Rick Pitino reveals clear level of interest in Knicks coaching job
Earlier this week, the New York Knicks made the surprising decision to fire head coach Tom Thibodeau after leading the team to the Eastern Conference Finals. Thibodeau took the Knicks to the playoffs in four out of the five seasons that he was with the team, and they made a lot of improvements throughout his tenure. Now, the Knicks are looking for a new head coach, and in case anyone was wondering, it won't be St. John's head coach Rick Pitino.
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Rick Pitino is a New Yorker through and through, and he is one of the best coaches in college basketball. Because of that, there are people wondering if he would be interested in the Knicks' opening. On Wednesday night, Pitino threw out the ceremonial first pitch at the New York Yankees game. He then made an appearance on the broadcast and was asked about the job. Pitino didn't leave the door open at all.
'Absolutely not,' Pitino said when he was asked about the Knicks job.
Before the game, Pitino met with reporters, and he was asked about the surprising decision that the Knicks made. Pitino noted that he feels bad for Tom Thibodeau after everything that he has done for the city of New York.
'I feel bad for Thibs because he captured all of New York, built something very, very special,' he said, according to a post from Knicks Videos. 'A lot of us don't comprehend what happened, but Thibs is going to be well taken care of and he'll move on to other pastures.'
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Pitino is confident that Thibodeau will be able to bounce back after this tough obstacle in his career. After going through some tough obstacles himself, Pitino has landed back on his feet and is back to being one of the best coaches in the game. The St. John's basketball team was one of the best squads in the country last year as the Red Storm went to the NCAA Tournament as a two-seed. They lost in the second round, but Pitino has this team trending in the right direction.
A lot of college coaches who have been in the game for a long time and have experienced a lot of success have NBA aspirations. Coaching professionally is the goal for a lot of guys, but it doesn't sound like Rick Pitino is one of them. He is perfectly content with his job at St. John's, and it feels like big things are in store for the program.
Related: Taj Gibson fires NSFW Tom Thibodeau message after Knicks firing
Related: Knicks' Tom Thibodeau firing sparks surprise in NYC mayoral debate
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