Memphis' John Calipari to Kentucky, What's the Fallout?

If Memphis Head Coach John Calipari dashes for the University of Kentucky, with all of its tradition and vast dollars, where will Memphis turn for their next head coach?

Let's explore the most logical choice, University of Missouri head coach Mike Anderson.

Why Memphis makes sense:

1. Memphis is a national name in the recruiting battles, something Missouri is only now working towards. Every 17-18 year old kid in America saw Derrick Rose in the national championship game a year ago, and they all want to be just like him. And Tyreke Evans didn't do anything to hurt the Memphis persona this year. Mike Anderson doesn't need top recruits to implement his system efficiently, but he certainly wouldn't turn them down.

2. The University of Memphis has the luxury of being the biggest draw in town. The Grizzlies, although young and exciting, have yet to make a solid connection with the citizens of Memphis since arriving from Vancouver. University of Memphis basketball is the hottest ticket in town, without question.

In fact, the University of Memphis often uses the very building the city built for the Grizzlies, to play its home games. NBA arena equals big draw for high school recruits. Also, Memphis football is not, and never will be a threat to its basketball program as we've seen at schools such as Notre Dame, USC, Miami, Florida, and Texas.

3. Worldwide Wes. Don't know who he is? Click here. Wes is an agent without the paycheck (supposedly) and more contacts than a Rolo-dex. Without writing Wes' biography, I'll just introduce you to his affiliation with the University of Memphis. Wes got his start in "recruit funneling" with Dajuan Wagner. Where did he go to college, you ask? Memphis.

Wes rode Wagner as long as he could, picking up more contacts and cell numbers on the ride. Wes' next "friend" is a Chicago kid named Derrick Rose, you may have heard of him. Rose also attended college at Memphis.

Wes' most recent "friend" is Memphis' point guard from last year Tyreke Evans.

Add Allen Iverson, Michael Jordan, Richard Hamilton, LeBron James, Jay-Z, and P Diddy to Wes' list of contacts, and you can figure that as long as he is around, Memphis will land a fair share of top recruits.

4. Family & cultural ties. Anderson's wife, Marcheita Anderson, is from the Memphis area. We've seen coaches take other jobs to be closer to family, what is unknown is if Anderson would take a job so his wife could be closer to home.

His son, Mike Anderson, Jr. is a walk-on on the Missouri Tigers basketball team. Mike Sr. may have declined a job like Memphis in the past to continue coaching his son who transferred to Missouri after his dad took the job. However, now Mike Jr. has finished his senior season and is joining his father's staff as soon as he graduates this May.

The most talented basketball player in the family, Yvonne Anderson, has recently enrolled in college and is playing basketball at the University of Texas. So, Anderson has no ties to Columbia, MO, and a few threads connecting him to the Memphis area, thus making the move easier.

The cultural difference between Columbia, MO and Memphis, TN are vast, trust me, I've been to both. I'm not saying it's difficult for a middle aged black man to coach D1 college basketball in east-central Missouri, but it can't be as culturally soothing as it would be in Memphis.

Will he take the job?

The $64,000 question, indeed.

In the end, I say he will not take the Memphis job.

Memphis plays in a horrible conference that makes it nearly impossible to prepare for the NCAA tournament. The difference in dollars will not be significant enough to make this a no brainer, like Calipari to Kentucky.

Missouri's salary ceiling is about $1.5M, and I have to doubt whether Memphis will be willing to pay Anderson upwards of $2M a year (roughly what they were paying Calipari).

Last, Mike Anderson finally has his system up and running at Missouri and I don't think Memphis is the place to start anew. I also don't think Mizzou wants to start from scratch either, expect them to scrounge and scramble to find any way to keep Anderson at the University of Missouri.