Rick Pitino didn’t hesitate to answer when I asked him what was left to achieve after he won his 900th game Saturday.
“One thousand,’’ he said.
And there’s no reason to doubt him.
Pitino, 73, is absolutely loving his latest and likely final head coaching gig in his native New York at St. John’s. He wasn’t thrilled his 900th win came against his son Richard’s Xavier team, but that’s just a consequence of Richard now coaching in the Big East.
Pitino’s road to 900 is somewhat remarkable. Remember, he left men’s college basketball not once, but twice.
He left for the New York Knicks in 1987 after leading Providence to the Final Four. He then returned two years later to coach Kentucky and got the Wildcats back to the top after NCAA sanctions. He left again after leading UK to the national title in 1996 and the Final Four in ’97. This time it was for the Boston Celtics.
Four years later he pulled off the impossible — returning to the college game, but for Kentucky’s hated rival in Louisville. He won a national championship in 2013, but NCAA issues would sideline him and ultimately lead to his departure in 2017. So, it looked like Pitino would end his college career with 770 wins.
But alas, he wasn’t through after a coaching stint in Greece. He was refreshed and reenergized to get back and took the Iona gig. Three MAAC titles and two NCAA berths later Pitino was on the move within the state to nearby St. John’s.
And three years into this gig, the Red Storm have already won the Big East regular-season and conference title once apiece and are in the hunt for a second championship.
Had Pitino not left Providence for the NBA, he would be that much closer to 1000 wins. Had he not left Kentucky, I’m convinced the Wildcats would have won a few more titles. Kentucky did get another a year after he left, when Tubby Smith coached them to a championship.
Pitino will catch Roy Williams (903) here soon. And getting to Jim Boeheim’s 1,116 isn’t a reach. Clearing Mike Krzyzewski’s 1,202 could be a much more difficult ask. But still not implausible.
Pitino isn’t slowing down. He’s as passionate as he’s ever been, but he loves having his family and, especially, his grandchildren around when he’s coaching. They are getting a rare look at their Hall of Fame grandfather coaching still at the highest level. That doesn’t happen often in most professions.
Pitino told me prior to Saturday’s tipoff that his legacy is his five children and his grandchildren. He thanked his wife, Joanne, and praised how wonderful Richard is as a son, husband and father.
This is the good stuff. Players still flock to play for him, know they are going to develop and understand the commitment they must make to excel. Having an Idaho State transfer in Dylan Darling be as important to a win as a pair of former high school All-American stars in transfers Dillon Mitchell (Cincinnati) and Ian Jackson (North Carolina) shows his ability to maximize the diverse talent on his roster.
This Red Storm team doesn’t have a true point guard, but if Zuby Ejiofor continues to be an anchor inside at both ends of the court, and St. John’s gets the needed scoring and rebounding from Bryce Hopkins, Oziyah Sellers, Joson Sanon and Ruben Prey, they will definitely be in the mix for the Big East title.
St. John’s is relevant in the city again, creating a frenzied atmosphere at Madison Square Garden.
His confidence in his team, and in his ability to get them deep in the NCAA Tournament has never faded. Getting a glimpse on how connected he is to the players and staff Saturday proved yet another point — that he’s still got it. Older coaches from a generation past sometimes lose that connection. Not Pitino. He’s fully invested in this revenue share/NIL/transfer portal world. He’s not against paying players, nor is he pushing back on player movement.
He adapts. And his ability to do so in all aspects of the game has put him in position to potentially be the winningest coach of all time.
The Hypocrisy
Alabama lost to Tennessee Saturday. Charles Bediako played 25 minutes and scored 13 points.
Ohio State’s Puff Johnson played four minutes in a 12-point loss at Michigan in his first stint of the season.
Both players are only playing because a local judge — one in Ohio and one in Alabama — granted a temporary restraining order. Of course, each school had to have a roster spot open, which they did. Each school is also making it seem as if this is all being directed by the player, not them.
The schools may feel like they have to back their players. They have to want them to do so and if they win their court case play them. But no one is making the schools play these guys.
NCAA Denies Eligibility to Former NBA Player
The NCAA’s policy regarding college eligibility and NBA contracts is coming into focus. PLUS: Vanderbilt’s Tyler Tanner is making his case for SEC Player of the Year.
If Alabama and Ohio State want to be a part of the solution, and not the problem, then they should work to change and/or enforce existing rules. Instead, they have created more headaches for the Division-I membership — of which they are members as well — by having players compete solely due to a courtroom. The ramifications of a player being allowed to return to college, even after he has played in college and signed a professional contract will open up the floodgates.
Rosters could potentially not be set until the start of school in August or September. And if you don’t know who is on your team or in school, that will affect scheduling and the overall health of the sport.
The rules should be simple: Play four years over five, or have five years to play over a five-year period from your graduation class. No waivers. No special situations. And once you leave college, go through the NBA Draft and sign an NBA contract, you cannot return.
If the NBA wants to draft players and hold their draft rights for a year or two, that would be a game changer. But the NBA would have to make that decision. Instead of draft-and-stashing Europeans overseas, they could do the same with American college players and allow them to return to college with their rights retained. At least then, in June or July at the latest, each school would know who would be on their roster.
The status quo isn’t working and having local judges decide eligibility is not the answer.
Five Shoutouts
Keaton Wagler, Illinois: The 46-point outburst in a win at Purdue was one of the greatest freshman performances we’ve seen in quite some time. This freshman class is historic. The depth is sensational. Cameron Boozer, A.J. Dybantsa, Caleb Wilson, Nate Ament, Mikel Brown Jr. and Darryn Peterson (when healthy) have all been sensational. But none has enjoyed a performance as stunningly good as Wagler.
Saint Louis: The Billkens are going to possibly push the NCAA Tournament selection committee to take them even if they don’t win the A-10 tournament. SLU is slamming through the league. The 13-0, 19-1 Billikens could run the table in the league but lose in the tournament. George Mason, which had little room for error, lost at Rhode Island, a defeat that will sting and possibly crush their at-large chances.
Finley Bizjack, Butler: The Bulldogs are making a late push to attempt to get into the NCAA tournament. They’ve won three in a row at Seton Hall and over DePaul and Marquette. Bizjack has found his range again and scored 25, 24 and 28 points respectively.
Eran Ganot, Hawaii: The Hawaii coach is in a contract year in the last season of the Rainbows in the Big West. And he’s met the moment. Ganot’s Bows are tied with UC Irvine at 7-2 atop the Big West. Hawaii is 15-4 and overall. Hawaii had a terrible time getting games after the Diamond Head Classic was canceled. But Hawaii is trying to take care of business in the league. Hawaii has a showdown at Irvine Thursday.
Stephen Pearl, Auburn: The Tigers were teetering, losers of three of four in early January. And then came a home win over South Carolina and a season-changing week for the first-year head coach. Auburn won at Ole Miss and then at Florida to move to 4-3 in the SEC and right back to being a top five SEC contender.
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