MILWAUKEE — Rick Pitino wanted to set the record straight about his son Richard and his succession plans, which he talked about after Tuesday’s win over DePaul.
“I’m kidding,” he said.
Asked about DePaul’s appointment and rumors that Richard, currently the head coach of No. 25 New Mexico, could take the job, Pitino said he plans to remain with the Lobos and eventually join St. John’s. He said he would like his successor to take over. But it was all a joke.
“I, [text message group chat] I went with my whole family and two other people, and we were all joking about it,” Pitino said.
Richard, 41, is having a great year in New Mexico.
The Lobos are a team scheduled to play in the NCAA Tournament.
New Mexico State won 22 games and reached the NIT last year in Richard’s third season as head coach.
He previously served as head coach at Minnesota for eight seasons and worked for his father at Louisville from 2007-2009 and 2011-12.
“Richard is one of the smartest players in the game today. He’s a great coach and a great communicator,” said the older Pitino.
Coach Pitino hopes to make one change starting Saturday. That means reducing Chris Ledlum’s playing time and increasing Zuby Ejiofor’s playing time.
Pitino feels Ledrum tires late in the game and wants to shorten it to 25 minutes.
He is averaging 28.9 points on the season and has scored at least 30 points in six of the team’s 11 Big East contests. That means RJ Lewis and Driessa Traore will get more playing time.
Ejiofor, Joel Soriano’s backup, has improved as the year has gone on, especially defensively.
“We have to let Zuby play anywhere from 12 to 16 minutes per game, especially since Joel hasn’t played as dominantly as he did earlier this year,” Pitino said. “It’s time to do it.”
The plan is to develop Ejiofor into a big man who can play both center and power forward during the offseason.
But his ball-handling, overall offensive skill set and comfort level in a four-man game aren’t quite there yet. That’s why Pitino isn’t trying to play him and Soriano together.
