Johnson did his job.
Johnson is also responsible for bringing Tommy West to Memphis. No one would deny the wonders that West has done for the football program. Behind closed doors this past week, the two worked together and successfully restructured West's contract. West didn't have to threaten to leave to get his money, either. He's not that type of guy.
Let's not forget about baseball coach Daron Schoenrock. Johnson hired him in 2004. At the halfway point this season, Schoenrock's Tigers (20-13) have already surpassed last year's win total by seven games. The Tigers are also in contention for a Conference USA title, something that seemed improbable in years past.
The bottom line: Johnson has done a lot for Memphis athletics. He is not the villain.
Calipari is not a villain, either. He's just a snake oil salesman. He didn't handle things the right way. But that's all over with now. If he gets the Tigers to the Final Four, then I couldn't care less about all of this. I'd forgive him of murder if he brought a title to this city.
