Rick Pitino (born September 18, 1952 in New York City) is a basketball coach with experience in NBA and NCAA basketball leagues. He is currently head coach at University of Louisville but is also known for his coaching career at Boston University, Providence College, the University of Kentucky, the New York Knicks, and the Boston Celtics. Pitino started his coaching career as a graduate assistant at the University of Hawai‘i in 1974, and became a full-time assistant in 1975 and 1976.

He made the Final Four with Providence in 1987; the point guard on that team, Billy Donovan, is now a prominent college coach. In 1989, he left for Kentucky, which was then reeling from a major recruiting scandal. In 1992, he brought the Wildcats to the brink of the Final Four, losing to Duke in an overtime classic often regarded as the greatest college basketball game ever. He made the Final Four with Kentucky the following year, won a national title with UK in 1996, and lost to Arizona in overtime in the NCAA finals in 1997.

He is the author of a motivational self-help book (and audio recording) named Success is a Choice. He published an autobiography in 1988 entitled Born to Coach describing his life until his time with the Knicks.

Pitino, a native of New York City, was a notable captain of his high school basketball team on Long Island. He entered the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 1970, where he joined Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity. He was a standout guard and captain of the UMass basketball team, and an inductee into the UMass Hall of Fame.

In 2005, Pitino became the first coach in NCAA history to lead three separate schools (Providence, Kentucky, Louisville) to the Final Four.

External links

• Rick Pitino's bio at Official Collegiate Sports Network