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Younger Pitino goes his own way

MahxFahn

Gator Fan
The meeting between father and son took place in April, shortly after former Florida assistant Shaka Smart had left to become the head coach at Virginia Commonwealth.

“The toughest conversation I’ve ever had with any coach, now my son,” Louisville coach Rick Pitino said. “I told him, you know, you’ve done an unbelievable job for me ... but I told him you have the opportunity to work under someone I love, somebody that’s going to teach you an awful lot, great place, and you can do your own thing.”

A few months later, sitting in his new office at the Florida basketball facility, new UF assistant basketball coach Richard Pitino chuckled when relayed the story.

“Yeah, he likes to make it sound like it was his decision,” the younger Pitino said, then added with emphasis. “I decided to leave.”

The comment was made not to disrespect his father, the only coach in college basketball history to lead three different programs to the Final Four. It was just meant to signify that, though grateful for the opportunities that his dad gave him, the 26-year-old Pitino is his own man with his own vision.

“It was hard because that was probably the first time in my life I had to make a life-changing decision like that,” he said. “Every other move I had made was kind of stepping up and it was a no-brainer. But everyone kind of told me the same thing, do what’s right for you in your career. And I thought it was right for me to get out and learn under another guy.”

The elder Pitino said it was hard to let his son go because he considers him “one of the best young recruiters in the game.” For a Florida program that’s had its share of recruiting misses since its hallowed 2004 class, the younger Pitino’s arrival is a welcome addition.
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