John Calipari bringing Arkansas to face Memphis will finally let Tiger fans celebrate his great nine-year run

Memphis, Tennessee – John Calipari entered the Grand Lobby here in Fedexforum on Tuesday for a press conference to announce the hoops for St. Jude Tip -Off Classic – An exhibition planned for next month Between the team, he now leads coaches (Arkansas) and the team he used to train (Memphis), the profits by benefiting at the hospital in the internationally renowned city center located a few minutes away.

But it was SO more than just A press conference.

For anyone who understands the story of Calipari to Memphis, or the relationship between Calipari and Memphis since he left for Kentucky in March 2009, it was a gentle scene – the one that seemed to represent the official start of the end of an clumsy existence between two things that seemed to be a perfect correspondence for Nine Notiking Years in the early 2000s, before a little more than a little logical career. overnight in the 901.

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Yes, coach Cal returned to Memphis on Tuesday.

He was warmly welcomed and surrounded by old friends.

There was Van Weinberg, the owner of James Davis, a local clothing store where Calipari continuously bought even after leaving the city. A few meters away, the founder of the Ken Bennett ministry streets, a man who has never stopped serving as a resource for Calipari even after the end of the race in Memphis. Wherever you looked at, there was another familiar face from another leading Memphian – as well as old tigers who played for Calipari like Shawne Williams, Jeremy Hunt, Billy Richmond and Shawn Taggert.

“It’s like Memphis around 2008,” noted Kyle Veazey, chief of staff of Alsac, the organization of fundraising and awareness of the research hospital for children St. Jude.

In many ways, this is really the case.

“The city of Memphis is a special place,” said Calipari, who remains responsible for some of the most special sporting memories that this city has ever known. In nine seasons, he followed a program that had struggled after the end of the Larry Finch local icon three years earlier and produced the following:

• Five conference championships.
• Four conference tournament championships.
• Four soft appearances 16.
• Three elite appearances eight.
• An appearance of the Final Four.

The final appearance of four, of course, occurred in 2008-when a departure range from Derrick Rose, Antonio Anderson, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Robert Dozier and Joey Dorsey started season 26-0, ESPN Gameday at ESPN in the city for a N ° 1 match against the first match of the NCAA Tourna Mario Chalmers obtaining the first national title of the program.

At the time, around these parts, no human was greater.

It was the city of John Calipari.

But about a year after bringing Memphis its first classification n ° 1 in the history of the Associated Press Top 25 survey, and brought the program for a national championship closer that ever, Calipari went to a last Sweet 16 by the Tigers in 2009, then counted the United Kingdom to replace Billy Gillispie.

I write “naturally” because Calipari’s decision was undeniably understandable – if only because you can probably count on the one hand the number of people who would transmit Kentucky to stay in Memphis.

And maybe you might do it with zero hands.

Thus, from the moment Calipari was offered British work, it was obvious that he would be the next coach of the United Kingdom. Again, it was always understandable – the type of movement that would finally do it on the other side of the so -called rope in this sport, where he would no longer have to strike constantly as an egg.

But do you know who couldn’t understand it well?

Most Memphis fans.

And that did not help that, while Calipari progressed to four other final ovens in the United Kingdom, winning the national championship in 2012 and generally improving his career at the renowned temple, Memphis was more down-the evidence being of the way the program has now taken 16 consecutive seasons without returning to the second weekend of the NCAA tournament, a Calipari place took the Tigers four consecutive years 2006 to 2009.

In simple terms, Memphis fans were just injured when he left. No one likes to be left by someone they love. There is more, of course. But it’s long and short.

Anyway, this Tuesday in Fedexforum, whatever the wounded feelings, he certainly seemed to be inferiority by smiles and laughter and hugs with friends. Give the sports director of Memphis, Dr Ed Scott, credit for having said and does all the good things to get there. Give credit to the coach of Memphis Penny Hardaway for having said and did all the good things to get there. And giving Calipari the credit to be opened on occasion despite the fact that when a previous celebration of his stay in Memphis was scheduled for 2015, the decline in certain fans was so intense that the event was finally rebuilt.

Recently two years ago, Calipari interviewed with The daily Memphian And he was asked if he thought he would never be honored by Memphis. “We should ask them,” he replied categorically.

Now we have an answer to this question.

John Calipari will indeed be honored by Memphis – in particular on October 27 in an exhibition which will produce a result which will not count. But just because it will not count, it does not mean that the night will not matter. Because, absolutely, regardless of the amount of money it collects for one of the most important hospitals in our country which regularly creates miracles for families that need it. And, absolutely, this will matter in the sense that it should leave a great coach of all time and fans who once loved him collectively.

“Nine years,” Calipari told me after taking countless photos on Tuesday and shaken even more hands. “It was not as if he was a two-year-old flip and let’s go. nine years.”

Nine years of incredible memories.

Nine years of incredible achievements.

Once upon a time, there was not so long ago, a significant number of fans of Memphis could one day dream of John Calipari one day coach against the tigers so that they can whistle and spit – but, I think, we really exceeded this now. It may be because Calipari is no longer in Kentucky. It may be because time really has a way to heal things when it passes enough.

It may be both.

Whatever

A few years ago, it seemed difficult to imagine.

Now it seems appropriate and appropriate.