Top 5 Kentucky players John Calipari coached with highest NBA contracts ft. Anthony Davis's $189M contract
John Calipari's tenure at Kentucky is notable for the sheer wealth of NBA talent the program produced. The top five NBA contracts of Calipari/Kentucky products almost cross the threshold of $1 billion in guaranteed money. Here are the five former Calipari 'Cats who are making serious money.
Note that all figures are from Sportrac's NBA Contract database. These figures may vary slightly from what was originally reported due to players meeting incentive goals within the contracts.
Top 5 Calipari-Kentucky player contracts in the NBA
5. Immanuel Quickley (5 years, $175 million)
Quickley just signed his new deal with the Toronto Raptors. Don't get used to seeing him on this list though, as Jamal Murray's impending 4 year, $209 million extension with the Nuggets will likely bump Quickley off the list.
4. Shea Gilgeous-Alexander (5 years, $179.3 million)
After a season at Kentucky and six in the NBA, SGA is earning some major dollars. Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 14.4 points per game with the Wildcats. He has topped that every year in the NBA and has doubled it each of the last two years.
SGA finished second in the MVP voting for 2023-24, averaging 31.8 ppg and 6.6 assists per game. He's a two-time All-Star and two-time All-NBA first-team pick. He signed his current deal in August 2021.
3. Anthony Davis (5 years, $189.9 million)
A nine-time NBA All-Star and member of the league's 75th Anniversary team, Davis is a bargain. In his single season at Kentucky, Davis won the Naismith Award and led the Wildcats to their eighth NCAA title. He scored just 14.2 ppg in that season.
Davis is slated to play the final season of the contract noted above. He's likely to sign an extension at a higher annual rate before the 2025-26 season. Davis is a four-time first team All-NBA pick and a five-time All-Defensive first team pick.
2. Devin Booker (4 years, $220.4 million)
Booker signed his extension in 2022. It might be the most lucrative contract in NBA history for a player who didn't start in college. Booker scored 10.0 ppg off the bench for a 2015 Kentucky team that reached the Final Four undefeated before losing to Wisconsin.
In his nine NBA seasons, Booker has been an All-Star four times. He averaged 27.1 ppg last season and has topped 25 ppg for each of the last six seasons.
1.Karl-Anthony Towns (4 years, $220.4 million)
Towns played with Booker on the 2015 Wildcats, scoring 10.3 ppg before being the top pick in the 2015 Draft. A four-time All-Star, Towns was the Rookie of the Year in 2015-16 and has scored 22.9 ppg for his career, including 21.8 ppg last season. He also averages 10.8 rpg in his career.
Towns, like Booker, signed a maximum extension in 2022. Until someone tops his deal, he and Booker will remain the top-paid NBA Wildcats.
Which Calipari players do you expect to see on this list? Weigh in below with your thoughts!