After their Final Four victory in April, Drake claimed to have been a longtime Kentucky Wildcats basketball fan after visiting the team in the locker-room. The rapper’s association with the program has only increased, his friendship with coach John Calipari on full display as he warmed up with the team ahead of a game last month.

Now, Calipari, who coached for UMass, Memphis, and for a short stint in the NBA prior to his current post, compared Drake to Pop icon Michael Jackson in an interview with Campus Insider, explaining how the rapper has remain grounded despite his success.

“Well it started pretty early when he was just coming on to his own,” Calipari said of his friendship with the Toronto artist. “I’ll tell ya, I loved him as a person. I’m like, ‘This guy, if he makes it, I wanna see if he’ll change.’ Grounded, the same guy, kind heart. Then you find out, like, wow, Michael Jackson talented, megastar, has not changed.”

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Last month, Drake was filmed shooting an air ball during the warm-ups with the Wildcats, catching flack and then responding to jokes from Kevin Hart about the miss.

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