Rick Pitino urges Kentucky fans to give John Calipari ‘a huge standing ovation’

Rick Pitino knows how John Calipari might feel when the former Kentucky coach returns to Lexington on Saturday as Arkansas visits the 12th-ranked Wildcats.

Pitino’s first visit there — and many after — was hostile in part because he returned as the coach of Louisville, Kentucky’s greatest rival.

But Pitino, who was accused of using an offensive gesture toward the crowd after a game at Rupp Arena in 2015, said he hopes Kentucky’s fans will show grace to Calipari, whose tenure ended last season after three consecutive first-weekend exits in the NCAA tournament before he accepted the Arkansas job.

“So he’s coming back on Saturday, and I want all of you to show the great class that you have: 23,000-plus people giving him a huge standing ovation,” Pitino, now the coach at St. John’s, said in a video posted Thursday to social media. “Show him what respect and admiration is all about. I know you have the class. I’ve always believed in you. Do it once again.”

Calipari was the king of the one-and-done era at Kentucky. From 2011 to 2015, he led the program to four Final Four appearances in five seasons, a run that included the 2012 national championship.

But Calipari’s time at Kentucky ended with a turbulent stretch and losses to double-digit seeds Saint Peter’s and Oakland in 2022 and 2024, respectively, in the NCAA tournament.

Earlier this week, Calipari said the return could come with different emotions.

“Walking in that arena, storied arena, and walking in the wrong door, the other door,” Calipari said during his weekly radio show before Saturday’s game. “Seeing my friends the night before. Having my friends — dear friends, lifelong friends — but they’re Kentucky fans. Their whole life they’ve been Kentucky fans.

“I just hope they’re neutral, but they are Kentucky fans. We gave our heart and soul. [My wife] was like a mother to those kids. So yes, there is going to be some emotion.”

If anyone knows how Calipari feels, it’s Pitino, who went from beloved coach to enemy in the eyes of Kentucky’s fans after leading the Wildcats to the 1996 national title only to leave a year later for the Boston Celtics.

Pitino said he hopes Kentucky fans will remember the good things Calipari did during his time there.

“Toughest day of my coaching career at Louisville was when I had to walk into Rupp Arena,” he said in the video. “I tried not to show it, but the reception — it tore me up apart, because I loved that place so much.

“As you all know, I’m not best friends with John Calipari. I respect him certainly, but it was a mutual thing. The fans wanted a change. John read the tea leaves. He needed a change. And he really didn’t want to leave. But what did he do for you? He brought the best talent in the history of the game of any university in America to Lexington. He also won a national championship. His style of play was extremely entertaining.”