John Calipari Denies Reported Interest in New Orleans Pelicans Job

The New Orleans Pelicans are searching for a new head coach and have one of the league's best players in Anthony Davis, who played one year of college basketball under John Calipari at Kentucky. It's easy to draw a link between Calipari and the Pelicans, though the Wildcats coach denies he's going anywhere.

Calipari tweeted out Tuesday that he has no interest in the Pelicans' head coaching vacancy even though Davis and his former Memphis star Tyreke Evans are in New Orleans:

The denial from Calipari comes after John Reid of the New Orleans Times-Picayune reported the 56-year-old had some "conversations" about the job:

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There have been exploratory conversations between Calipari and the Pelicans, the source said, but it doesn't appear the team would be willing to meet his financial demands to leave Kentucky.

League sources said the Pelicans are willing to pay around $4 million to $5 million per season for Monty Williams' successor. Williams was fired last week after five seasons at the helm.

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Reid also reported that Calipari's drop in pay from the near $8 million he makes at Kentucky "is a major sticking point" and that he "would also want input on the Pelicans' roster..."

The Pelicans fired Monty Williams after he led them to the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference, where they were eliminated by the Golden State Warriors in the first round. 

Calipari, the reigning National Coach of the Year, signed a seven-year, $52.5 million extension with the Wildcats last June. Matt Jones of Kentucky Sports Radio reported May 12 that Calipari and the university were "close" on a deal that would add an extra year and $8 million to his contract. 

Calipari is no stranger to NBA coaching rumors. As Kentucky was making its way through the NCAA tournament in March, Steve Popper of NorthJersey.com reported Coach Cal "desperately" wanted back in the NBA. 

Calipari is in a perfect situation at Kentucky, being able to recruit and build rosters the way he wants to while getting paid a large salary for his efforts. His NBA coaching resume, which includes a 72-112 record in two-plus seasons with New Jersey, is a blemish that won't go away. 

A product of success is that your name will get thrown around in a lot of rumors. Calipari will likely have to keep up this denial of his reported interest until New Orleans fills its coaching vacancy.