"OUT OF THE PARK HIRE": College hoops analyst expresses excitement as former Kentucky HC John Calipari reportedly set to join Arkansas

John Calipari has dedicated 15 years to coaching the Kentucky Wildcats. He is on his way to signing a five-year contract with the Arkansas Razorbacks, per ESPN's Pete Thamel.

This attention-grabbing news comes as the 2023-24 men's college basketball season closes with Monday's title game between UConn and Purdue.

CBS Sports college basketball analyst Mike O'Donnell expressed his excitement on the live show of “CBS Sports HQ”:

“Arkansas is getting the best recruiter in college basketball we've seen the last 10 years, maybe the last 15 years, and he's also one of the best coaches, too.”

“He's really, really good. He's underrated in the X's and O's, and he won a ton at Kentucky. He won a lot at Memphis."

"He won a lot at UMass. He's going to win at Arkansas. He's going to recruit at Arkansas.”

“I think this is a PERFECT, HOME RUN, GAME-WINNING HOME RUN, OUT OF THE PARK HIRE for Arkansas," O'Donnell said.

Calipari led the Wildcats to the Elite Eight in both 2022 and 2021, but they fell short of reaching the NCAA Tournament this season.

Arkansas has been diligently seeking a new coach following Eric Musselman's departure from USC Trojans on Apr. 4. The search has led them to what appears to be the ideal solution: Calipari.

However, the coach had previously shown interest in the Ohio State HC job, per CBS Sports' Matt Norlander.

John Calipari's termination could have triggered a million payout

According to NBC, John Calipari, a Hall of Fame men’s college basketball coach, was under contract with the University of Kentucky until the 2028-29 season. However, he is now leaving early and will not owe the program a buyout. If he had been fired by the university, he would have been owed $33 million.

Kentucky lost to Oakland in the first round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament and has not made it past the second weekend of the postseason since 2019.

Now, Calipari is close to finalizing a new deal with Arkansas within the next 24 hours, per reports. Over his 15 seasons in Lexington, Calipari has led the team to a record of 410-123.

Do you think John Calipari will bring his Wildcats magic to the Razorbacks? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section!