Will John Calipari Ever Leave for the NBA After Shooting Down Pelicans Rumors?

It might be time to believe John Calipari.

The annual "Calipari is interested in an NBA job" moment took place on Tuesday when John Reid of the New Orleans Times-Picayune reported Calipari had made it known to New Orleans Pelicans officials that he was interested in coaching the team. Calipari took to his keyboard quickly to deny the rumor:

This notion that Calipari wants another shot at the NBA is nothing new. His stint as head coach of the New Jersey Nets in the late '90s was full of disappointment, as he went 72-112 over three seasons and made the playoffs just once as a No. 8 seed. It's almost assumed that at some point one of the largest egos in sports will leave Kentucky to prove he can win in the NBA. 

But this latest rumor swat by Calipari should make us question if he really ever will leave. Because if he's going to turn down the chance to coach Anthony Davis, opting instead to stay at UK in a year when he doesn't return one of his most talented rosters, when will he ever leave? 

Calipari should be picky. He has the best job in college basketball. But Davis' presence, quite possibly the most valuable asset in the NBA right now because of his age (22) and talent, makes New Orleans one of the juiciest gigs in the league. 

This marks the second year he's taken himself out of the running for a once-in-a-lifetime gig. Last year, it was the chance to coach the Los Angeles Lakers, one of the greatest franchises in sports. He also ended that speculation with a tweet.

The Lakers are currently a mess, so that looks like a smart move from Calipari. But the Pelicans are in a spot where they should be good for the foreseeable future because of Davis, the player who delivered Calipari his only national title in 2012.

According to ESPN.com's Marc Stein, the Pelicans plan to offer Davis a max contract this summer that would keep him in New Orleans for the next six seasons. 

Jonathan Bachman/Associated Press

Davis will make New Orleans an attractive destination for free agents. The opportunity is there to build a title contender. This could be the best opportunity Cal ever gets to rewrite his legacy as a coach who won big at the college and professional levels.

So maybe we should take his tweet with a grain of salt. As Kyle Tucker of the Courier-Journal pointed out, Cal has talented Canadian guard Jamal Murray currently on campus, so squashing such a rumor could be a strategic recruiting play. 

And maybe, as Reid reported as a possible sticking point, the Pelicans just cannot meet Cal's salary demands. There is a $3 million difference per year between what he currently makes and what the Pelicans are reportedly willing to offer. 

But would Calipari really end talks so quickly if money was the only thing holding him back? 

Cal could eventually change his mind or go back on his word, and he wouldn't be the first coach to say one thing and do another. But he's in a position where he didn't need to say anything at all.

So it might just be time to explore the idea that John Calipari will never coach in the NBA again. He's been to four Final Fours in the last five years. His roster isn't as stacked as usual next season, but Kentucky will still likely be a preseason Top Five team and have a shot at the title. Every year, he puts Kentucky in that position.

He's got a great thing going. He has all the job security he could ever want. And his legend as a college coach can still certainly grow. Another title or two or three would demand his name be in the conversation with John Wooden, Mike Krzyzewski, Dean Smith and Bobby Knight. 

It was going to take one smoking-hot opportunity to leave all that behind. 

If Cal can say no to coaching a 22-year-old freak in his prime who he already knows and loves, then Big Blue Nation can exhale. 

The possibility of Cal retiring as a Wildcat is more real now than it has ever been. 

C.J. Moore covers college basketball for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @CJMooreBR.