Rick Pitino is is officially back to coaching basketball. Pitino has agreed to a deal to coach EuroLeague powerhouse Panathinaikos of Greeces, his agent Drew Rosenhaus told ESPN.
Pitino, a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, is expected to coach his first game on Dec. 27.
Pitino was fired one year ago due to an FBI probe at Louisville, where he won a National Championship. Many expected, at 66, his career would be over at this point.
He will travel to Athens during Christmas to take over an underachieving team.
Panathinaikos has started 6-7 in EuroLeague, leaving the team in 10th place. The owner, Dimitrios Giannakopoulos, has a volcanic reputation in Europe. He was fined 150,000 euros in 2015 for barging into the referee’s room and threatening to kill the officials and their families after a playoff victory over CSKA Moscow.
Naismith Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino is finalizing a deal to become head coach of EuroLeague power Panathinkaikos of Greece, sources told @wojespn pic.twitter.com/NidkxGzHJj
— Sports ON Tap (@SONTHighlights) December 20, 2018
A formal agreement is expected soon, sources told ESPN. Pitino is expected to travel to Athens and coach his first game shortly after Christmas. Pitino's goal has remained to return to the NBA, and this deal's term will be for the rest of the season. https://t.co/vkxwsMK9tS
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) December 20, 2018
Pitino has agreed in principle to deal, per source. He’s expected to coach his first game on Dec 27. https://t.co/syP1vaY22J
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) December 20, 2018