There is not much more for Rick Pitino to accomplish in college basketball. He has the individual honors, he has the National Championships, but now he has a new goal in mind – 1,000 career wins.
Pitino got to the 900-win plateau last week against Xavier and now he eyes surpassing Roy Williams for third place on the NCAA Division I all-time wins list. Again, he could reach the feat against his son, Richard, and the Musketeers as long as the Red Storm win its next three games.
“Getting 900 [wins] is a nice thing, certainly, but getting 1,000 would be a lot better,” Pitino said on Wednesday after his team beat Butler and the school honored him with a framed jersey celebrating the achievement before tipoff.
It was the second time that the Hall of Famer mentioned getting to 1,000 wins within the week, also bringing it up during his postgame interview with TNT Sports after he reached the milestone.
He explained after the victory against Xavier that he never previously thought of individual wins but rather chased conference championships, Final Fours, and National Championships.
“It’s been a long journey,” Pitino added. “That means I’ve got to be blessed with good health, good players, and just keep recruiting. The better you recruit, the better coach I am.”
Sadiku Ibine Ayo, who has been with Rick Pitino for 94 wins that span his career at Iona and St. John’s doesn’t see him slowing down anytime soon.
“The one thing about coach is, he moves like he’s still young,” Ibine Ayo said. “He works out every single morning. He works out after practice, before practice, after [individual workouts]. That keeps him going.”
Had Pitino not left Kentucky for the NBA after spending time at Boston University, Providence, and Kentucky, he’d likely be pushing, or already have surpassed, Mike Krzyzewsi for the most on-court wins in NCAA men’s basketball history.
He’d also be near the top of the leaderboard had he not been exiled from college basketball until 2020 following the Louisville scandal in 2017.
“He just loves the game so much that I believe that he can still go,” Ibine Ayo continued.
St. John’s will hope that the eventual 1,000th win for Rick Pitino comes in red and white with more championships sprinkled throughout the remaining years of his career.