John Calipari Very Frank About His Goals at Kentucky

Earlier this year, I was listening to a talk show on which UK head coach John Calipari was the guest. What he said about the goal he spelled out for the 'Cats at the beginning of last season seemed to be something that Big Blue Nation could take the wrong way. Maybe.

Well, at a recent business conference in Lexington, Calipari was quite frank about what he expects every season at UK.

In short, his top priority and the UK fan base's priority are not one in the same.

We are all familiar with Coach Calipari's "Players First" mentality and, honestly, that should be the mantra for every coach out there.

And Wildcat fans LOVE their teams. They care about the players like they're family. But, make no mistake, a National Championship is always the goal with Big Blue Nation.

And don't misunderstand me. I'm not one who believes that UK fans expect a title if, say, the 'Cats go into the tournament as something like an 8-seed.

Of course, they did that in 2014 and came darn close.

And every fan base whose school has a blue million (no pun intended) banners hanging from the rafters has a right to have a little loftier expectations than others.

But John Calipari spelled it out. Getting kids into the NBA is his number one goal at Kentucky.

Clearly, he'll take a national title if one comes along, and if you have a lot of talent that achievement is always on the table.

I was just intrigued by his directness. It's refreshing.