Rick Pitino

He married Joanne Minardi in 1976. They had six children, of whom one died as a child. The couple established the Daniel Pitino Foundation in his memory through which they raised millions of dollars for children in need.

He lost his best friend and brother-in-law Billy Minardi in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.

He was born and brought up in New York. He loved playing basketball from a young age and was the captain of his school basketball team at St. Dominic High School.

He went to the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 1970 and played as a standout guard for the Minutemen basketball team. He led his team in assists both as a junior and senior. He graduated from the university in 1974.

After college he took up a job as a graduate assistant at the University of Hawaii in 1974. Within a year he moved up to become a full-time assistant, eventually serving as Hawaii’s interim head coach during the 1975-76 season.

He was hired as the head coach by Boston University in 1978. Prior to his arrival the team was performing very miserably. He helped to change the team’s fortunes for the better and led them to their first NCAA appearance in 24 years.

After leaving Boston he became an assistant coach with the New York Knicks under Hubie Brown for the seasons 1983-85. In 1985, he became the head coach at Providence College whose team was not performing well. Within two years he led them to the Final Four.

In 1989, he was selected to be the coach at Kentucky. At the time of his joining the team was reeling under the after-effects of a scandal involving their former coach Eddie Sutton.

Pitino worked hard to earn back the team’s reputation and led them to the Final Four in the 1993 NCAA Tournament. He also helped the team win a national title in the 1996 NCAA Tournament.

One of the most successful coaches in the history of American basketball, he is the only coach in NCAA history to lead three different teams to the NCAA Final Four.