Tuesday’s announcement comes 11 years after Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino guided the Cardinals to a national championship (later vacated) in 2013. It has also been about six and a half years after the now-St. John’s leader was fired from Louisville after being implicated in a federal probe into recruiting bribes.
The older Pitino was fired after serving a five-game ban at the start of the 2017-18 season as a result of the program’s escort sex scandal.
The Cardinals are playing a dangerous game by considering hiring another Pitino, who was one of his father’s coaches from 2007-09 and the team’s associate head coach from 2011-12.
Since the 71-year-old’s departure, Louisville has struggled, making the NCAA Tournament only once in the last seven seasons.
Kenny Payne was sacked after two seasons with the Cardinals, with a 12-52 record.
Rick Pitino left Louisville to coach in the EuroLeague from 2018-20, then at Iona from 2020-23, where he led the team to two NCAA Tournament berths. He
Despite his father’s tumultuous history, the Cardinals are open to the possibility of bringing in the younger Pitino to help the school win again.
Richard, the 2016-17 Big Ten Coach of the Year at Minnesota, has led New Mexico to a 61-41 record in his three seasons with the Lobos. The squad improved each season under the 41-year-old’s leadership, going 13-19 and 22-12 until finishing 26-10 in 2023-24.
New Mexico won the Mountain West Conference Tournament earlier this month, advancing to their first NCAA Tournament in ten years.
The 11th-seeded Lobos lost to the sixth-seeded Clemson Tigers in the first round on Friday.
According to Jody Demling of 247Sports, Louisville athletic director Josh Heird has “been in contact”
