By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Coaching legend Rick Pitino is going to replace Xavi Pascual in Panathinaikos, according to Adrian Wojnarowski.
There’s no confirmation yet from the club, however, Pitino will arrive in Athens after Christmas and he is expected to make his debut with his new team in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague against CSKA Moscow.
Pitino has been the head coach of several teams in NCAA Division I and in the NBA, including Boston University (1978–1983), Providence College (1985–1987), the New York Knicks (1987–1989), the University of Kentucky (1989–1997), the Boston Celtics (1997–2001) and the University of Louisville (2001–2017). Pitino led Kentucky to the NCAA championship in 1996 and Louisville in 2013, although the latter was vacated by the NCAA.
He is the only coach to lead three different schools (Providence, Kentucky, and Louisville) to a Final Four. Pitino is also one of only four coaches in NCAA history (along with Dean Smith, Mike Krzyzewski and Jim Boeheim) to take his school to the Final Four in four separate decades, one of only three coaches (along with Roy Williams and Jack Gardner) to have led two different programs to at least two Final Fours each, and one of only two coaches (along with Williams) to have led two different programs to at least three Final Fours each. In 2013, Pitino was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
However, in September 2017, federal prosecutors in New York announced that Louisville was under investigation for an alleged “pay for play” involving recruits at Louisville. The allegations state that an Adidas executive conspired to pay $100,000 to the family of a top-ranked national recruit to play at Louisville and to represent Adidas when he turned pro.
The criminal complaint does not name Louisville specifically but appears to involve the recruitment of Brian Bowen, a late, surprise commit to the school. Pitino and athletic director Tom Jurich were placed on administrative leave and the University of Louisville Athletic Association (ULAA) terminated his contract on October 16, 2017.
Since then Pitino was in contact with NBA teams for a chance to return to the league, but ultimately he decided to join a European powerhouse. Panathinaikos has won six EuroLeague titles since 1996.