Tyler Ulis is following John Calipari to Arkansas. He has unfinished business at UK first.

Tyler Ulis’ days in Lexington are coming to an end.

Soon enough, the former UK basketball star will be a college graduate, and — when that time comes — his plan is to follow his old coach, John Calipari, to Arkansas, where he’ll be patrolling the sidelines in Razorback red.

Before Ulis leaves town, however, he’ll represent Kentucky one more time.

Next week, Ulis — once called Calipari’s “coach on the floor” — will make his head coaching debut as the leader of La Familia, a team of former UK players competing in The Basketball Tournament, a nationally televised summer showcase with a $1 million winner-take-all prize.

“It means a lot to me,” Ulis said Tuesday afternoon. “You know, these guys are guys I played with either at Kentucky or in the pros. Some of these guys were my veterans in the NBA. So these are guys who I respect, and they respect me, so I feel like it’ll be a lot of fun.”

The Lexington regional of The Basketball Tournament — better known as TBT — will be played in Rupp Arena. The La Familia squad is expected to feature Eric Bledsoe, Willie Cauley-Stein, Kellan Grady, Aaron Harrison, Andrew Harrison, Doron Lamb, Daniel Orton, Nate Sestina, Marquis Teague, Reid Travis and James Young, all ex-Cats who, like Ulis, played during the Calipari era.

Ulis was a key reserve and All-SEC freshman selection on the 2014-15 UK team that went 38-1, emerging the following season as a first-team All-American and Bob Cousy Award winner as a sophomore. He was a second-round NBA draft pick after two years at UK and most recently spent the past two seasons as a student assistant with the Wildcats.

Asked Tuesday how Tyler the player might differ from Tyler the head coach, Ulis grinned.

“I think the head coach Tyler gets a little more nervous,” he said with a chuckle. “Because you know, as a player, you have more control. But as a coach, you sit back and watch these guys and just try to prepare. And get these guys ready. And then they have to take that game plan and do what they can do. So, a little bit of nerves. This is my first experience, but I’m excited. And I’m ready to have a lot of fun.”

Joining Ulis on the La Familia coaching staff will be ex-Calipari players Jon Hood and Darius Miller, along with Sean Woods, one of the Unforgettables and a former college head coach.

La Familia will play its first game at 8 p.m. on July 19 in Rupp Arena against 305 Ballers, a Miami-based team of overseas pros.

Tickets to the TBT in Rupp are available via Ticketmaster.com, and the team of former UK players will have additional games on July 21 and July 23 if they can advance in the single-elimination, 64-team tournament.

La Familia general manager Twany Beckham — another former UK player — and other ex-Cats involved with the team have called on fans to “pack Rupp out” for the Lexington regional.

The championship game will be played Aug. 4 in Philadelphia.

Ulis moving to Arkansas

This experience will be one final up-close look at the Kentucky basketball life for Ulis, who told the Herald-Leader on Tuesday that he still plans to follow Calipari after he graduates from UK, and he’s expecting to rejoin his former coach in Fayetteville in time for the 2024-25 season.

“There’s no time frame yet, because, like I said, I’m still in school, so I’m waiting to graduate, finish my classes up,” Ulis said. “But yes, that’s my plan. Go with Coach Cal, go with that staff, and keep learning from those guys and try to get better.”

Calipari, who left UK in April after 15 seasons, took several familiar faces with him to Fayetteville.

His new Arkansas coaching staff includes Chin Coleman and Chuck Martin, who were both assistants at UK last season. Bruiser Flint, another Kentucky assistant from the 2023-24 team, has the title of special assistant to the head coach. Ulis served alongside all three as a student assistant with the Wildcats last season, and several members of Calipari’s support staff at UK also made the move to Fayetteville this offseason.

Calipari’s new staff also includes Kenny Payne, who coached Ulis for two seasons at Kentucky, and Brad Calipari, the head coach’s son who now has the dual title of assistant coach and director of on-court player development.

There’s been no confirmation regarding what Ulis’ exact role will be next season, and the 28-year-old said Tuesday that those details haven’t been completely finalized.

Ulis’ time with La Familia over the next couple of weeks is also expected to include at least one scrimmage against the current Kentucky team, all newcomers for the upcoming college season and now coached by Mark Pope, who was hired as Calipari’s replacement.

“We had one conversation early on, when he first got the job,” Ulis said of Pope. “I’m happy for him. He’s a Kentucky guy. He has a national title. So you know, hopefully he has something in store. You know, we’re still supporters of Kentucky basketball. But I have other things ahead of me with Coach Cal. So, I can’t wait for that.”

Ulis didn’t specifically say whether or not Pope had offered him any kind of role with the UK program moving forward, a scenario that was speculated about following Calipari’s departure. Ulis’ comments Tuesday made it sound like the move to Arkansas would’ve happened either way.

“Me and Mark Pope talked a little, but I feel like Cal is a guy who really wanted me with him,” Ulis said. “That’s my staff. So there wasn’t much back and forth. But he definitely talked to me. I’m proud of him. I told him congratulations and things like that. But, you know, Coach Cal was a guy I felt like really wanted me, who offered me an actual job to come out there and be an assistant coach, and I feel like this is just the best route for me.”

Ulis called Calipari the “greatest coach in history” and cited his past ties to the 65-year-old coach several times. As for his TBT outlook, Ulis said he thought the fact that all of the team’s players played under Calipari would be a benefit in getting everyone on the same page before the games begin. Ulis said he expects the ex-Cats to space the floor and play an up-and-down style.

Former UK walk-on Sam Malone — the assistant GM for La Familia — jumped into the media scrum at one point Tuesday and, referencing some of the Arkansas talk, asked Ulis if he still considered himself a “Kentucky Wildcat for life” despite his pending move to an SEC rival.

“Oh, for sure. That’s for life,” Ulis shot back with a smile. “I have a Kentucky jersey tatted on my back. So I wouldn’t do that if it wasn’t something that I was in for life.”

Will Mark Pope add a GM to UK basketball staff? Here’s a look at the Cats’ current setup.

What does Vegas say about UK basketball’s outlook for next season (and Pope vs. Calipari)?

Will Mark Pope have any NBA picks next year? The 2025 mock drafts are already posted.

Fifteen years, 50 picks. A history of UK basketball players drafted in the Calipari era.

Dick Vitale is in another fight against cancer. For the fourth time, it’s his own.