Forbes says John Calipari and the Brooklyn Nets are “a match made in basketball heaven.”
Here’s an excerpt:
Prokhorov came in six years ago with a grand plan to take over New York, unseat the Knicks as the primary basketball team, and win a championship. He’s 0-for-3 and he hasn’t been close on any front. He’s run through a bunch of coaches and after demoting long-time GM Billy King, he’s now on the prowl for a new basketball man. He’s looking for a leader, something he hasn’t been as the team’s absentee owner who’s only been good at writing fat checks.
Trying to lure Calipari out of Lexington might be the Russian billionaires’ best hope for becoming relevant, dare we say in Brooklyn, now with the Knicks starting to turn things around under Phil Jackson, Latvian rookie Kristaps Porzingis, and the new-look, team-oriented Carmelo Anthony putting the Knicks in play for a post-season berth.
It should be noted, for the Nets execs who think that Coach Cal will automatically make the team big on free agents’ lists: Jackson has yet to secure a marquee talent from the outside, even with his 11 championship rings to dangle on recruiting trips. Anthony has been his only significant catch — and he was already on Jim Dolan’s payroll for the Knicks and never leaving, as long as he got his $124 million. But LaMarcus Aldridge wouldn’t even take a meeting with the Zen Master, and Jackson’s first choice last summer, Greg Monroe, chose little old Milwaukee over a chance to play in the Garden. So what makes you think Brooklyn’s got a shot, even if they manage to land Calipari, who figures to be targeted by other NBA teams, including the Kings?
Calipari has publicly stated that he is not negotiating with the Nets and plans to be at Kentucky for a “long time.”
