Kentucky’s John Calipari Wants Grand Multi-Use Practice Facility

The University of Kentucky has invested heavily in its athletics facilities in recent years, and John Calipari thinks it’s time for the school to upgrade its basketball practice space.

The Wildcats’ coach, who has guided the program to three Final Four appearances, unveiled a grandiose plan Thursday for a multi-use practice facility on campus, according to The Athletic. The structure would include a sport science institute, nutrition center and basketball museum.

If necessary, Calipari is prepared to raise the money to construct the facility himself, The Athletic reported. The coach is prepared to tap former Wildcats players to contribute as well.

“Everybody should be behind this,” Calipari told The Athletic. “Our administration. Look, our baseball facility might be the nicest in the country, and I’m happy about that. Our football facility, we spent $200 million. Soccer, unbelievable. Now, the track—I love it. And now, I would say, the administration should be like, we’re doing this.”

It’s not the first time Calipari has discussed the need for a new basketball practice facility, and perhaps the coach feels a bit more emphatic about the matter after his team ended a recent practice early because of a leak in the roof at the 15-year-old Joe Craft Center.

Calipari previously raised millions of dollars to upgrade the locker rooms at Rupp Arena in 2012. His plan for a new practice facility is ambitious, and he sounds like someone who’s operating with urgency.

“I hope it’s done in a year, two years. I do. I’m just that guy,” Calipari told The Athletic. “When we did the locker room, I did it on the white board. And then the architects went and drew it up, and it literally got done in eight or nine months. With the funding, it’ll move.”