Photograph courtesy Xavier University
Richard Pitino became the 21st men’s basketball coach in Xavier University history in March, replacing Sean Miller, who left for Texas. Pitino comes to the Musketeers after four seasons as head coach at New Mexico, eight at Minnesota, and one at Florida International. His teams are 247–186 and have been to four NCAA Tournaments and two National Invitation Tournaments. Xavier’s regular season tips off November 3 at home against Marist University, the first of eight nonconference games this month.
What interested you in Xavier?
I felt like the Big East was in a real position of strength because they don’t have to share with football. I also [was interested] in maybe something a little closer to the east because my family and my wife’s family are all in New York, Boston, Florida. With my kids growing up, I kind of had my antenna up. I never wanted to be at a job where I was the only one trying to do what we all want to do. There is an infrastructure in place [at Xavier] that I believed could help me compete, get into the NCAA Tournament, compete for championships, and it seemed like when I met with [Vice President for Institutional Strategy and Director of Athletics] Greg [Christopher], it just felt right.
Describe your coaching philosophy.
It is my job to be very clear to everybody about where we want to go and how we’re going to get there and then let the people I’ve hired implement that plan. Offensively, we like to play fast; we’re not trying to walk the ball up the court. Defensively, we’re trying to disrupt [and] rebound the basketball.
You have 12 scholarship players who have never played a minute at Xavier, and because of graduations and transfers you had to essentially build an entire roster from scratch (one player returned who redshirted and practiced last year but didn’t play). What should fans expect this season?
Honestly, I have no idea. You do your very best to try to create as much adversity as you possibly can throughout the course of practices and the weight room and so on, but it all changes once the season starts. It’s very hard to simulate playing at UConn, at Villanova, at Iowa [November 14] in the nonconference, the Crosstown Shootout [December 5], and all those things. You really don’t know until you go through the war together, so we’ll see. We will be as prepared as we can possibly be and see who handles it well.
What would fans be surprised to learn about you?
I think the natural thing is always the obsession with me and my dad [Rick Pitino, known for head coaching roles at Kentucky, Louisville, and the Boston Celtics, who currently coaches in the Big East at St. John’s]. I would say we’re very, very different because we’re 30 years apart. [Laughs] The thing people will get to know is that I’ve got a pretty good sense of humor. Whether it’s in practice or even in games and press conferences, I’ve got a pretty good ability to subtly throw in some fun one-liners to lighten the mood during a stressful situation.
Let’s talk a little more about you and have some fun. Early morning person or a night owl?
Extremely early riser. I have three little kids. It’s chaos in the morning, and then obviously when you get to work it’s even more chaos. So I probably get up around 5 a.m. and from about 5 until 6:30, I’m having my coffee. I’m kind of starting the day with a little peace and quiet.
Coffee or tea?
Love coffee. Used to be a one-a-day guy; I’m now a two-a-day guy.
Beaches or mountains?
Mountains, because I don’t like to be extremely hot, and normally if you’re around mountains, it’s a little bit cooler climate. I hate being in sweltering heat.
Dog or cats?
I do not like cats. I’m a big dog guy.
Favorite food?
Steak.
Favorite TV show or series?
Sopranos, Breaking Bad, and The Wire would probably be my top three.
Favorite band?
Dave Matthews Band.
Favorite movie?
Godfather II.
Game-day superstitions or rituals?
I try very hard not to be superstitious, because I know it really doesn’t matter. But the last couple of years at New Mexico, we had a very superstitious staff and they kind of rubbed off on me. Those days are long, and if I can get a really long walk—four to five miles—outside to get some fresh air, I’m going to try very hard to do that. I love to get some fresh air on game day.
First impressions of Cincinnati?
It’s great. I’ve always been in love with cities, but I don’t love massive hard-to-get-around cities. I like smaller cities. If you want to go downtown [here] you can do that. If you want to go over to Covington just for a different feel, you can do that. If I have a free morning on the weekend, we’re going to Findlay Market. If I can go in the summertime to a Reds game with my son, I’m going to do it, or a Bengals game in the fall. We’ve tried a lot of the restaurants, and I’ve absolutely loved it all.
I’m obligated to ask the Skyline question. Have you tried it?
Yes, I have, and I loved it. I took my son the first week we were here. I don’t know if my metabolism can take too much of it on a weekly basis [while] trying to fit in my game-day attire, but I have absolutely loved it.
If you weren’t coaching, what do you think you’d be doing?
I’d probably be teaching. I’ve always wanted to be around people in their formative years in their life. Certainly [at Xavier] we want to win at a high level but just teaching [players] about values and about being a good person and being a good member of the community and being a good husband and being a good father…sharing whatever little past experiences that I’ve had that I’ve learned from has certainly been my passion.
Did you have a sports hero growing up?
I really like Derek Jeter. I’m a Yankees fan. Obviously, he won, but the way that he won and the way he handled himself on a daily basis was about as good of a guy to kind of model and look up to growing up.
Do you have a hype song that you would want playing in the locker room before a game?
No. I try to stay out of the locker room and let that be my players’ space. This is year 14 for me, and I would say my pregame speeches become shorter and shorter, giving them an opportunity to blast their music. I think that’s more beneficial than me rambling on and on.
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