Is Rick Pitino nearing a return to big-time college basketball? The odds say yes.
Rick Pitino is in his third season at Iona University.
Will the former Kentucky basketball coach be back on the big stage by the time next season begins?
Georgetown parted ways with Hoyas legend Patrick Ewing on Thursday, one day after an 80-48 loss to Villanova in the first round of the Big East Tournament. That defeat left Georgetown with a 7-25 season. The Hoyas were 2-18 in conference play this season and 0-19 in the league last season, losing 29 consecutive Big East games at one point.
Ewing’s ouster at Georgetown has been speculated on for months, and Pitino’s name had been floated as a possible replacement. Now that it’s official, the former UK and Louisville coach is emerging as a heavy favorite to lead the Hoyas, according to online sportsbooks.
Both BetOnline and SportsBetting.ag posted odds Friday morning showing Pitino as the 1-2 favorite to land the Georgetown job. Both betting outlets had former Notre Dame coach Mike Brey as the second choice at 5-1, Penn State Coach Micah Shrewsberry next at 6-1, followed by Providence Coach Ed Cooley and North Carolina State Coach Kevin Keatts at 8-1.
Georgetown coaching boards from CBS Sports and The Athletic both prominently featured Pitino, who will turn 71 years old before the start of the 2023-24 season but has signaled that he’d like one more shot at a major college basketball coaching job.
Pitino coached Iona to an NCAA Tournament berth in his first season as head coach, led the Gaels to an MAAC regular-season title last year and then repeated that feat this season. Iona was to play in the MAAC Tournament semifinals Friday night and needed two more wins to make the 2023 NCAA Tournament field.
It’s assumed in college basketball circles that Pitino won’t be back at Iona for a fourth season, with his sights set on another jump to the top level of the sport. And while he’s looking like a real possibility for Georgetown, there might be another Big East job higher on his list.
The New York Post reported Thursday that there is mutual interest between Pitino and St. John’s, which finished 18-15 this season and will fail to make the NCAA Tournament for the fourth consecutive year under Coach Mike Anderson. St. John’s fired Anderson on Friday afternoon, and the Post said that Pitino is “believed to be a realistic candidate.”
Pitino was born in New York City and raised on Long Island. His first head coaching job was at Boston University, though he rose to national prominence after leading Providence to a Final Four appearance in his second season with the Big East program. He then became head coach of the New York Knicks before spending eight seasons at Kentucky, four years with the Boston Celtics and then 16 seasons at Louisville.
The final ruling on NCAA violations that occurred within the U of L program toward the end of Pitino’s tenure stated that the head coach had committed “no violation” and would not be further punished. Pitino lost his job at Louisville as a result of the scandal.
“I want to coach five or six more years,” he told CBS Sports last month.
Pitino won the 1996 national title at Kentucky and won the 2013 title while at Louisville, though that championship was later vacated as a result of NCAA rules violations. Pitino and Kansas Coach Bill Self are the only active college basketball coaches with multiple on-court national titles. The only other active college coaches with one title are John Calipari, Tom Izzo, Tony Bennett and Scott Drew.
This story was originally published March 10, 2023 at 1:17 PM.
