First three members of Calipari’s UK staff announced

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Three members of John Calipari’s basketball staff at Memphis have joined him at the University of Kentucky.

John Robic and Orlando Antigua, who were assistant coaches for the Tigers, and Rod Strickland, who was director of basketball operations at Memphis, have joined Calipari’s first UK staff.

Calipari has at least one more position to fill. Job titles have not yet been determined, UK spokesman DeWayne Peevy said.

Even though UK missed out on having Josh Pastner on staff when he was named Memphis head coach, I still have no doubts that John Calipari’s staff will be among the nation’s best. Let’s take a look at the three announced members:

John Robic-Robic has known Calipari since Coach Cal was an assistant at Kansas and Robic was a graduate assistant. Robic was then an assistant under Calipari at UMass, where he played a key role in the Minutemen’s success during the mid-90′s. He parlayed that success into a head coaching role with the Penguins of Youngstown State, where he coached from 1999-2005. After parting ways with Youngstown State, Calipari immediately brought him on as an assitant at Memphis, where they outdid their success at UMass in their four seasons together.

Robic grew up in Pittsburgh, and played for Denison, earning Division III All-American honors. Robic is married with three daughters.

Orlando “Hurricane” Antigua-Antigua is most famous for playing as the first non-black Harlem Globetrotter since 1942. Antigua grew up in the Bronx, and is sure to utilize his New York City connections to the Bluegrass. Antigua was the victim of a drive-by shooting in 1988, taking a slug to the head. Doctors could not retrieve the bullet, but Antigua was unfazed, playing only two weeks later. Antigua overcame a difficult upbringing to become a McDonald’s All-American and earn a scholarship to play for Pittsburgh starting in 1991.

As a Panther, he earned the USBWA Most Courageous Athlete Award, and his name can still be found in the Pittsburgh record book in categories like three pointers and blocks. He signed a deal with the Globetrotters after graduation, and played with the team until 2002.

He coached high school and held a regular job as a sales rep in 2002-2003, but in 2003, Jamie Dixon named him as Director of Basketball Operations, a position that he retained until being promoted to assistant coach in 2006.

When two Memphis assistants left to take head coaching positions in 2008, Antigua was hired by John Calipari. Antigua is used to being a part of winning staffs, and he knows how to relate to kids. He will be invaluable on the trail.

Rod Strickland-Strickland was the Director of Basketball Operations at Memphis, and I really can’t say what his position will be at UK. He may be in line for a promotion to assistant coach, but many think that will be filled by a former UK player (Scott Padgett is a popular choice.

Regardless of what position he fills, his presence will be valuable. Any time you have a former All-NBA point guard on the staff, it’s attractive to blue chip recruits. Strickland had a highly successful NBA career with 9 NBA teams over a career that spanned 2 decades (1998-2005).

Strickland was never named an All-Star despite ranking in the top 5 in the NBA in assists and averaging over 13 points per game for his career.

Once his NBA career had wrapped up, John Calipari offered him essentially an entry level position on his staff, which Strickland took and excelled at, eventually earning a promotion to director of basketball operations in 2008. As the DBO, Strickland monitored players academic progress, assisted in travel plans, and coordinated on-campus recruiting visits. Someone needs to remind John Wall that Strickland is on staff and show him some of his tapes from the NBA.