Anthony Davis Becomes First Kentucky Player Coached By John Calipari To Win An NBA Title

No matter how these NBA Finals turned out, John Calipari was going to win.

Despite putting nearly 40 players into the NBA during his 10 years at Kentucky, Calipari had never seen one of his former protégés win an NBA title.

Until Sunday.

Anthony Davis went for 19 points, 15 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks to become the first former Calipari player to earn an NBA ring when the Lakers beat the Heat, 106-93, in Game 6. It was the franchise’s record-tying 17th NBA title, and the fourth championship with three different teams for LeBron James, who was magnificent with 28 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists.

“To be out here and grind with these guys for a full 12 months, we’ve been through a lot of ups and downs, a lot of arguments, a lot of tough moments, and to hear the horn go off and we’re NBA champions, it’s just a real feeling,” Davis told ESPN’s Rachel Nichols on court. “I’m just happy it’s with these guys.”

Had the Heat come back to win the title, Calipari would have celebrated the exploits of former Kentucky guys Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro. So he was going to win either way.

“The No. 1 thing on [Davis’] mind right now is winning a world championship,” Calipari said recently. “If he has to step up and do all the scoring and rebounding, he’ll do it.”

Lakers coach Frank Vogel and point guard Rajon Rondo (19 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists) also attended Kentucky, although neither were connected to Calipari.

Davis, of course, was traded by the Pelicans to the Lakers in a blockbuster deal in June 2019, immediately making the Lakers the favorites to win the 2020 NBA title.

“He’s a generational player,” Calipari said then on ESPN’s “Get Up” of the No. 1 overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft. “He wants to win.”

He added: “He wants to win a championship. That’s all the great ones in the NBA. He’s at that stage. The players in that league only have a small window, their window to do something special. And it’s not just about money. Yeah, they all want to be paid…but winning a championship is how they’re validated within their grouping. I think with him it’s all it came down to.”

Now Davis is a champion.

And he shared the moment with his father, Anthony Davis Sr., and also paid homage to Kobe Bryant, his teammate on the 2012 gold-medal winning U.S. Olympic team.

“We didn’t let him down,” Davis said of Bryant. “Ever since the tragedy all we wanted to do is do it for him and we didn’t let him down…I know he’s looking down on us proud of us. Vanessa’s proud of us, the organization’s proud of us….He was a big brother to all of us and we did this for him.”

As for his father, who quarantined for 30 days to be in the bubble, Davis said, “He’s one of my biggest supporters. He quarantined 30 days to be right here in this moment….He’s my biggest critic, my biggest supporter. I know he’s proud of me. He was with me at the beginning of my career, waiting for this moment. Both of us waiting for this moment, and it’s here.”

Calipari pointed out that most of his players end up on bad teams to start their careers. Adebayo and Herro were an exception landing with Pat Riley’s Heat, and Davis was traded from a non-contender to the Lakers, instantly becoming the best teammate James has ever had.

“When you’re drafted 1, 2, 3 or in the lottery, which we’ve had 25, you’re normally on a bad team,” Calipari said. “Bam and Tyler went to a culture that they were not going to change but could help shoot them to another level.”

Calipari has also taken a lot of heat because he’s won only one title at Kentucky despite producing 38 draft picks.

“How about if it were best-of-3, how many would we have? Or a best-of-7, how many national titles?” Calipari asked. “How about this one? How about if I was a little selfish and got these kids stay two or three years? But that’s not what this is. We’re here. Twenty kids have graduated. We’re always in the top 10 with academics. We have been. The NCAA sends us awards for kids leaving in good academic standing. It’s about physically and mentally being ready. It’s about holding them accountable.”

He added: “The problem is I’ve got seven, eight guys, nine, that all have the same aspirations on different paths [to the NBA]. Some of them may take two years or three, but all the stuff that’s happening is learning to fight, learning to compete.”

Davis learned to compete and win with James, with whom he has a relationship going back a decade to when he attended LeBron’s Skills Academy in Akron, Ohio.

Now they will celebrate an NBA championship together, and they will finally get to leave the Orlando bubble after spending four months there.

Davis has a $28.7 million player option for the 2020-21 season but it’s hard to imagine him leaving this partnership with James and the chance to forge a mini-dynasty with the Lakers in the next few years.

And that could mean more NBA titles on Calipari’s résumé, too.