"If you could give John a minute, he would've won two more": 5x national champ Coach K defends Arkansas HC John Calipari's poor NCAA tournament record

Retired Duke basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski recently came to the defense of Arkansas tactician John Calipari, offering his thoughts on people calling out the former Kentucky HC`s sub-par March Madness record.

The legendary Coach K discussed the criticisms surrounding Calipari on SiriusXM, saying patience should`ve been a virtue for a lot of folks during his fellow HoFer`s tenure in Lexington:

"John and I are good friends. John`s been great for the game of basketball since five-star basketball camp when he coached there with Howard Garfinkel and Tom Kanjorski. He`s been an icon in our sport [and] will continue to be. And at Kentucky, I think for 15 years, I think he did a great job at Kentucky."

Krzyzewski added:

"It`s very difficult winning a national championship. Connecticut seemed to make it like it wasn`t these last two years. But a lot of times you`re one play away, or 30 seconds away. And I`ll bet if you could give John a minute, he would`ve won two more national championships."

John Calipari didn`t exactly leave Kentucky ringless, for one. He won a national title with the Wildcats in 2011-2012, in a team bannered by eventual NBA players Doron Lamb, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, and Anthony Davis. Aside from that, he also led the team to 12 total NCAA Tournament appearances and an 813-260 all-time win-loss record.

Still, critics are understandably upset that John Calipari`s Kentucky team exited this year`s NCAA Tournament in the first round--and for good reasons. The 23-10 Wildcats were knocked off as a 3-seed by 14-seed Oakland in the Round of 64, marking one of the biggest upsets in March Madness history.

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John Calipari`s next chapter at Arkansas

Whatever happens now, John Calipari is staying put in Razorback country with his new five-year contract that will pay him $7 million in his first season. Aside from that, his basic pay comes with a $500,000 retention payment every year, which he will get starting June 30, 2025 (via USA Today).

The former Kentucky HC is also set to earn a $1 million signing bonus. This now bumps up his first-year pay to $8 million, presumably before taxes. However, while this seems quite big, it remains a slight paycut to what the Wildcats used to pay him at around $8.5 million per season.

Money matters aside, John Calipari will still need to earn his salary as he`s basically starting the Arkansas men`s hoops program from scratch.