Former Boston Celtics team president and head coach Rick Pitino is not seen kindly by more than a few fans of that team after his disastrous tenure in those roles to close out the 1990s.
And after his exit from Louisville under a cloud cast by federal investigation and scandal to exile in Europe coaching Greek team Panathinaikos of the Euroleague, many assumed that would be the end of Pitino coaching anywhere in the U.S.
But if Pitino is to be believed, his new gig as head coach of New York state mid-major Iona is going to be his last gig anywhere.
🔊 When Rick Pitino took over the #Celtics he also took Red Auerbach's title as President.
Former Celtic M.L. Carr reflects with @TermineRadio & @SamMitchellNBA on why he disagreed with the decision. pic.twitter.com/jjNrdUbWmD
— SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) January 15, 2020
Unexpectedly hired by the small liberal arts school’s basketball program despite those lingering clouds — Pitino has yet to serve a suspension levied as one of several charges his Louisville program was assessed by the NCAA, for example — the former Celtic chief claims he’s landed with his last post.
“For me, it’s not a springboard. It’s an ending,” shared Pitino with LoHud’s Josh Thomson, despite the fact coaching greats like Jim Valvano and Kevin Willard have.
The former Louisville coach still maintains he did nothing wrong at that post, though he admits the responsibility was, ultimately, his.
Men's basketball: Rick Pitino makes his comeback at Iona College https://t.co/FW1SH2xiD9
— lohud sports (@lohudsports) November 16, 2020
“I have no concerns about the NCAA or any penalties at all,” Pitino explained.
“I’ve never done anything to hurt a student athlete, hurt a team, or to go against the grain of the rules we play by. Were mistakes made and am I responsible? Certainly I am. I was the leader of the program. But I know exactly what they have.”
“They have nothing on me at all that I’ve done wrong in this case,” he added.
A list of notable Rick Pitino signings with the Celtics as we dive into a final installment of the Pitino files:
Travis Knight
Andrew DeClercq
Chris Mills
Tyus Edney
Popeye Jones
Calbert Cheaney
Randy Brown https://t.co/VNbu2fdPoy— Brian Robb (@BrianTRobb) June 24, 2020
For a man who famously blamed the fans and media for a job poorly done in Boston, dancing around the issue of accountability is a familiar refrain; for others — like the athletic department at Iona — forgiveness is in order.
“I was very interested in meeting him as a person,” Iona president Seamus Carey shared. “What I wasn’t concerned about was the allegations brought against him by the NCAA because we had done our work. We knew the charges.”
“We knew what he didn’t do, so I wasn’t worried about the NCAA part of it,” added Carey.
From 1997 to 2001, Rick Pitino was the Boston Celtics' head coach, general manager and president of basketball operations. On #ThePosecast, Antoine Walker talked about playing for Pitino and why the Hall-of-Fame coach struggled: pic.twitter.com/jyiDDZYADl
— Alex Kennedy (@AlexKennedyNBA) September 26, 2020
Does the Hall of Fame coach deserve another shot?
Regardless of our feelings on his opportunity with the Gaels, Pitino is getting one — and with the full support of Iona at that.
As Carey notes of Iona, a Catholic school, the “crux of [their] faith is forgiveness.”
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