Yes, Rick Pitino should get his Bob Knight moment at Rupp Arena
Random notes:
▪ I was a guest on WLAP’s “Big Blue Insider” radio show on Monday, when host Dick Gabriel referenced Bob Knight’s recent return to Indiana, after a bitter 20-year absence, and asked if I thought the same thing would ever happen with Rick Pitino and Kentucky?
Yes, yes, a hundred times yes. It probably won’t happen anytime soon. But it definitely should happen. As current UK coach John Calipari said last year when Pitino did not attend a reunion of the 1996 title team at UK, the day should come when the former coach steps on the floor of Rupp Arena and receives the appreciation he deserves.
Let bygones be bygones. Suppress those boos. I know to some Pitino taking the job at archrival Louisville was an unpardonable sin, but he’s no longer the coach. He’s no longer the coach anywhere, not in the U.S. anyway. And while there were plenty of coaches who could have resurrected the probation-ridden Kentucky basketball program back in 1989, no one could have done it quite like Pitino.
▪ Obviously, keeping recruiting coordinator Vince Marrow in the fold was very important for Kentucky football. That’s especially true given the gains Mark Stoops’ program has made the past three years, and also what’s going on in the rest of the SEC East.
Top Dawg Georgia continues to clean up in recruiting, and now it will be interesting to see what effect new offensive coordinator Todd Monken, former QB coach in Tampa Bay and Cleveland, has on the program. As expected, Dan Mullen hasn’t wasted any time getting Florida turned around and headed back in the right direction. Those two comprise the division’s top tier.
Below that duo sit Kentucky and Tennessee. The Cats have had more overall success recently, but Jeremy Pruitt appears to be putting his stamp on the Volunteers. Kentucky outgunned UT at Kroger Field in 2019, but took a frustrating 17-13 loss to the Vols. Stoops has a head start on Pruitt, but it will be a battle to see which of the two teams — or either of them — can break through and challenge the Bulldogs and Gators for division honors.
That’s where Marrow comes in. I have no doubt Stoops would have hired a suitable replacement had the Big Dog accepted his good friend Mel Tucker’s offer at Michigan State. But I also doubt whether a new recruiting coordinator would have had the same presence or been able to take advantage of the same inroads Marrow has made over these past eight seasons.
▪ If you are tired of hearing about trainer Bob Baffert and all his prospects for the 2020 Kentucky Derby, you’re out of luck. Last Sunday at Santa Anita, a Baffert-trained 3-year-old named Charlatan wowed in his racing debut — two days before Baffert’s Triple Crown winner Justify made his debut in 2018 — with a 5 3/4-length win at Santa Anita. Charlatan’s 105 Beyer Speed Figure was the second-highest by any horse of any age at any track this year. You’ve been warned.
▪ The hardly surprising news this week that former Michigan coach John Beilein has turned out to be an unsustainable fit for both the Cleveland Cavaliers and the NBA prompted instant internet speculation — is there any other kind? — about where Beilein might land if he does indeed wish to return to college coaching.
To me, however, Beilein’s quick adaptation failure to the pro game and its players only highlights the jobs Brad Stevens and Billy Donovan have both done. Stevens left Butler for the Boston Celtics. Donovan left Florida for the Oklahoma City Thunder. Neither has won an NBA title, but both have (a) been in the hunt and (b) exhibited the necessary skills to make the move stick.
▪ Speaking of Donovan, Florida used the NBA’s All-Star weekend as an opportunity to bring its former two-time NCAA champion coach back to Gainesville where the court at the O’Connell Center was officially named in his honor last Saturday. Billy D actually teared up during the ceremony. Not that anyone who knows him was surprised.
