Kentucky
Rick Pitino says he has donated to Kentucky football’s NIL, would do the same for Mark Pope and basketball
For close to two decades, Rick Pitino was a villain to Kentucky basketball fans, a man whose life and career had an almost Shakespearean arc.
After leading the Wildcats from the depths of scandal to championship glory, and after an ill-fated three-year run with the Boston Celtics, Pitino stunned many nationally and angered hundreds of thousands across the commonwealth by returning to the college game to coach archrival Louisville.
Nearly 25 years after being hired at Louisville, Pitino appears eager to mend fences with Big Blue Nation — and offer them up some money, too.
REQUIRED READING: Kentucky basketball, Mark Pope will put ‘aggressive’ offense on display — and plenty of 3s
In an appearance Thursday on Kentucky Sports Radio — which was being hosted that day by the hosts of the popular podcast “Pardon My Take” — the legendary coach, now at St. John’s, said he has donated money to Kentucky football’s NIL initiatives and would happily do the same for Mark Pope and the Wildcats’ basketball program as his former player heads into his first season as Kentucky’s coach.
“Well, I actually cut a check to the football program because I’m a casual friend of Mark (Stoops) and Eddie Gran,” Pitino said. “I cut a check to the football program. I would definitely cut a check if Mark (Pope) needs me for anything no matter what it is — except for my first-born, Michael — he can have it.”
The connections to Kentucky extend beyond the basketball and football programs, as Pitino noted later in the interview that he sent a text message to Wildcats baseball coach Nick Mingione, who guided the program to its first-ever College World Series this year, wishing him good luck.
While his relationship with Stoops — whose Kentucky tenure overlapped with Pitino’s stint at Louisville for four years — wasn’t widely known, Pitino’s connections to Pope have been well-established.
He coached Pope from 1993-96, an accomplished run that included a national championship in 1996 with one of the most dominant, star-studded teams in college basketball history. Pitino gave his former center a full-throated endorsement when Pope was named as John Calipari’s successor in April, helping assuage what had been intense public angst over the hiring to that point. At that time, Pitino added that he would donate NIL funds to the program if they needed it.
“I absolutely love Mark (Pope) and would do anything for his program,” Pitino said Thursday. “I always called the University of Kentucky Camelot for me. Never had a bad year, never had a bad day. They treated me like a king.”
REQUIRED READING: Antonio Reeves rounds out Kentucky’s 2024 NBA Draft class; Justin Edwards signs with 76ers
Though Pitino, even during his time at Louisville, has long referred to Kentucky as “Camelot,” he has been much more vocal in recent months about his reverence for the program and his fond memories from his eight seasons in Lexington, from 1989-97.
In a March interview on “Pardon My Take,” Pitino expressed regret for leaving Kentucky in 1997 to become the Celtics’ head coach and president.
“Dick Vitale, every time I speak to him, ‘If you would have stayed at Kentucky, you’d have more wins than any coach,’” Pitino said. “And you think back on that.”
Pitino contrasted his treatment at Kentucky with Louisville, where he coached from 2001-17 and led the Cardinals to their third national championship, but where he was fired from in 2017 after the program was connected to the FBI investigation into corruption in college basketball.
In 2023, Pitino was exonerated by the NCAA’s Independent Accountability Resolution Process, which didn’t directly link him to any of the violations that came with the Cardinals’ recruitment of former five-star prospect Brian Bowen. Still, Pitino said he would only possibly consider returning to Louisville for any kind of banner-raising or ceremony if the university reconciles with former athletic director Tom Jurich, who was also fired in October 2017 in the wake of the FBI probe.
“They treated me with great respect,” Pitino said Thursday of Kentucky. “Obviously, I didn’t get treated great when I was at Louisville, but sitting back on it and examining it today, I totally understand why. So I am very, very fond of the University of Kentucky.”
Power forward has been one of the positions that Mark Pope and the Kentucky Wildcats have to fill with Andrija Jelavic and Mo Dioubate gone. The two players that Pope has had on campus at the power forward position are Syracuse’s Donnie Freeman and Colorado’s Sebastian Rancik. Both are really good players, but Freeman is better by a wide margin.
It has felt that entire time that Kentucky wanted Rancik as the backup to Freeman or a backup plan if they weren’t able to land Freeman. Well, Rancik just picked Florida State, so perhaps this is a sign that the Wildcats will land Freeman.
Big Blue Nation was torn on Rancik, but I do believe he would have been a really solid backup power forward. I personally didn’t want him to be the starting four for this team. It is clear that he wanted to go somewhere where he could be the guy at the four, so he will be heading to the ACC to play for FSU.
Now that Kentucky has missed on Rancik, it is very important that the Wildcats land Freeman soon. The problem with waiting on some of these players is the fact that the portal isn’t slowing down. If Pope targets two power forwards and misses on both of them, most of the good fours in the portal will be gone.
There will be some panic in Lexington if the Wildcats are not able to land Freeman, but I do believe the Wildcats are in a good spot to land the elite power forward. From the beginning, Freeman has been my top player for Kentucky in the portal, as he, plus Malachi Moreno, will give the Wildcats an elite frontcourt.
If Pope is able to land Freeman and Tyran Stokes to pair with Zoom Diallo, Alex Wilkins, Moreno, and Kam Williams, this could be the start of a really good team in Lexington. Hopefully, an announcement for where Freeman will transfer comes soon, and hopefully, this will be to play for Pope at Kentucky.
Fans of rival teams will say Pope “whiffed” on Rancik, but if this whiff was because the Wildcats are set to land Freeman soon, then it was more than worth it for Kentucky. If the Wildcats are able to land Freeman, it will officially be time for Big Blue Nation to start getting excited about the 2026-27 season. I expect a decision from Freeman to come within the next day or two.
Rancik would have been a solid backup four in Lexington but Freeman has been the guy from the beggining for this staff so if Kentucky lands him all is well. If the staff misses on Freeman not landing Rancik will look bad.
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Kentucky
Kentucky is poised to land either Donnie Freeman or Sebastian Rancik this weekend, per report
Jones posted on Twitter that “Kentucky will have (absent a major change) either Freeman or Rancik by tomorrow,” while also noting the Wildcats still need to add another shooter and another big to round out the roster.
One of the top targets is Donnie Freeman, a 6-foot-9, 205-pound sophomore forward transferring from Syracuse. Freeman arrived in Lexington on Tuesday night and began his visit on Wednesday before leaving without a commitment. While there was concern he could land at UConn, that visit has since been canceled, leaving Kentucky and St. John’s as the top teams.
Freeman averaged 16.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game last season, while adding nearly a block and a steal per contest. He shot 47.4% from the field but 30.2% from 3-point range across 23 games.
The other option is Sebastian Rancik, a 6-foot-11, 220-pound sophomore forward transferring from Colorado. Rancik visited Kentucky starting Wednesday through Thursday and brings a versatile skill set, averaging 12.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2 assists per game while shooting 33.1% from 3.
Either Freeman or Rancik would provide a significant boost at the power forward position for head coach Mark Pope. Kentucky has already added guards Zoom Diallo and Alex Wilkins in the portal.
Kentucky football coach Will Stein reflects on new position
Will Stein was officially introduced to fans and media as the head coach for the Kentucky Wildcats, replacing Mark Stoops.
LEXINGTON — Kentucky football had its first spring game under new coach Will Stein at Kroger Field on Saturday.
The offense, in blue jerseys, had its moments. So too the defense, donning white uniforms.
Ultimately, the blue squad earned a 23-18 victory in a game called just after noon because of inclement weather.
Stein admitted he “got emotional” as he charged onto the field prior to kickoff.
“I know it wasn’t a real game, but when I ran on the field, I definitely — man, I felt it,” he said. “It was like a wave running over me. And very, very, just cool.”
While it doesn’t count in the standings, Stein walked away pleased.
“I think we got a lot of really good work,” he said. “That’s the goal of spring is to improve with fundamentals and technique, learn how to practice, learn what winning edges that we need throughout spring to go into summer and fall and prepare the team for play. And we came out of the scrimmage clean. There (were) no injuries, which to me, that’s the biggest win of the day. I could (not) care less about the score.
“If we come out clean, that’s good. The Wildcats won.”
New starting QB Kenny Minchey looked about as expected, with sharp passes evened out by moments of inconsistency. Martels Carter Jr., a defensive back who is lining up at running back this spring, scored a touchdown and had several nice runs.
And the defense forced multiple three-and-outs and also picked off one Minchey pass on a two-point conversion.
This story will be updated.
Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on X at @RyanABlack.
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