John Calipari Texted TyTy Washington a Picture of a Bobby Pin Before the NBA Draft
Most mock drafts had Kentucky's TyTy Washington going in the late-teens or early-20's, but he slid all the way to 29 where the Memphis Grizzlies picked the Kentucky Wildcats freshman. Was it good to fall to a better team or would he have been better off somewhere he could play more? That remains to be seen, but if you ask for John Calipari's spin, he'd probably say it was good because he found a bobby pin. No, seriously.
Coach Cal texted Washington a picture of a bobby pin he found on the floor the morning of the draft saying it was a good omen. If that sounds insane, I don't blame you, but it turns out this is a piece of Kentucky basketball lore.
TyTy Washington tells @TaylorRooks that John Calipari texted him a picture of a bobby pin he found on the floor this morning and said he thinks it's a good omen for TyTy in the draft. Said he finds little stuff all the time and believes they are good luck charms.
— Tyler Thompson (@MrsTylerKSR) June 23, 2022
Legendary Kentucky coach Adolph Rupp thought finding a bobby pin was lucky for some reason. This was mentioned in a 1966 Frank Deford story in Sports Illustrated.
Rupp put on his brown jacket. He believes brown suits are lucky. He also thinks it's lucky if he finds a bobby pin, and last year, the worst year he ever had at Kentucky, the players took to planting bobby pins in his path.
This must be something that Cal has shared with his teams over the years because without any context it makes zero sense. The fact that Washington shared this like it wasn't insane means he had probably heard about the bobby pins before.
If there's anything to this bobby pin thing then Washington should be a great fit in Memphis. And if you think it has nothing to do with it, well, no one is going to judge you.