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Kentucky basketball coach Mark Pope yells on the sidelines during a NCAA basketball game between the Tennessee Volunteers and Kentucky Wildcats at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center in Knoxville, Tenn., on Jan. 17, 2026. | Angelina Alcantar/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Jamal Crawford has been a guy Kentucky Basketball fans have had their minds fixated on this summer. The possibility of the three-time NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year joining Mark Pope’s coaching staff in Kentucky has been enticing, and he would join former NBA All-Star Mo Williams to form an elite coaching staff consisting of former players.
Crawford, though, is currently under contract with NBC Sports as a game analyst, working with fellow analyst Reggie Miller and play-by-play announcer Mike Tirico on NBC’s lead NBA team. In their first season together, the network’s return to broadcasting the NBA after 23 seasons, Crawford, Miller, and Tirico called a terrific Western Conference Finals between the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder, a series the Spurs won in seven games with a road win in OKC in the decisive Game 7.
Crawford is also an assistant coach at Rainer Beach High School in Seattle, where he coaches his son, J.J. Crawford, one of the top prospects in the class of 2029.
So, could Crawford still be a potential addition to Mark Pope’s coaching staff? During an appearance with KSR’s Matt Jones on KSR’s radio show Wednesday morning, Pope didn’t sound like he’s expected Crawford to leave his current gig.
“Jamal’s still got two years left on his NBC contract,” Pope said. “I’m good friends with Jamal. We’ve been friends for a long time. There might be a time where it’s good for him to jump into coaching. It’s something that he would like to do. He’s one of those guys that’s cut from a little bit of a similar cloth, like Mo Williams is. It’s hard to run an AAU program. There are a lot of guys that fund an AAU program, but Mo was running an AAU program. Jamal is running and coaching an AAU program.
“We find guys like that with their background — he could have a great future in college, he could go get a job, maybe in the exact right space, as a head coach in the NBA, maybe. I think there’s a good chance coaching is in his future, but he’s got a sweet deal right now, and he’s got a couple of years left.”
This reminds me a lot of the Memphis Tigers when Penny Hardaway took over as their head coach in 2018. Hardaway had former NBA Rookie of the Year and Sixth Man of the Year, as well as a two-time NBA Champion, Mike Miller, on his coaching staff for two seasons. Talk about an experienced coaching staff.
With changes having already come to Kentucky’s coaching staff, it remains to be seen if the Wildcats will add another member to it.
“I’m engaged in conversations about staff every day, even when our staff is full,” Pope said. “I’m still talking to people, and kind of seeing where it goes. If we hire someone, it’s going to be the right person that’s going to be exactly the right fit for what we do — but we’re working at a really high level right now.”
It also remains to be seen who the Cats will fill their 15th roster spot with, but there is still time for that and a potential addition to the coaching staff.
The Cats will open the season on Tuesday, November 3rd, against Manhattan at Rupp Arena.
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