This is an accepted version of this page
 Pitino in a press conference for the2013 Final Four | |
| Current position | |
|---|---|
| Title | Head coach |
| Team | St. John's |
| Conference | Big East |
| Record | 51–18 (.739) |
| Biographical details | |
| Born | (1952-09-18)September 18, 1952 (age 73) New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| 1971–1974 | UMass |
| Position | Point guard |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1974–1976 | Hawaii (assistant) |
| 1976 | Hawaii (interim HC) |
| 1976–1978 | Syracuse (assistant) |
| 1978–1983 | Boston University |
| 1983–1985 | New York Knicks (assistant) |
| 1985–1987 | Providence |
| 1987–1989 | New York Knicks |
| 1989–1997 | Kentucky |
| 1997–2001 | Boston Celtics |
| 2001–2017 | Louisville |
| 2018–2020 | Panathinaikos |
| 2020–2023 | Iona |
| 2023–present | St. John's |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 885–311 (.740)[a] (college) 192–220 (.466) (NBA) |
| Tournaments | 55–22 (NCAA Division I) 6–5 (NIT) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| |
| Awards | |
| |
| Basketball Hall of Fame Inducted in 2013 (profile) | |
Richard Andrew Pitino (/pɪˈtiːnoʊ/; born September 18, 1952) is an Americanbasketball coach who is the head men's basketball coach atSt. John's University. He was also the head coach ofGreece's senior national team. He has been the head coach of several teams inNCAA Division I and in theNBA, includingBoston University (1978–1983),Providence College (1985–1987), theNew York Knicks (1987–1989), theUniversity of Kentucky (1989–1997), theBoston Celtics (1997–2001), theUniversity of Louisville (2001–2017),Panathinaikos of theGreek Basket League andEuroLeague (2018–2020), andIona University (2020–2023).
Pitino led Kentucky to anNCAA championship in1996. In 2013, while in Atlanta with his team for the Final Four, he was elected to theNaismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.[3]
In June 2017, the NCAA suspended Pitino for five games of the 2017–18 season for a perceived lack of oversight inan escort sex scandal at the University of Louisville involvingrecruits. Louisville's national championship from2013 was eventually vacated and is being appealed by the university. In September, Pitino was implicated in a federal investigationinvolving bribes to recruits, which resulted in Louisville firing him for cause. He was later exonerated of these accusations and soon returned to coaching after a brief stint as a broadcaster.
On March 20, 2023, he was named head basketball coach atSt. John's University.[4]
Pitino was born inNew York City, and was raised inBayville, New York. He was the teamcaptain of theSt. Dominic High School basketball team inOyster Bay,Long Island.[5]
Pitino enrolled at theUniversity of Massachusetts Amherst in 1970. At a listed height of 1.83 metres (6 feet 0 inches) tall,[6][7] he was apoint guard[8][9] for theMinutemen basketball team. Pitino held the tenth spot at UMass for career assists, with 329,[10] untilChaz Williams (2011–2014) became the leader in career assists following his final season with the Minutemen.[11] He led the team in assists as a junior and senior.[12][13] The 168 assists as a senior is the eighth-best single season total ever there.[10][14]
Pitino was a freshman at the same time futureNBA legendJulius Erving spent his junior (and final) year at UMass, although the two never played on the same team because freshmen were ineligible to play varsity basketball at the time. Other teammates of Pitino's includeAl Skinner, who also went on to become a successful college coach, and baseball playerMike Flanagan, who went on to pitch in the major leagues and win the ALCy Young Award in 1979. Pitino earned his degree from UMass in 1974.
Pitino started his coaching career as a graduate assistant at theUniversity of Hawaii in 1974, and became a full-time assistant in 1975. Pitino served as Hawaii's interim head coach late in the 1975–76 season. Coach Bruce O'Neil was fired after the Rainbow Warriors started the season 9–12. Pitino led Hawaii for their final six games, going 2–4 in the span.[15]
Pitino's time at Hawaii was marred by a 1977NCAA report on sanctions against the program. According to the report, Pitino was implicated in 8 of the 64 infractions that led the university to be placed on probation. The violations involving Pitino included providing round-trip air fare for a player between New York andHonolulu, arranging for student-athletes to receive used cars for season tickets, and handing out coupons to players for free food atMcDonald's. He was also cited, along with the head coach, Bruce O'Neil, for providing misinformation to theNCAA andUniversity of Hawaii officials. Also in 1977, the NCAA infractions committee recommended that Pitino and O'Neil be disassociated from Hawaii athletics. In 1989, Pitino would dismiss the report, saying "I didn't make any mistakes. I don't care what anybody says."[16]
Pitino was the first assistant hired byJim Boeheim in 1976 as Boeheim began his tenure atSyracuse University.[17]
In 1978,Boston University athletic director John Simpson hired Pitino as head coach, funding theTerriers men's basketball team with $20,000 for recruiting players and fifteen full scholarships, the maximum allowed under NCAA rules and far more than prior head coachRoy Sigler was allotted. As compensation, Pitino received aRenault Le Car and an annual salary of $17,500.[18]
In the two seasons before Pitino's arrival, the Terriers had won a mere 17 games. During his 5-year tenure, the team slogan was, “the hardest working coach, for the hardest working team in the country." Pitino used the full-court press for almost the entirety of each game, eventually leading the Terriers to their first NCAA tournament appearance in 24 years.[19]
Pitino leftBoston University to become an assistant coach with theNew York Knicks underHubie Brown.
In 1985, Pitino returned to college coaching to become head coach atProvidence College after being hired by then-athletic directorLou Lamoriello. Providence had gone a dismal 11–20 in the year before he took over. Two years later, Pitino led the team to the Final Four. That Final Four team featured the "Rainbow Coalition" withpoint guardBilly Donovan, who would go on to be an assistant coach under Pitino at theUniversity of Kentucky and then win back-to-back national championships as head coach at theUniversity of Florida.
Pitino became head coach of theNew York Knicks on July 14, 1987.[20] The year before he arrived, the team had only won 24 games. In just two years, Pitino led the Knicks to their first division title in nearly twenty years.[19] He resigned from the Knicks on May 30, 1989.[21][22]
After spending two years coaching in the NBA, Pitino returned to the college level again in 1989, becoming the coach at Kentucky.[23] The Kentucky program was recovering from a major recruiting scandal brought on by former coachEddie Sutton that left it on NCAA probation. Pitino quickly restored Kentucky's reputation and performance, leading his second school to the Final Four in the1993 NCAA tournament, andwinning a national title in the1996 NCAA tournament, Kentucky's 6th NCAA Championship. The following year, Pitino'sKentucky team made it back to the national title game, losing toArizona in overtime in the finals of the1997 NCAA tournament. Pitino's fast-paced teams at Kentucky were favorites of the school's fans, implementing his signature style offull-court pressure defense. The following year, he left Kentucky for the NBA and Kentuckywent on to win the 1998 national title. He would later refer to Kentucky as "the Roman Empire of college basketball".[24]
Pitino returned to the NBA in 1997 when theBoston Celtics hired him as head coach on May 6, 1997.[25] He resigned on January 8, 2001.[26] His NBA coaching experience often demonstrated a deep frustration with the dynamics of the league, especially in Boston, where he amassed a 102–146 record from 1997 to 2001. After being beaten by theToronto Raptors on March 1, 2000, on a buzzer-beater byVince Carter, Pitino's frustration reached critical mass as he addressed the press. Referring to the expectations ofBoston Celtics fans and media, Pitino challenged each of them to let go of the past and focus on the future:
Larry Bird is not walking through that door, fans.Kevin McHale is not walking through that door, andRobert Parish is not walking through that door. And if you expect them to walk through that door, they're going to be gray and old. What we are is young, exciting, hard-working, and we're going to improve. People don't realize that, and as soon as they realize those three guys are not coming through that door, the better this town will be for all of us because there are young guys in that (locker) room playing their asses off. I wish we had $90 million under thesalary cap. I wish we could buy the world. We can't; the only thing we can do is work hard, and all the negativity that's in this town sucks. I've been around whenJim Rice was booed. I've been around whenYastrzemski was booed. And it stinks. It makes the greatest town, greatest city in the world, lousy. The only thing that will turn this around is being upbeat and positive like we are in that locker room... and if you think I'm going to succumb to negativity, you're wrong. You've got the wrong guy leading this team.[27]
Pitino struggled in Boston, and statistics like 1998–99's 19–31 record made him little better in the eyes of many Boston fans than his inexperienced predecessor,M. L. Carr. Pitino's remarks became a cornerstone of Celtics lore, and has served as a metaphor for other sports franchises and their inability to relive past successes.[28] Pitino himself reprised the speech in a tongue-in-cheek manner at Louisville in November 2005, challenging his freshmen players to play as tough as past seniors and drawing laughter from sportswriters in a postgame press conference. During his time in Boston, he also served as team president, with complete control over basketball operations.
Pitino returned to college—and his adopted home state—on March 21, 2001, to coach theUniversity of Louisville following the retirement of Hall of Fame coachDenny Crum.[29] In the2005 season, Pitino led Louisville to theirfirst Final Four in 19 years, and became the first men's coach in NCAA history to lead three different schools to the Final Four. Immediately following their Final Four run, several players graduated or entered the2005 NBA draft. The inexperience caused the Cardinals to limp into theBig East tournament seeded 12th, and miss the NCAA tournament. They made the semifinals of theNational Invitation Tournament (NIT), where they were defeated by eventual championsUniversity of South Carolina. The 2007 Cardinal team was primarily the same team, with added freshmen. Picked to finish towards the bottom of theBig East Conference again, Pitino led them to a second-place finish, 12–4 (tied with theUniversity of Pittsburgh, who had been beaten by the Cardinals during the regular season) in the conference standings and a first round bye in the conference tournament. Pitino implemented a 2–2–1 and 2–3 zone defense midway through the season. The 2007 team's season ended when the Cardinals lost toTexas A&M in the second round of theNCAA tournament. The 2008 Cardinals finished second in the Big East and ranked 13th in both the AP and Coaches' polls. Louisville was the third seed in the2008 NCAA tournament's East region. They defeatedBoise State,Oklahoma andTennessee to advance to the Elite Eight, where they were defeated byNorth Carolina. Louisville was the top seed overall in the2009 NCAA tournament and was planted as the first seed in the Midwest region. They defeatedMorehead State,Siena andArizona to advance to the Elite Eight, where they were defeated byMichigan State. In 2010 the Cardinals suffered a disappointing 15-point loss to their first round opponent, theCalifornia Golden Bears. In 2011, Louisville was upset by 13th-seededMorehead State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
In2012, Pitino coached the Cardinals to the Big East tournament championship and a berth as No. 4 seed in the West region of the NCAA tournament. The Cardinals defeatedDavidson,New Mexico, and top seedMichigan State to advance to the regional final againstFlorida and his former player and friendBilly Donovan. The Cardinals would go on to win that game, but lost toarch-rivals and eventual national championsKentucky in the 2012 Final Four.
In 2013, Pitino led the Louisville Cardinals to their third national championship in an 82–76 win over Michigan to become the first NCAA Division I coach in history to win a championship with two different schools, although that championship was later vacated.[30]
The University of Louisville self-imposed a postseason ban for the2015–16 season amid an ongoing NCAA investigation over anescort sex scandal involving recruits between 2010 and 2014. The ban included both theACC tournament and theNCAA tournament.[31][32] On June 15, 2017, the NCAA charged Pitino for failure to monitor his basketball program, which was involved in a sex-for-pay scandal. He was suspended for the first five games of the ACC season in 2017–18.[33] On February 20, 2018, the NCAA officially announced that the 2013 National Championship and their 2012 Final Four appearance had been vacated.[30] It was the first time the NCAA vacated a men's basketball national title.[34][35]
On September 26, 2017, federal prosecutors announced that the school was under investigation for an alleged "pay for play" involving recruits at Louisville.[36][37] The allegations state that anAdidas executive conspired to pay $100,000 to the family of a top-ranked national recruit to play at Louisville and to represent Adidas when he turned pro.[36] The criminal complaint did not name Louisville specifically but appeared to involve the recruitment ofBrian Bowen, who committed on June 3, 2017, to the school.[38][39]
A day later, Louisville placed Pitino on unpaid administrative leave, while athletic directorTom Jurich was placed on paid administrative leave.[40][41] According to a letter interim president Greg Postel sent to Pitino, the information spelled out by prosecutors amounted to a "material breach" of his contract.[42] Pitino's lawyer, formerKentucky Lieutenant GovernorSteve Pence, toldThe Courier-Journal that as he understood it, Pitino had been "effectively fired". Under the terms of Pitino's contract, Louisville was required to give him 10 days' notice and "an opportunity to be heard" before firing him for cause.[43] According to CBS Sports'Gary Parrish, school officials did not intend for Pitino to ever return to the sidelines again, and planned to cut ties with him as soon as they could legally do so.[44]
On October 2, the board of the University of Louisville Athletic Association voted to formally begin the process of firing Pitino for cause. On the same day, Pitino, through his lawyer, claimed that Louisville officials should have given him 10 days notice and a chance to respond before placing him on leave.[45] On October 16, the ULAA board voted unanimously to fire Pitino for cause.[46]
On September 18, 2019, nearly two years after his dismissal and his lawsuit for $38.7 million against the ULAA, Pitino settled with the university and dropped the case. As a result, his termination was changed from a firing on October 16, 2017, to a resignation on October 3, 2017, citing "zero liability" between both parties.[47]
On December 26, 2018,Panathinaikos announced Pitino as the head coach of the team until the end of the season, marking his debut in theEuroLeague.[48] On February 17, 2019, they won the2018–19 Greek Cup againstPAOK in the final.[49] In theEuroLeague Regular Season, they managed to make a comeback after a 6–8 start, to finish in sixth place and reach the playoffs, after they registered ten wins in their last 16 games. In the EuroLeague Playoffs, Panathinaikos fell for a second consecutive year against defending championsReal Madrid, thus failing to qualify for the2019 EuroLeague Final Four. The season ended with Panathinaikos winning the2018–19 Greek Basket League's season championship, after they sweptPromitheas Patras 3–0 in the League's Finals.[50] After the season, Panathinaikos made an offer to coach Pitino to extend his stay, and although he showed willingness to stay in Greece for another season, he declined the offer, due to a family matter.[51]
On November 26, 2019, Pitino was rehired by Panathinaikos as the team's head coach on a two-year deal after the firing ofArgyris Pedoulakis.[52][53] He remained with the team until March 2020 when the2019–20 EuroLeague seasonwas suspended due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, leaving Panathinaikos at sixth place.[54]
On March 14, 2020, Pitino was named head coach ofIona College afterTim Cluess stepped down from the position due to health issues on March 13.[55][56][57] Despite the hiring, Pitino was scheduled to finish his commitments to Panathinaikos;[58] however, on March 20, Panathinaikos announced mutual agreement to terminate the contract.[59]
The 2020–21 team was 6–3 in conference play for 9th in MAAC play but ran the table in the MAAC tournament with four upsets to reach the NCAA tournament and make Pitino the third coach ever to lead five different programs to the NCAA tournament. Pitino's squad won the regular season title in the next two seasons and won the MAAC tournament in Pitino's final season.
On March 20, 2023, Pitino was named the head coach ofSt. John's, just a week afterMike Anderson was fired after four years.[60]
On December 20, 2010, Pitino was hired as head coach of the seniorPuerto Rico national team. On April 29, 2011, it was announced that Pitino would not coach the Puerto Rico national team, due to scheduling conflicts and NCAA regulations disallowing it. Pitino coached the Puerto Rican national team at the2015 FIBA Americas Championship, inMexico City, Mexico.[61] They finished the tournament in 5th place.
On November 8, 2019, Pitino was hired as head coach ofGreece's senior national team.[62][63][64] TheHellenic Basketball Federation announced that Pitino would be Greece's head coach at the2020 FIBA Victoria Olympic qualifying tournament and the2020 Summer Olympics, should Greece qualify, whileThanasis Skourtopoulos would serve as Greece's head coach for the2021 EuroBasket qualification tournament.
Pitino married the former Joanne Minardi in 1976. They have five living children, one of whom,Richard, became the head coach of theXavier Musketeers in 2025.[65] Their son, Daniel, died from congenital heart failure in 1987 at the age of six months. Rick and Joanne established the Daniel Pitino Foundation (along with a Daniel Pitino shelter inOwensboro, Kentucky) in his memory, which has raised millions of dollars for children in need.[66]
Their son's death was not the last tragedy for Rick and Joanne. Both were especially hard-hit bythe terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, as Joanne's brother and Rick's closest friend, Billy Minardi, was working as a bond trader forCantor Fitzgerald on the 105th floor of the north tower of theWorld Trade Center when it was struck byAmerican Airlines Flight 11. Since 2002, the University of Louisville has designated a December home game as the Billy Minardi Classic, and the university named a dorm on campus as "Billy Minardi Hall". Only a few months earlier, another brother-in-law of Rick's, Don Vogt, was killed after being hit by a New York City cab.[5]
Pitino is the author of a motivationalself-help book (andaudio recording) namedSuccess is a Choice. He published an autobiography in 1988 entitledBorn to Coach, describing his life up until his time with the Knicks. His bookRebound Rules, was the top seller at the 2008 Kentucky Book Fair. His most recent book,Pitino: My Story, was published in 2018. A detailed biography, it also delivers his version of events regarding the Adidas sneaker scandal and his subsequent ouster as the University of Louisville men's basketball coach.[67]
In 2005, Pitino's Louisville team posted a tie for the most single-season wins in school history (33)—since surpassed by the 35 total wins by the 2013 NCAA title-winning Cardinals team—while he is one of two men's coaches in NCAA history to lead three separate schools (Providence, Kentucky, and Louisville) to the Final Four. The other coach is his former in-state rival,John Calipari (UMass Amherst, Memphis, and Kentucky), though both final four appearances at UMass and Memphis were later vacated (as was Louisville's 2013 title under Pitino).
As of 2022, Pitino's .730 winning percentage in 74 NCAA Tournament games ranked seventh among all coaches.[68]
Beyond basketball, Pitino has been involved in the sport ofthoroughbredhorse racing as the lead partner in Celtic Pride Stable and the Ol Memorial Stable. Among his notable horses have beenA P Valentine and Halory Hunter.[69] Pitino, through the stable name of RAP Racing, owns a 5 percent share ofGoldencents. Goldencents, who won the $750,000 2013Santa Anita Derby,[70] ran in the 2013Kentucky Derby and finished 17th.[71]
On April 18, 2009, Pitino announced that he was the target of anextortion attempt.[72] On April 24, Karen Cunagin Sypher, the wife of Louisville equipment manager Tim Sypher, wasarraigned and charged inUS District Court with extortion and lying to federal agents. The federal government alleged that Cunagin demanded vehicles and tuition money for her children from Pitino and later demanded $10 million from him. According to the federal complaint, the demands arose from an unspecified encounter between Sypher and Pitino.[73][74]
On August 11, Pitino admitted that he had sexual relations with Cunagin on August 1, 2003, at Porcini, a Louisville restaurant. Several weeks later, Cunagin told Pitino that she was pregnant and wanted to have an abortion, but added she did not have health insurance. Pitino paid her $3,000 for the abortion.[75] During the trial, Pitino downplayed the pair's sexual escapade, testifying that the entire act did not take more than 15 seconds.[76] Cunagin claimed that her estranged husband, Tim Sypher, was paid to marry her.[77]
At a press conference on August 12, Pitino apologized for his indiscretion and stated that he would remain as coach.[78] While Pitino's contract allowed for his firing for "acts of moral depravity or misconduct that damages the university's reputation",University of Louisville president James Ramsey announced on August 13 that Pitino would remain in his position.[75]
On August 6, 2010, a federal district court found Cunagin guilty of extortion and lying to federal agents. She was eventually sentenced to 87 months in prison. Cunagin was released to a halfway house in January 2017.[79][76] After her conviction, Cunagin hired new attorneys and accused the judge, prosecutors, her former attorneys, and Pitino of taking part in a conspiracy to ensure that she was found guilty. She later expressed "exceptional remorse and contrition regarding her commission of her offenses".[79]
As a collegiate head coach, Pitino has compiled a 684–282 record, for a .708 winning percentage that is ranked 11th among active coaches and 34th all-time among all collegiate basketball coaches following the 2021–22 season.[80]
Pitino is considered by many to be one of the first coaches to promote fully taking advantage of the3-point shot, first adopted by the NCAA in 1987. By exploiting the 3-point shot, his teams at Kentucky in the early 1990s were known as Pitino's Bombinos, as a significant portion of the offensive points came from the 3-point shot. Additionally, his teams are known for their signature use of thefull-court press and2–3 zone defensive schemes, as well as their general aggressive defensive style.[81]
Many of Pitino's players and assistant coaches have gone on to become successful collegiate coaches. In total, 21 former Pitino players and coaches have becomeDivision I head coaches, including former University ofFlorida coachBilly Donovan (now head coach of theChicago Bulls), formerHigh Point University coachTubby Smith,Santa Clara University'sHerb Sendek,UCLA'sMick Cronin,New Mexico'sRichard Pitino (his son),Villanova'sKevin Willard, formerCal State Northridge coachReggie Theus andUniversity of Kentucky'sMark Pope.[14]
* ^a b c d e Kentucky was ineligible for both the NCAA and SEC Tournaments in 1990 and 1991 due to sanctions from theEddie Sutton era.
** ^a Kentucky finished first in the SEC standings. However, due to their probation, they were ineligible for the regular-season title; it was awarded to second-place LSU instead.
*** ^a b Pitino did not coach in one win (January 28, 2004, vs. Houston) due to medical leave, but is credited with the victory.
**** ^a b c d e f g h i j k l Louisville has vacated all of its victories and three losses from the 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15 seasons. These 123 wins and three losses are not included in Pitino's all-time record.[82]
***** ^aLouisville self-imposed ineligibility for the 2015–16 postseason due to an ongoing NCAA investigation.
| Regular season | G | Games coached | W | Games won | L | Games lost | W–L % | Win–loss % |
| Playoffs | PG | Playoff games | PW | Playoff wins | PL | Playoff losses | PW–L % | Playoff win–loss % |
| Team | Year | G | W | L | W–L% | Finish | PG | PW | PL | PW–L% | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York | 1987–88 | 82 | 38 | 44 | .463 | 2nd inAtlantic | 4 | 1 | 3 | .250 | Lost infirst round |
| New York | 1988–89 | 82 | 52 | 30 | .634 | 1st in Atlantic | 9 | 5 | 4 | .556 | Lost inConference semifinals |
| Boston | 1997–98 | 82 | 36 | 46 | .439 | 6th in Atlantic | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Boston | 1998–99 | 50 | 19 | 31 | .380 | 5th in Atlantic | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Boston | 1999–2000 | 82 | 35 | 47 | .427 | 5th in Atlantic | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Boston | 2000–01 | 34 | 12 | 22 | .353 | (resigned) | — | — | — | — | — |
| Career | 412 | 192 | 220 | .466 | 13 | 6 | 7 | .462 | |||
| Team | Year | G | W | L | W–L% | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panathinaikos | 2018–19 | 19 | 10 | 9 | .526 | Lost in Quarterfinals |
| Panathinaikos | 2019–20 | 18 | 8 | 10 | .444 | Season suspended due to theCOVID-19 pandemic |
| Career | 37 | 18 | 19 | .486 | ||
A source told CBS Sports' Gary Parrish that Louisville has no intention of ever allowing Pitino to coach the Cardinals again.
