For the best recruiter in college basketball, the introduction of transfer portals and NIL was a gut punch. Razorbacks coach John Calipari excels in identifying talented high school prospects and having them grow in his program, be it at Kentucky or earlier at Memphis and Massachusetts. In the modern era, where players wear multiple jerseys throughout their college career, Calipari is a staunch believer in his philosophy.

“If I become transactional, I’m going to pay you this to do this and that, then I won’t do this anymore. I don’t need to.” Calipari said. The day abusing the transfer portal becomes a requirement for coaches, Calipari will be sipping mai tais in the Caribbean, so to speak. But why is Calipari such a strong proponent of this new system? His motivations stem from his own family, something he talked about with Houston coach Kelvin Sampson. 

“Part of the reason I’m still doing this, my son’s in coaching, Kelvin Samson, and I just talked,” Calipari said at SEC Media Day. “I said we’ve got to fix some of this stuff before we’re out for our own children right now. The things that we’re dealing with, like we want to put it to other people, but the thing is filtered down to the coach and the coaches.”

After John Calipari joined Arkansas last year, so did his son, Brad Calipari. Brad was moving around after earning his master’s in kinesiology in 2022. He had stints as a Director of Player Development at Long Island and Vanderbilt Universities before joining his father as an assistant coach or Director of On-court Player Development. Brad has a pretty young coaching career, but it seems he is destined to follow in his father’s footsteps. 

John doesn’t want him in the same coaching firestorm he is, losing players each year, and then going to the market to get some. On the other hand, Kelvin Sampson is in a similar position. Sampson’s son, Kellen Sampson, joined his father’s coaching staff at Houston in 2014. It seems both are on the same page regarding the rampant movement of players. 

To make things clear, he further said, “So, you know, we talk about the transfer portal. I don’t mind kids transferring. You just can’t transfer four times because it’s not good for you.” The reality is different than what Calipari wants it to be, so how does Calipari keep competing despite his limited transfer portal action? 

John Calipari Breaks Down the Formula Behind His Arkansas Year 1 Success

In his first year at Arkansas, Calipari did just fine with his approach. When he arrived, he literally had to start from scratch with no players on the squad. He took just two transfers from non-Kentucky schools. Premium high school recruits and those who followed him from his old school made up his squad that finished with a 22-14 record.  They made the Sweet 16 in the NCAA but ended up losing to Texas Tech 85-83 in overtime.

“What does it take to start with an empty roster and make a successful run through the NCAA tournament?” Calipari was asked. “We started 0-5 in our league, so it’s not like we just went in and went up. I really believe in what we do, you better be with good people, your staff and the players, that they take responsibility, that we all own what’s going on, including them and the staff. When things get rough, it’s what kind of hardens you to what this really is about.” He replied. 

Every player who arrives to play for Calipari knows his approach. They have more security as compared to others who will dip into the talent pool next season. Since Calipari places his complete trust in his squad, they are bound to do the same. No one is using the college as just a stepping stone in Calipari’s program. Beyond his team, the veteran coach also explained his pinpoint focus as one of the reasons. 

“If you’re worried about all that other stuff, that’s why I have on my wall: Coach your team. None of the other stuff matters. I would tell him make sure you got good people. Normally, it’s going to be rough early, then after that it gets better.” He further said. 

Going into 2025-26, he is dealing with the NIL pains John Calipari hates. Boogie Fland initially tested NBA draft waters, but then Florida lured him with a reported $2 million NIL package, placing him among the highest-paid college athletes in the country. So, Calipari’s ‘non-transactional’ approach has significantly hurt his chances for the coming season. 

Their leading scorer, Adou Thiero, was drafted by the Nets in the second round and then traded to the Lakers. Another two players who logged meaningful minutes from last year’s teams are out of eligibility: Jonas Aidoo and Johnell Davis.  Apart from them, Zvonimir Ivisic, who played 19 minutes per game, has transferred to Illinois. While it’s not as bad as last season, Calipari has the task of building this team again while punching above their weight.