LEXINGTON, Ky. — Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari could be in line for a raise.
Athletic director Mitch Barnhart said Tuesday night the university and Calipari have started talks on a deal that would keep the coach with the Wildcats for the rest of his career.
“We have begun initial discussions on restructuring his contract so that he’s the coach at Kentucky until he retires,” Barnhart said.
Barnhart’s comments came just hours after reports surfaced linking Calipari and the coaching vacancy with the NBA’s Chicago Bulls, who fired Vinny Del Negro on Tuesday.
Calipari, already the highest-paid coach in men’s college basketball, just completed the first year of an eight-year deal that averages nearly $4 million a season.
Kentucky went 35-3 last season — Calipari’s first with the Wildcats.
• Former Nuggets guard Michael Adams was named an assistant coach at St. Bonaventure.
• Iowa forward Aaron Fuller, who averaged 9.7 points and 6.2 rebounds last season, is transferring to Southern California and will sit out the upcoming season.
Johnson answering London’s call
DES MOINES, Iowa — Gold medal gymnast Shawn Johnson said she is training in hopes of making the 2012 Olympics in London.
Johnson is recovering from Feb. 16 surgery to repair a torn ACL in her left knee, and is about two months from being at full strength.
“It’s just exciting, but I’ve got a ways to go,” Johnson said. “This is just a start. And nothing is a sure thing, but I’m going to give it as big and best an effort as I can.”
Johnson, who turned 18 in January, won the 2007 world title and four medals at the Beijing Olympics — a gold on balance beam and silvers in the all-around, team competition and floor exercise. She also won “Dancing With the Stars” and traveled the country for appearances and commercial opportunities.
Del Potro undergoes wrist surgery
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — U.S. Open champion Juan Martin Del Potro had surgery on his right wrist and said he could be out four months. The Argentine has not played since a Jan. 24 loss at the Australian Open.
• Kim Clijsters pulled out of next week’s Madrid Open because her left foot injury isn’t healing fast enough.
Footnotes.
More than 16 million people watched Super Saver’s victory in the Kentucky Derby, making it the most-watched Derby in 21 years. NBC’s three-hour telecast of the race averaged 16.5 million viewers and drew a 9.8 rating according to the network — the highest viewership since 1989, when 18.5 million watched Sunday Silence win the Run for the Roses.
• Anthony Kim withdrew from The Players Championship in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., because of an injured left thumb that could require surgery sooner than he anticipated. Steve Stricker also will miss the tournament that begins Thursday because of continued soreness in his right clavicle.
• UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar will return from a year-long absence to meet interim champ Shane Carwin on July 3 in Las Vegas.
The Associated Press
