Rick Pitino Turns Heads with Intention to ‘Spank’ His Son originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
St. John’s Red Storm head coach Rick Pitino has already turned the program around since being hired before the 2023-24 college basketball season.
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In his first year, he went 20-13. Last season, he led the Johnnies to a 31-5 record, winning both the Big East regular season and tournament titles. That’s a massive accomplishment considering St. John’s hadn’t won a conference title since 2000.
Now, with the offseason underway and Pitino preparing for Year 3, a new challenge for him is on the horizon. While he has his sights set on reaching a Final Four with St. John’s, he’ll also have to coach against his son every year moving forward. His son, Richard Pitino, was hired this offseason to be the next head coach at Xavier, a program that also competes in the Big East.
St. John’s Red Storm head basketball coach Rick Pitino.© Brad Penner-Imagn Images
Rick was a guest on WFAN Sports Radio and didn’t hold back when discussing the upcoming meetings against Richard.
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“I always joke, and my son hates this joke, but I never, ever spanked any of my children. I’m going to give him a good spanking two times this year,” Rick said.
Fans were quick to share their reactions.
“Rick Pitino jokes his way into Big East family ties father-son rivalry just got spicy,” a fan said.
“Yeah, this is gonna be so damn much fun,” another wrote.
“fatherly rivalry,” added another.
“Lmaoo,” one wrote.
“Richards Roster in year 1 little light…might do that in year 1…,” added a fan.
“A good what?” A fan said.
The Pitinos have coached against each other on four occasions. Rick is 3-1 against his son, with the latest meeting coming back in November when Richard was the coach at New Mexico.
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St. John’s handled New Mexico 85-71 in that one, thanks to RJ Louis’ 21 points and 11 rebounds.
It’s unclear for now when the Pitinos will face off next season, as the schedule hasn’t been released yet.
Related: Rick Pitino Makes Major Life-Changing Announcement on Monday
Related: St. John’s, Rick Pitino Receive Massive Setback on Friday
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 5, 2025, where it first appeared.
