PITINO ADDRESSES MEDIA ON PLAYER TURNOVER

August 18, 2006


Is it a sign of the times? Or is Rick Pitino different now than at Kentucky? In his 8-yr tenure as head coach of the Wildcats, Pitino only had four players he recruited leave the program. he also had 11 NBA draft picks (including 9 in the first round). Although he has yet to completely put his stamp on the Louisville program, something has been different, he has seen 16 players leave the program in his 5+ years on the job. Although many were holdovers from a Denny Crum-era that had taken a step-back in recent years, it is somehwta alarming to know that Lorrenzo Wade, Bryan Harvey, Chad Millard and Brian Johnson, the four Cards who have departed over the last 17 months. That's four guys in 17 months compared with four guys -- Carlos Toomer, Aminu Timberlake, Rod Rhodes and Oliver Simmons -- in eight seasons at UK. The turnover might have Pitino thinking a little differently on the recruiting front and realizing that UL Needs to Sign Ability and Stability (Louisville Courier-Journal). As Louisville prepares for an upcoming Canadian trip over Labor Day, Pitino Addresses Pressing Recruiting Issue (Courier-Journal). Pitino also plans to us the Trip to Canada to Look at the Rookie Quartet (Lexington Herald-Leader) which Pitino believes is his best group since coming to UL.