Basketball is something that has always been close to the Calipari family but this year the family’s Christmas celebration was the main show. As the SEC basketball season began, John Capilari and Brad Calipari provided a subplot to the holiday season that has got people’s attention. 

The father-son combination is now sitting side by side on the Arkansas bench and their relationship is still a source of joy among fans. After building impressive resumes in college basketball, the father-son duo took some time to celebrate Christmas as a family. But their celebration was different. It was quirky, with basketballs and even a cat stroller involved.

John’s daughter, Megan Calipari, documented their Christmas reunion on Instagram. “We tried to make a tree out of 16 basketballs and we walked the cat in a stroller, so it was a very good Christmas I’d say” she wrote, of the quirky festivities she captured. Her playful caption lightened the mood of a family that is literally immersed in basketball.

In college basketball, John Calipari’s name means success. A Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer. His record includes 6 SEC Tournament titles, 4 Final Fours, and a 2012 national championship during his 15 seasons at Kentucky. Calipari is known for recruiting and developing NBA-caliber talent. When he moved to Arkansas in 2024, he surprised everybody and led the way for a new path in his legendary career.

Brad Calipari has been creating his own path on the other side of the SEC. He played under his father at Kentucky from 2016 to 2019 before becoming a graduate assistant at Kentucky, and then joining Vanderbilt’s staff in 2023. The next step in his career started in 2024 when Brad joined his father’s Arkansas staff as an assistant. But it also rekindled the father-son duo on the same bench and highlighted their joint love for the game. Their move to Arkansas signaled the start of an exciting chapter for the father-and-son duo. And John Calipari has already duplicated his past successes with the Razorbacks.

John Calipari at Arkansas: A New begining

After becoming the head coach of the Razorbacks in April of 2024, John Calipari didn’t waste time setting himself up. With a string of success behind him, Calipari could not have entered the 2024–25 season with much higher expectations.

Arkansas began strongly, going 10-2 by December with a five-game winning streak. That was exemplified by a recent 95-67 win over NC A&T that saw their depth on offense and defense, with the likes of Boogie Fland and Jonas Aidoo shining.

The key has been Calipari’s ability to reshape the roster quickly. He has transformed Arkansas into a power by mixing seasoned transfers Johnell Davis and Jonas Aidoo with young talent. Arkansas has gotten off to a terrific start under Calipari’s watch, and the program’s future seems very bright. Player development, and team chemistry has been a focus point of his. This is what made Kentucky successful while he was there, making the Wildcats perennial contenders.

But the journey from here won’t be smooth. Calipari will have to maintain the trend in a league where injuries, high expectations and SEC competition provide the ultimate test. But his reputation as a guy who’s adapted and succeeded in winning in high pressure situations is encouraging for Arkansas fans.