St. John’s men’s basketball coach Rick Pitino has been through lots of ups and downs throughout his life and coaching career. Following the Red Storm’s latest loss, Pitino is declaring this one of the worst experiences of his lifetime in part because of those around him.
Pitino, 71, returned to his hometown of New York City this year to take over St John’s basketball program. After growing up watching the team for years, the iconic coach had an opportunity to help rebuild a storied team after years of struggles.
- Rick Pitino coaching record: 843-305 overall, 14-12 at St John’s
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However, instead of a storybook redemption arc for St. John’s, the Red Storm are nearing the end of another underwhelming season. Following a 68-62 defeat to Seton Hall, St John’s eighth loss in 10 games, Pitino called out everyone involved in the program for the ‘unenjoyable experience’ they’ve created.
“This is the most unenjoyable experience of my lifetime. This has been so disappointing.”
St John’s head coach Rick Pitino after the loss to Seton hall (H/T ESPN)
Pitino’s criticisms were directed at almost the entire St John’s basketball program. During his post-game press conference, he specifically took shots at several key members of his rotation by name.
“Joel [Soriano]’s slow laterally, he’s not fast on the court. Chris Ledlum is slow laterally, Sean Conway’s slow laterally. Brady [Dunlap’s] physically weak, Drissa [Traore] is slow laterally.”
Rick Pitino’s criticisms of St John’s basketball players
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After the Red Storm fired head coach Mike Anderson, a majority of the team transferred out of the program. It forced Pitino to completely overhaul the roster, bringing in 12 newcomers including 10 via transfer. While Pitino and his staff were responsible for convincing them to come to St John’s, he shared on Saturday that the program brought in athletes who never were a fit for what he needed.
“We kind of lost this season with the way we recruited. We recruited the antithesis of the way I coach. It’s a good group, they try hard, but they’re just not very tough. … It’s not the job. You could be at Missouri and recruit slow players. Believe me, it’s not St. John’s.We had to put together a team at the last second. We will never, ever do that again.“
Rick Pitino on the Red Storm’s 2023 recruiting class and transfer arrivals
Pitino believes his recruiting staff made clear mistakes in their evaluation process. If calling his players out for not being “very tough” and criticizing their athleticism and abilities publicly wasn’t enough, he also made it clear that St John’s facilities aren’t adequate.
“Do we have sh***y facilities? Yes, we do. But we’re doing something about that. But that’s not the reason we’re losing. Having sh***y facilities has nothing to do with guarding.”
Rick Pitino on the Red Storm’s basketball facilities
The good news for Pitino is that this disappointing season is almost coming to an end. The Red Storm only has a few games left on its regular-season schedule followed. by the Big East tournament. After that, Pitino and his staff can turn their focus toward overhauling the roster for the second time. However, he might find it challenging to recruit players to a school with poor facilities to play for a coach who will call them out in public and blame them for one of the worst years of his life.
