John Calipari Comments on Harrison Twins, Semifinal Loss to Wisconsin, More

Kentucky head basketball coach John Calipari sounded off on the Wildcats' historic 2014-15 season at a coaches clinic on Sunday.

Calipari notably explained his substitution strategy with respect to guards Aaron and Andrew Harrison in the team's Final Four loss to Wisconsin, as reported by USA Today's Josh Peter:

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Now you may say, ‘Why didn’t you have Tyler and Devin in at the end of the Wisconsin game? You probably would have won.’ [...] Because I was being loyal to those other two who led us to a championship game a year ago and they deserve to be on that court. That’s why I did it. I knew who was playing well and who was struggling. You think I wasn’t sitting there watching?

But I owed it to those two (the Harrison twins) to do it.

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The Harrison twins returned for their sophomore years after leading Kentucky to the national title game in 2014. They were part of a loaded squad this past season that started 38-0 before falling to the Badgers 71-64 as Calipari rolled with them down the stretch over Devin Booker and Tyler Ulis.    

Matt Jones of Kentucky Sports Radio weighed in on Calipari's comments about the national semifinals:

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Still, probably better if Calipari just drops the Wisconsin game...talking about it doesn't really help anyone

— Matt Jones (@KySportsRadio) September 28, 2015"

Even though the Wildcats fell short of the ultimate prize in March Madness, Calipari told those attending the coaches clinic his most recent Kentucky team will go down in history for what transpired prior to the Big Dance:

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At the end of the day...I just ask you this, 'Who won the national title three years ago? Two years ago? Six years ago?' [...] Who won their first 38 games? Twenty years from now, they're going to say, what team did that 38 and 0 at the start of the season? You'll go, 'Oh, that's Kentucky.'

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Calipari made some strong points, and the way he cares about the Harrison twins is admirable. One has to wonder what would have happened had the coach not gone the sentimental route and tried to change it up down the stretch against Wisconsin, though.

Not to take away what the Harrisons accomplished in their two years in Lexington, but neither played particularly proficient basketball on offense. Aaron Harrison shot 39.5 percent last season, while his brother never found his stride as Kentucky's floor general running the point.

Booker was a lottery pick by the Phoenix Suns in the 2015 NBA draft, while Ulis showed superior shooting skills to Andrew Harrison and could have been another one-and-done if he had desired.

James Crisp/Associated Press

The counterargument can be made that the Harrisons have superior size and were a big reason why the Wildcats fielded an elite defense that yielded the lowest opponent field-goal percentage at 35.4. But considering Kentucky missed seven of its last eight shots against the Badgers, perhaps Booker or Ulis could have provided a spark off the bench.

What could have been will only be mere speculation. Calipari is right to assert his 38-0 team will be remembered forever, particularly with how unpredictable March Madness can be in the modern era.

As for those who believe a championship is necessary to put any team in the all-time conversation, Calipari is bound to make up for the lack of a banner. He continues to bring in blue-chip recruits and has already won two national titles at Kentucky. As long as Calipari is at the helm, the Wildcats should be in contention to be the last team dancing in the NCAA tournament.