Top 25 Rick Pitino Quotes

It could happen to anyone when you get hired by a different president. There’s a difference in philosophies. It happens. It’s a change in CEOs. They have their own people, their own philosophies, and it’s different than what Bob stands for.

I’m at the stage of my career when it’s not only about winning and developing players, it’s about having fun. That’s a void in your life right now, but it’s something you’re going to have here.

I never thought that shoes would be the reason that you recruit players, but it’s a factor. I think we need to get the shoe companies out of the lives of the athletes. I think we need to get it back to where parents and coaches have more of a say than peripheral people, but that’s easier said than done.

I’d learned how much happiness money can bring you. Very little.

I can say that hands down from being in this business 32 years; we’re going to be much better than we were last year just because there’s eight new players that now have experience and Palacios will be healthy.

He knew I enjoyed the relationships of college basketball. All along, he was the wise one.

What I’ve found in my life with our children is that often you can give them advice and tell them to eat the right things, stay in shape and wear sunscreen, and they don’t really want to listen. But then they hear it from someone else, and they do listen.

Excellence is the unlimited ability to improve the quality of what you have to offer.

I try not to get too low. I fight adversity as hard as I can fight it, not to get too low. When good things happen, I don’t really embrace it. I just say it’s a lucky day.

If I didn’t have a recruiting engagement, I was going to be here. I did everything possible to change the recruiting thing. I’m a very small part of this night, but I did want to be a part of it.

Tackle the difficult things first in the morning; make changes in the way you network. Treat everyone with respect and dignity. This stops you from cynicism and negativity. End your day with that same attitude you started. Renew your contract with a day well completed.

Francisco Garcia could have been a high draft choice last year, probably in the 20s. He’s the best wing player I’ve ever coached. But he’s done it the right way. He knew he had to work on his body to become a good pro. When he goes into the pros, he’ll be physically ready.

I think I do regret leaving Kentucky because I took over a team with 15 wins banking everything on the Tim Duncan lottery, and once we didn’t get Tim Duncan, I realized that leaving Kentucky was not a good move.

Basketball has consumed me since the age of 7 or 8. I don’t know what I would do without it.

I don’t get into these petty things, Kentucky-Louisville. To me, it’s nonsense… There will be people at Kentucky that will have a nervous breakdown if they lose to us… They’ve got to put the fences up on bridges. There will be people consumed by Louisville.

When you coach Russ Smith, you have a nervous breakdown on every possession. He’s not from a different country. He’s from a different planet.

Failure is good. It’s fertilizer. Everything I’ve learned about coaching, I’ve learned from making mistakes.

The one thing I’ve always said: Let your family and close friends be the judge of who you are as a person. Don’t worry about being judged by others who don’t know you, because your family and close friends know what you’re all about, good and bad.

I’d tell any coach not to move for money… Stay at your job if you’re really happy.

Basketball is my passion, and I love it, and I love to see my players succeed. I’m here for them and my children. That’s my passion.

I loved going to the Knicks because we won the Atlantic Division championship. We went from winning 21 games or 19 games to winning 52 games in a short period of time. I loved coaching Patrick Ewing and Charles Oakley and all those guys.

Technology is a compulsive and addictive way to live. Verbal communication cannot be lost because of a lack of skill. The ability to listen and learn is key to mastering the art of communication. If you don’t use your verbal skills and networking, it will disappear rapidly. Use technology wisely.

The only way to get people to like working hard is to motivate them. Today, people must understand why they’re working hard. Every individual in an organization is motivated by something different.

Passion and hunger are the two ingredients that I look for in first making the judgment on – whether an athlete, an assistant coach, or a horse trainer or anybody I do business with.

After September 11, I don’t think people really believe things like this are all that important.