Parrish Wonders if Calipari Can Ever Match Pitino On the Court

Gary Parrish of CBSSports.com likes the latest John Calipari and Rick Pitino controversy, but he still wonders if "Calipari can ever match Pitino in terms of on-the-court success."

Here is an excerpt:

2. What do you make of the latest John Calipari-Rick Pitino controversy?

I love it. Love it. Love it. Love it. I'm half-tempted to call one of them on one day and the other on the next, every day going forward, just to see what I can get. Because they're clearly past the point of trying to keep their disdain for each other private, and the winners are the caring public. Seriously, all fans want from a rivalry is for the people involved to hate each other as much as the fan bases hate each other. Calipari and Pitino fit the bill. I won't be satisfied till somebody throws a punch. Or at least until Pitino gets an invitation to help coach in the Kentucky Villains vs. Big Blue All-Stars Charity Game.

3. How about that game, huh?

It should be a fun night at Rupp Arena with Christian Laettner coaching a team of former non-Wildcats (Tyler Hansbrough, Rudy Gay, Nolan Smith, etc.) against a team of former Wildcats (John Wall, Rajon Rondo, Jodie Meeks, etc.). So while I did think it was nutty (and obviously intentional) when Calipari suggested Kentucky has no real counterpart in the state by ignoring the presence of Louisville, I actually agree with him when he says there's no other program in the country that can pull off some of the grand events Kentucky is pulling off. From raising money for Haiti to having folks camp for Big Blue Madness tickets to assembling the rosters of professionals that'll be on display in this charity game Oct. 24, the Calipari-Kentucky combination has taken things to previously unseen levels. That's undeniable. The only debate is whether Calipari can ever match Pitino in terms of on-the-court success, because though the current Kentucky coach has passed the former Kentucky coach in terms of relevance in the Year 2011, Calipari still lags in regards to actual achievements.

Five for the Weekend: Lots of fun, season hasn't even begun