He would have never left Kentucky. Could have been a 1,000 win coach here, multiple titles. Would be interesting to see that timeline.
If Pitno could have a redo:
- Thread starter MidseasonTweak
- Start date
He would have never left Kentucky. Could have been a 1,000 win coach here, multiple titles. Would be interesting to see that timeline.
He wouldn't have had to cheat at UK. The program was in full swing when he left. Perhaps the momentum would keep on.
Is this the first time he has publicly said it? I’ve heard people say he has said that in private, but can’t recall him saying it to the media.
Camelot for a 4 year stint at the Celtics and a string of scandals and embarrassments at the arch-rival of the team you took to the top of the mountain.
Zero sympathy.
Zero sympathy.
Ahh.. the choices we make in life, eh ?
Yeah, that still gets me too. It was a no brainer to stay. And you left. At the penultimate of what was to just BEGIN at Kentucky.
Woulda' coulda shoulda doers will bite you in the ass every time, as my dad used to say.
Look at the bed we sleep in now.
sincerely, the Runt.
Yeah, that still gets me too. It was a no brainer to stay. And you left. At the penultimate of what was to just BEGIN at Kentucky.
Woulda' coulda shoulda doers will bite you in the ass every time, as my dad used to say.
Look at the bed we sleep in now.
sincerely, the Runt.
Piteener will say whatever suits him in the moment. He'll eventually say he should have never left Iona. 🙄
I think if he was still here he would have 3 to 5 titles total.
Winning titles are hard. K won 5 from 91 to 2022.
I'll respect pitino and compare him to K over a similar 30 year run at a blue blood.
People also forget if not for UK in 2012 cheating UL may have won it all.
Winning titles are hard. K won 5 from 91 to 2022.
I'll respect pitino and compare him to K over a similar 30 year run at a blue blood.
People also forget if not for UK in 2012 cheating UL may have won it all.
When he left Kentucky, he had UK in the midst of an overtime loss to Arizona from a 3 peat. Had he not left I believe he would have won multiple national titles, and he would have had a run like Saban had at Alabama. The marriage between Rick and UK was perfect. His style of play fit the team and was attractive to recruits. He definitely would have tarnished Coach K's legacy.
Rick Pitino would have been considered the greatest coach of all time had he never left.
We wouldn’t know know Coach K as we do.
Kentucky would have 5+ more titles since 96.
He would be the all time wins leader
And most importantly this fan base would all be unified and in agreement.
Love him or hate him, he’s one of the best to ever do it. And he would have been THE best had he not let his ego get the best of him.
We wouldn’t know know Coach K as we do.
Kentucky would have 5+ more titles since 96.
He would be the all time wins leader
And most importantly this fan base would all be unified and in agreement.
Love him or hate him, he’s one of the best to ever do it. And he would have been THE best had he not let his ego get the best of him.
I wish he would’ve never left.
I really believe we would have passed UCLA by now.
I really believe we would have passed UCLA by now.
I believe he would have been wildly successful for several more years here. Would probably have hung another banner or two or three.
But...I think his character issues would have gotten him and the program in trouble at some point (probably by 2010) and he and UK would have been facing some serious consequences.
But...I think his character issues would have gotten him and the program in trouble at some point (probably by 2010) and he and UK would have been facing some serious consequences.
Well he MAY have won more titles, or he MAY have gotten caught ordering the late night red snapper and brought down the shame that lil bro endured.
As an older man, I'm sympathetic with the idea of looking back at a turning point where one had complete control over which path life would take -- and choosing badly.
But I have much less sympathy for Pitino because his motivations were greed and ego. He was a man in his mid-40s, certainly old enough to understand that you don't walk away from happiness and that once you have enough money to make your family secure it shouldn't guide your decisions.
He blew it. And I suspect the day he announced he was taking the Celtics' job, deep down he knew it. That has to feel like hell.
But I have much less sympathy for Pitino because his motivations were greed and ego. He was a man in his mid-40s, certainly old enough to understand that you don't walk away from happiness and that once you have enough money to make your family secure it shouldn't guide your decisions.
He blew it. And I suspect the day he announced he was taking the Celtics' job, deep down he knew it. That has to feel like hell.
Last edited:
Many younger guys don’t realize. I’m 38, which is probably the cutoff to really remember the Pitino run. He was every bit the figure coach K was and maybe more especially at that time. Pitino would have Kentucky with somewhere between 3-5 national titles by now. He was a force that most players wanted to play for and he was excellent X’s and O’s. He could have landed just about most he wanted, but liked to find the diamonds he could built the way he wanted to.
Pitino is probably the best coach ever in his prime for college basketball. But he blew it because he made a lot of bad choices, and I knew he overplayed the power of Louisville’s program, and it hurt his image. Louisville is not a big time national brand it’s just that people around Kentucky don’t realize it in state. He really screwed up going there.
As far as a basketball mind with coaching ability and the power of name recognition, Pitino was the best we might ever see.
Pitino is probably the best coach ever in his prime for college basketball. But he blew it because he made a lot of bad choices, and I knew he overplayed the power of Louisville’s program, and it hurt his image. Louisville is not a big time national brand it’s just that people around Kentucky don’t realize it in state. He really screwed up going there.
As far as a basketball mind with coaching ability and the power of name recognition, Pitino was the best we might ever see.
People need to let the Pitino hate go
Respect what Pitino did at UK, but I had to live in Louisville during his time there and it was constant little pot shots at UK. The man couldn’t even bother to do a short video for the 96-98 celebration, but had no issue sending one to ul to honor the 2013 team. I don’t hate the man, but UK has done enough to honor him and the door should be closed for good now.
We’re just a couple years from the 96 team’s 30th anniversary (which is deeply troubling to type out), and I really hope Rick comes back to Rupp for a final standing ovation.
I have a feeling it's actually the opposite.
We're getting closer to the end of his career, and I expect the door will be open if and when that happens.
He's a huge part of the history of Kentucky Basketball. There's no way around it.
You could be right. I don’t deny he is a huge part of the history. Just feel UK has given him many opportunities to be honored and he turns them down.
He's a piece of garbage to be honest. He's trying to make amends now, but he's said, and done, a lot of things over the years to show his true character. It's impossible to say Kentucky would have more championships if he stayed. It's possible, but the man's character would have shown eventually. I respect what he did when he was at Kentucky, but he made the choice to leave and then has crapped on Kentucky, it's program and it's fans every chance he could get since then. I hope to never see him step foot in Rupp again!
It honestly wouldn’t have been fair to the rest of college basketball if Pitino never left.
We would’ve had multiple back to back championship seasons. Possibly a 3peat.
At least one undefeated season.
Many Maui and Phil Knight Invitational Tournament titles.
We have a coach now that can’t even win the SEC 🙄
We would’ve had multiple back to back championship seasons. Possibly a 3peat.
At least one undefeated season.
Many Maui and Phil Knight Invitational Tournament titles.
We have a coach now that can’t even win the SEC 🙄
I couldn’t imagine dealing with Louisville people when he decided to go there. It would have been enough to make you hate him for sure.
For me in Tennessee, people were a little suprised, but Louisville is so overshadowed by UK nationally, they just thought he went to a smaller program in Kentucky to get back in the state.
Im a Pitino guy I can’t help it. Grew up hating Calipari and was firmly camp Pitino, but I get it. I don’t know why the guy didn’t just take Michigan or something and wait for UK to come calling. I will always believe he wanted the job immediately and we said no because our brass was pissed he had one foot out the door the entire tenure and they were sick of it. I think his ego told him he can turn the state red and shove it in their face.
He learned the hard way.
At the time no coach had won the NCAA Championship and an NBA Championship. I think he wanted to be the first and believed he could do it. Who knows, if the draft lottery balls had bounced the right way and he got Tim Duncan he probably would have done it.
We all have made mistakes and I for one wished he had stayed. It was fun watching UK games when he was here. Defense was unbelievable with his teams at UK.
Michigan and UNLV were both open when he chose U6. South Carolina too IIRC.
Yea the smart play would have been to take Michigan / UNLV and wait for a few years. Eventually I think he would have been back at UK and tubby would have called it sooner. Louisville just doesn’t have the name pop nationally and it made him seem smaller of a figure. It’s all ego, the guy didn’t think he needed brand he thought he was the brand.
Louisville is not only not really acknowledged nationally, but they’re totally overshadowed by UK in ways no other in state rival is. This isn’t like Clemson / USC, it’s closer to UT / Memphis. Why he thought it would work for his brand I’ll never know. I mean, Kentucky played games in their arena for the fans of the area to see UK play when he was there. In what world is that a good idea if you’re Pitino?
I still believe Louisville would have fallen off years ago had he not gone there. They’ve kept up because of the Pitino name, but it’s over now. I think they are about to become what they really are, a city college without much bang and back to mid major status.
Pitino in 98 is interesting as McGrady said he would've came here. If you put McGrady on that team, even as a freshman, I think they would have killed it.
Then I believe he would have kept Michael Bradley obviously so the lull in the 99-02 timeframe wouldn't have happened. Likewise, we probably could've gotten a top-notch PG in that era rather than Saul Smith, who blocked some guys from committing.
Then by 02/03, he could've kept the run going, mixing in some of the UL guys that honestly went there just for him. Taquan Dean from Jersey, Francisco Garcia from Connecticut, Otis George from the DR, Tello Palacios from New York. Also maybe Larry O'Bannon, even though he's from Louisville, and Marvin Stone had a decent senior season after transferring from UK to UL.
I'm 45, and missed a lot of golden Kentucky basketball. But I wish our younger fans could've gotten to experience just how much damn fun Kentucky and Pitino were to watch. There's just no way to put into words want it felt like to see that press mixed with that offense, and the cast of players doing it. That friends, is Kentucky basketball.
Not to mention the players he was able to get to Louisville that would have played for him at UK. During that time program power meant so much, there’s definitely players he missed because he didn’t have the UK brand. Who knows.
It's funny since Calipari could've taken Kobe in the 96 draft, but settled/ended up with Kittles, while Pitino could've gotten that first pick in 97 and had Duncan rather than Billups and Mercer. (Also McGrady went just after Mercer in that draft at #9)
Likewise, Cal had a chance to get McGrady, but drafted Tim Thomas at #7 instead and then traded him for the #2 pick, Keith Van Horn)
Just a disaster of a draft for both coaches over those two years.
Fair enough. I can understand that. I was around long before the Pitino days, but I loved him as Kentucky's coach before he left, but with the way he turned out, I just think he was a ticking time bomb.
Similar threads
