Nate Oats considered replacing John Calipari as Kentucky’s head coach before signing a contract extension with Alabama basketball in March. During a Wednesday interview with Bleacher Report’s Seth Davis, Oats revealed his initial interest in the Kentucky job before explaining why he removed his name before formally receiving an offer from the Wildcats.
“The job was never offered to me. I didn’t get to that point at all,” Oats said. “But there was a lot of speculation circulating around the country for a day — or part of a day there — that maybe I'd be in the mix. I actually thought about it."
While stating that he was honored to be considered as one of the names in Kentucky’s coaching search, Oats listed his family as one of the biggest factors in him staying at Alabama.
"I've got three daughters. They all like it here in Tuscaloosa," he said. "My oldest, Lexi, is going into her junior year here [at Alabama]. I haven't had to move a ton in my profession, in college. A lot of these guys are moving every couple of years. I'm fortunate I didn't have to do that. I went to Buffalo with Bobby Hurley. I trusted the Hurley family. They're basketball royalty. I didn't want to move my family and then have to keep moving. We were fortunate we won big and in Year 2 we went to the first NCAA tournament in Buffalo history. I got the head job. So I was there six years. I've been here five. I didn't really want to move my family."
Oats recent success at Alabama also played a big role in his decision to stay. Last year, he led the Crimson Tide to its first Final Four appearance. In his five years in charge of Alabama, he’s led the Tide to a 117-54 record with a pair of regular-season and tournament conference titles.
"I think we've got a chance to win a national championship at Alabama, and I think it would mean a lot more winning one here than maybe it would be winning one somewhere where they've won with lots of different coaches over a period of time,” Oats said. “It's almost expected at a place like Kentucky. If you don't make the Final Four, they're gonna — you had a disappointing year, to be honest with you. John Calipari is a pretty good coach. He's won a lot of games. He's won everywhere he's been, and they weren't happy. …
"We'd like to try to be the best team and win it, if things don't shake out well, I'd still like to give myself a chance. We've built this thing up to where we've got a chance to win it. I'd like to give myself a chance to win it here. I like working with the people I have here. I was comfortable here. My family is comfortable here. I decided I want to stay here."
Additionally, Oats credited Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne, calling him “one of the best ADs in the country,” while stating “I'd love to work with him the rest of my career.”
“He took care of me,” Oats said of Byrne. “I'm not the highest-paid coach in the league. I didn't ask for that. But I'm making a lot more money than I'd ever thought I'd make. And they've made it clear they want to keep me here.”
After pulling his name out of the running for the Kentucky opening, Oats signed a contract extension through 2030 that will pay him $5 million in 2025-26 and will increase up to $7.55 million in the final year of the deal. The extension also upped his buyout to $18 million until March 2026.
