NEW YORK (PIX11) -- Finally, St. John's Head Coach Rick Pitino is taking some accountability, saying it is on him for what has gone wrong this year with the Red Storm.
After Sunday’s tirade after a loss to Seton Hall, to rip his players and their toughness, the basketball facilities and saying this season is the most unenjoyable experience he has ever had in coaching is uncalled for.
Pitino and his staff turned over the entire roster, thanks to the transfer portal, aside from Joel Soriano. This is the team that he picked to go to battle with, and he was celebrated for his aggressiveness. St. John's has lost eight of their last ten games, sits in 9th place in the Big East, and is out of the conversation for an at-large bid in the NCAA tournament.
I don't want to hear about the shortcomings of your players.
The 71-year-old was brought here to be an instrument of change, not a complainer or a whiner. He signed a 6-year deal with St. John's worth around $20 million dollars.
Nobody wants to hear that you could not recruit or bring in your style of players or the timing of the hiring a year ago.
Young men signed up with you, Rick, for you to get the best out of them. To make them better basketball players and to play together in a team concept to win. If you have not adjusted your style of coaching to fit your talent level and accentuate their strengths as players for the betterment of the team, that is on you and nobody else. You are being paid to coach basketball and to win games and you are being paid very well to do so.
Let me ask you this: how do you think the Pitino rant on Sunday played for potential St. John's recruits after this season?
I love Pitino, great coach. But he was wrong on Sunday.
The landscape in collegiate athletics has changed, and now it is time for him to adapt, or he will fail at St. John's. The players have more power now than ever before.
Until next time, New York, I'm Marc Malusis.
