Richard Andrew Pitino (; born September 18, 1952) is an American

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

coach who is the head men's basketball coach at St. John's University. He was also the head coach of Greece's senior national team. He has been the head coach of several teams in

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest division of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athlet ...

and in the

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

, including

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...

(1978–1983),

Providence College Providence College is a Private university, private Roman Catholic university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1917 by the Dominican Order and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, it offers 47 undergraduate Academic ...

(1985–1987), the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the Na ...

(1987–1989), the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical ...

(1989–1997), the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

(1997–2001), the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public university, public research university in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. Chartered in 1798 as the Jefferson Seminary, it became in the 19t ...

(2001–2017), Panathinaikos of the

Greek Basket League The Greek Basketball League (GBL), and also known as the Stoiximan Greek Basketball League (GBL) for sponsorship reasons, is the Greek basketball league system, first tier level professional basketball league in Greece. It is run by the ...

and

EuroLeague The EuroLeague is a European men's professional basketball club competition. The league is widely recognised as the top-tier and the most prestigious men's basketball league in Europe. The league consists of 20 teams, of which 16 are given lon ...

(2018–2020), and Iona University (2020–2023). Pitino led Kentucky to an NCAA championship in

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

. In 2013, while in Atlanta with his team for the Final Four, he was elected to the

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pre ...

. In June 2017, the NCAA suspended Pitino for five games of the 2017–18 season for a perceived lack of oversight in an escort sex scandal at the University of Louisville involving recruits. Louisville's national championship from

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

was eventually vacated and is being appealed by the university. In September, Pitino was implicated in a federal investigation involving 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 at St. John's University.

Early years and education

Pitino was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, and was raised in Bayville, New York. He was the team

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

of the St. Dominic High School basketball team in Oyster Bay,

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

. Pitino enrolled at the

University of Massachusetts Amherst The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst) is a public land-grant research university in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Massachusetts system and was founded in 1863 as the ...

in 1970. At a listed height of tall, he was a

point guard The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the Basketball positions, five positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position and is usually the shortest player ...

for the Minutemen basketball team. Pitino held the tenth spot at UMass for career assists, with 329, until Chaz Williams (2011–2014) became the leader in career assists following his final season with the Minutemen. He led the team in assists as a junior and senior. The 168 assists as a senior is the eighth-best single season total ever there. Pitino was a freshman at the same time future

legend

Julius Erving Julius Winfield Erving II (born February 22, 1950), commonly known by the nickname Dr. J, is an American former professional basketball player. Erving helped legitimize the American Basketball Association (ABA), and he was the best-known player ...

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 include Al Skinner, who also went on to become a successful college coach, and baseball player Mike Flanagan, who went on to pitch in the major leagues and win the AL

Cy Young Award The Cy Young Award is given annually to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball (MLB), one each for the American League (AL) and National League (baseball), National League (NL). The award was introduced in 1956 by Commissioner of Baseball ( ...

in 1979. Pitino earned his degree from UMass in 1974.

Career

University of Hawaii (1974–1976)

Pitino started his coaching career as a graduate assistant at the

University of Hawaii A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

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.

Scandal and investigation

Pitino's time at Hawaii was marred by a 1977

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

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 and

Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

, arranging for student-athletes to receive used cars for season tickets, and handing out coupons to players for free food at

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation, doing business as McDonald's, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain. As of 2024, it is the second largest by number of locations in the world, behind only the Chinese ch ...

. He was also cited, along with the head coach, Bruce O'Neil, for providing misinformation to the

and

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."

Syracuse (1976–1978)

Pitino was the first assistant hired by Jim Boeheim in 1976 as Boeheim began his tenure at

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...

Boston University (1978–1983)

In 1978,

athletic director John Simpson hired Pitino as head coach, funding the Terriers 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 coach Roy Sigler was allotted. As compensation, Pitino received a Renault Le Car and an annual salary of $17,500. 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.

New York Knicks (1983–1985)

Pitino left

to become an assistant coach with the

under

Hubie Brown Hubert Jude Brown (born September 25, 1933) is an American former professional basketball player, coach, and analyst. Brown is a two-time NBA Coach of the Year, the honors separated by 26 years. Brown was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Bas ...

Providence (1985–1987)

In 1985, Pitino returned to college coaching to become head coach at

after being hired by then-athletic director

Lou Lamoriello Louis A. Lamoriello (; born October 21, 1942) is an Americans, American professional ice hockey executive who most recently served as the President of Hockey Operations and General Manager for the New York Islanders of the National Hockey League ...

. 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" with

Billy Donovan, who would go on to be an assistant coach under Pitino at the

and then win back-to-back national championships as head coach at the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...

New York Knicks (1987–1989)

Pitino became head coach of the

on July 14, 1987. 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. He resigned from the Knicks on May 30, 1989.

Kentucky (1989–1997)

After spending two years coaching in the NBA, Pitino returned to the college level again in 1989, becoming the coach at Kentucky. The Kentucky program was recovering from a major recruiting scandal brought on by former coach

Eddie Sutton Edward Eugene Sutton (March 12, 1936 – May 23, 2020) was an American college basketball coach. A native of Bucklin, Kansas, Sutton played college basketball at Oklahoma A&M (later Oklahoma State Cowboys basketball, Oklahoma State) and was a h ...

that left it on NCAA probation. Pitino quickly restored Kentucky's reputation and performance, leading his second school to the Final Four in the 1993 NCAA tournament, and winning a national title in the 1996 NCAA tournament, Kentucky's 6th NCAA Championship. The following year, Pitino's Kentucky team made it back to the national title game, losing to

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

in overtime in the finals of the 1997 NCAA tournament. Pitino's fast-paced teams at Kentucky were favorites of the school's fans, implementing his signature style of full-court pressure defense. The following year, he left Kentucky for the NBA and Kentucky went on to win the 1998 national title. He would later refer to Kentucky as "the Roman Empire of college basketball".

Boston Celtics (1997–2001)

Pitino returned to the NBA in 1997 when the

hired him as head coach on May 6, 1997. He resigned on January 8, 2001. 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 the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), E ...

on March 1, 2000, on a buzzer-beater by

Vince Carter Vincent Lamar Carter Jr. (born January 26, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player who played for 22 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He primarily played the shooting guard and small forward positions, b ...

, Pitino's frustration reached critical mass as he addressed the press. Referring to the expectations of

fans and media, Pitino challenged each of them to let go of the past and focus on the future: 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 Michael Leon Carr (born January 9, 1951) is an American former professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and American Basketball Association (ABA), and former head coach and General Manager of the Boston Celtics. ...

. 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. 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.

Louisville (2001–2017)

Pitino returned to college—and his adopted home state—on March 21, 2001, to coach the

following the retirement of Hall of Fame coach Denny Crum. In the 2005 season, Pitino led Louisville to their first 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 the 2005 NBA draft. The inexperience caused the Cardinals to limp into the Big East tournament seeded 12th, and miss the NCAA tournament. They made the semifinals of the

National Invitation Tournament The National Invitation Tournament (NIT) is an annual men's college basketball tournament operated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Since 2023, all rounds of the tournament are played at various sites across the country whi ...

(NIT), where they were defeated by eventual champions

University of South Carolina The University of South Carolina (USC, SC, or Carolina) is a Public university, public research university in Columbia, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1801 as South Carolina College, It is the flagship of the University of South Car ...

. The 2007 Cardinal team was primarily the same team, with added freshmen. Picked to finish towards the bottom of the

Big East Conference The Big East Conference (stylized as BIG EAST) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference that competes in National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA NCAA Division I, Division I in 10 men's sports and 12 women's sports. H ...

again, Pitino led them to a second-place finish, 12–4 (tied with the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The university is composed of seventeen undergraduate and graduate schools and colle ...

, 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 to

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

in the second round of the NCAA 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 the 2008 NCAA tournament's East region. They defeated Boise State,

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

and

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

to advance to the Elite Eight, where they were defeated by

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

. Louisville was the top seed overall in the 2009 NCAA tournament and was planted as the first seed in the Midwest region. They defeated Morehead State,

Siena Siena ( , ; traditionally spelled Sienna in English; ) is a city in Tuscany, in central Italy, and the capital of the province of Siena. It is the twelfth most populated city in the region by number of inhabitants, with a population of 52,991 ...

and

to advance to the Elite Eight, where they were defeated by

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the ...

. In 2010 the Cardinals suffered a disappointing 15-point loss to their first round opponent, the California Golden Bears. In 2011, Louisville was upset by 13th-seeded Morehead State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. In

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

, 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 defeated Davidson,

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

, and top seed

to advance to the regional final against

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

and his former player and friend Billy Donovan. The Cardinals would go on to win that game, but lost to arch-rivals and eventual national champions

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

in the 2012 Final Four. Rick Pitino being interviewed by Jim Nantz

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. The University of Louisville self-imposed a postseason ban for the 2015–16 season amid an ongoing NCAA investigation over an escort sex scandal involving recruits between 2010 and 2014. The ban included both the ACC tournament and the NCAA tournament. 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. On February 20, 2018, the NCAA officially announced that the 2013 National Championship and their 2012 Final Four appearance had been vacated. It was the first time the NCAA vacated a men's basketball national title.

Scandal and ouster

On September 26, 2017, federal prosecutors announced that the school was under investigation for an alleged "pay for play" involving recruits at Louisville. The allegations state that an

Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized in all lowercase since 1949) is a German athletic apparel and footwear corporation headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany. It is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe, and the second largest in the ...

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. The criminal complaint did not name Louisville specifically but appeared to involve the recruitment of Brian Bowen, who committed on June 3, 2017, to the school. A day later, Louisville placed Pitino on unpaid administrative leave, while athletic director Tom Jurich was placed on paid administrative leave. 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. Pitino's lawyer, former Kentucky Lieutenant Governor Steve Pence, told ''

The Courier-Journal The ''Courier Journal'', also known as the ''Louisville Courier Journal'' (and informally ''The C-J'' or ''The Courier''), and called ''The Courier-Journal'' between November 8, 1868, and October 29, 2017, is a daily newspaper published in ...

'' 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. 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. 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. On October 16, the ULAA board voted unanimously to fire Pitino for cause. 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.

Panathinaikos (2018–2020)

On December 26, 2018, Panathinaikos announced Pitino as the head coach of the team until the end of the season, marking his debut in the

. On February 17, 2019, they won the 2018–19 Greek Cup against

PAOK PAOK (, Πανθεσσαλονίκειος Αθλητικός Όμιλος Κωνσταντινοπολιτών, ''Panthessalonikeios Athlitikós Ómilos Constantinopoliton'', ''Pan-Thessalonian Athletic Club of Constantinopolitans''), commonly ...

in the final. In the EuroLeague 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 champions

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, th ...

, thus failing to qualify for the

2019 EuroLeague Final Four The 2019 EuroLeague Final Four was the concluding EuroLeague Final Four tournament of the 2018–19 EuroLeague season, the 62nd season of Europe's premier club basketball tournament, and the 19th season since it was first organised by Euroleague B ...

. The season ended with Panathinaikos winning the 2018–19 Greek Basket League's season championship, after they swept Promitheas Patras 3–0 in the League's Finals. 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. On November 26, 2019, Pitino was rehired by Panathinaikos as the team's head coach on a two-year deal after the firing of Argyris Pedoulakis. He remained with the team until March 2020 when the 2019–20 EuroLeague season was suspended due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, leaving Panathinaikos at sixth place.

Iona (2020–2023)

On March 14, 2020, Pitino was named head coach of Iona College after Tim Cluess stepped down from the position due to health issues on March 13. Despite the hiring, Pitino was scheduled to finish his commitments to Panathinaikos; however, on March 20, Panathinaikos announced mutual agreement to terminate the contract. 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.

St. John's (2023–present)

On March 20, 2023, Pitino was named the head coach of St. John's, just a week after Mike Anderson was fired after four years.

National team career

Puerto Rico

On December 20, 2010, Pitino was hired as head coach of the senior Puerto 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 the

2015 FIBA Americas Championship The 2015 FIBA Americas Championship for Men, later known as the FIBA AmeriCup, was the FIBA Americas qualifying tournament for the 2016 Summer Olympics, in Brazil. This FIBA AmeriCup tournament was held in Mexico City, Mexico. The tournament wa ...

, in

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

, Mexico. They finished the tournament in 5th place.

Greece

On November 8, 2019, Pitino was hired as head coach of Greece's senior national team. The Hellenic Basketball Federation announced that Pitino would be Greece's head coach at the 2020 FIBA Victoria Olympic qualifying tournament and the

2020 Summer Olympics The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

, should Greece qualify, while Thanasis Skourtopoulos would serve as Greece's head coach for the 2021 EuroBasket qualification tournament.

Personal life

Pitino married the former Joanne Minardi in 1976. They have five living children, one of whom,

Richard Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language">Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'st ...

, is currently the head coach of the Xavier Musketeers. 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 in

Owensboro, Kentucky Owensboro is a Home rule in the United States, home rule-class city in Daviess County, Kentucky, United States, of which it is also the county seat. It is the List of cities in Kentucky, fourth-most populous city in the state. Owensboro is loca ...

) in his memory, which has raised millions of dollars for children in need. Their son's death was not the last tragedy for Rick and Joanne. Both were especially hard-hit by the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, as Joanne's brother and Rick's closest friend, Billy Minardi, was working as a bond trader for Cantor Fitzgerald on the 105th floor of the north tower of the World Trade Center when it was struck by

American Airlines Flight 11 American Airlines Flight 11 was a domestic Airline, passenger flight that was hijacked by five al-Qaeda terrorists on the morning of September 11, 2001, as part of the September 11 attacks. The hijacked airliner was deliberately crashed into ...

. 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, Don Vogt, was killed after being hit by a New York City cab.

Author and accomplishments

Pitino is the author of a motivational

self-help Self-help or self-improvement is "a focus on self-guided, in contrast to professionally guided, efforts to cope with life problems" —economically, physically, intellectually, or emotionally—often with a substantial psychological basis. When ...

book (and

audio recording Sound recording and reproduction is the electrical, mechanical, electronic, or digital inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording t ...

) named '' Success is a Choice''. He published an autobiography in 1988 entitled ''Born to Coach'', describing his life up until his time with the Knicks. His book ''Rebound 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. 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 John Vincent Calipari (; born February 10, 1959) is an American basketball coach who is the head coach at the Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball, University of Arkansas. He has been named Naismith College Coach of the Year three times (1996, 2 ...

(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.

Thoroughbred horse racing

Beyond basketball, Pitino has been involved in the sport of

thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...

horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...

as the lead partner in Celtic Pride Stable and the Ol Memorial Stable. Among his notable horses have been A P Valentine and Halory Hunter. Pitino, through the stable name of RAP Racing, owns a 5 percent share of Goldencents. Goldencents, who won the $750,000 2013

Santa Anita Derby The Santa Anita Derby is an American Grade 1 thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds run each April at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is currently run at a distance of miles on the dirt and carries a purse of . It is one of t ...

, ran in the 2013

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby () is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of . Colt (horse), Colts and geldin ...

and finished 17th.

Extortion attempt against Pitino

On April 18, 2009, Pitino announced that he was the target of an

extortion Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit (e.g., money or goods) through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, although making unfounded ...

attempt. On April 24, Karen Cunagin Sypher, the wife of Louisville equipment manager Tim Sypher, was arraigned and charged in US 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. 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. During the trial, Pitino downplayed the pair's sexual escapade, testifying that the entire act did not take more than 15 seconds. Cunagin claimed that her estranged husband, Tim Sypher, was paid to marry her. At a press conference on August 12, Pitino apologized for his indiscretion and stated that he would remain as coach. While Pitino's contract allowed for his firing for "acts of moral depravity or misconduct that damages the university's reputation",

president James Ramsey announced on August 13 that Pitino would remain in his position. 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. 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".

Legacy

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. Pitino is considered by many to be one of the first coaches to promote fully taking advantage of the 3-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 the full-court press and 2–3 zone defensive schemes, as well as their general aggressive defensive style. 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 become Division I head coaches, including former University of

coach Billy Donovan (now head coach of the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was founded on January 16 ...

), former High Point University coach Tubby Smith,

Santa Clara University Santa Clara University is a private university, private Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California, United States. Established in 1851, Santa Clara University is the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California. The university' ...

's Herb Sendek, UCLA's Mick Cronin,

's Richard Pitino (his son), Villanova's Kevin Willard, former Cal State Northridge coach

Reggie Theus Reginald Wayne Theus (born October 13, 1957) is an American basketball coach and former player. He played 13 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), where he was a two-time NBA All-Star. He is currently the men's basketball head co ...

and

's Mark Pope.

Head coaching record

College

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Kentucky was ineligible for both the NCAA and SEC Tournaments in 1990 and 1991 due to sanctions from the

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. ^ ^a''Louisville self-imposed ineligibility for the 2015–16 postseason due to an ongoing NCAA investigation.''

NBA

, - , style="text-align:left;", New York , style="text-align:left;", , , , style="text-align:center;", 2nd in

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, , 4 , , 1 , , 3 , , , style="text-align:center;", Lost in

first round First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

, - , style="text-align:left;", New York , style="text-align:left;", , , , style="text-align:center;", 1st in Atlantic , , 9 , , 5 , , 4 , , , style="text-align:center;", Lost in Conference semifinals , - , style="text-align:left;",

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, style="text-align:left;", , , , style="text-align:center;", 6th in Atlantic , , — , , — , , — , , — , style="text-align:center;", Missed playoffs , - , style="text-align:left;",

, style="text-align:left;", , , , style="text-align:center;", 5th in Atlantic , , — , , — , , — , , — , style="text-align:center;", Missed playoffs , - , style="text-align:left;",

, style="text-align:left;", , , , style="text-align:center;", (resigned) , , — , , — , , — , , — , style="text-align:center;", — , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , , , , , 13 , , 6 , , 7 , , , ,

EuroLeague

, - , style="text-align:left;", Panathinaikos , style="text-align:left;", 2018–19 , 19 , , 10 , , 9 , , , , style="text-align:center;", Lost in Quarterfinals , - , style="text-align:left;", Panathinaikos , style="text-align:left;", 2019–20 , 18 , , 8 , , 10 , , , , style="text-align:center;", Season suspended due to the

, - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , , 37 , , 18 , , 19 , , , ,

Footnotes

References

External links