Rick Pitino Argues There Is ‘No Such Thing As a Blueblood’ in College Basketball Anymore

Pitino’s St. John’s squad just beat the blueblood Kansas to set up a matchup vs. another blueblood in Duke.

Rick Pitino argued that bluebloods in college basketball do not exist anymore. | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Rick Pitino’s St. John’s squad beat the “blueblood” Kansas squad in the round of 32 to set up a matchup vs. another blueblood in Duke on Friday in the Sweet 16.

As a former coach of a blueblood (Kentucky), Pitino understands what the system’s like at one of those basketball schools. Bluebloods have been tough to beat for decades now—but, Pitino believes the era of the bluebloods is over.

During his news conference on Thursday, the Red Storm coach explained how the Cinderella story in March Madness isn’t “dead,” per se, because fans have seen non-blueblood teams rise up in the rankings. His St. John’s squad is one example.

“I’m not concerned about it. I think you will see it again. I think you will see it again,” Pitino said about the narrative of the Cinderella stories being dead. “But I do feel what’s even better than that is the fact the bluebloods no longer control basketball any longer. There’s no difference between Kentucky, North Carolina than Illinois or St. John’s. There’s no difference anymore. There’s no difference between Michigan State, who is a blueblood, to any of the other teams from the conferences, from Mississippi, when they get it going. It’s all going to be the same.

“You’re going to see 40 to 50 teams all the same. There’s no such thing as a blueblood anymore. There’s no difference between North Carolina State and somebody else. Everybody is the same. Everybody is the same in basketball. That’s what’s going to make it a great product.”

Blueblood schools have always dominated men’s college basketball. Whether it’s UCLA with its 11 NCAA championships, Kentucky with eight, UConn and North Carolina with six, Duke with five or Kansas with four, it’s hard to imagine March Madness without a blueblood leading the charge. If we’re counting Michigan State, like Pitino did, then three bluebloods remain in the bracket heading into the Sweet 16. Duke and UConn are two favorites to win this year’s title.

While Pitino’s statement may have some truth to it in regards to there being other commanding teams in the sport right now, it’s hard to believe “there’s no such thing as a blueblood anymore.” That comment will rub some college basketball fans the wrong way.

If Pitino’s St. John’s can defeat Duke on Friday, then it’ll help his case for sure. But, it’ll take years of not seeing the bluebloods win the NCAA title in order for Pitino’s argument to ring true.

Pitino and Coach K revisited the 1992 NCAA tournament game featuring “The Shot” from Christian Laettner

Immediately after St. John’s took down Kansas with a buzzer beater in the round of 32, Pitino saw flashbacks to when his Kentucky team lost to a Duke buzzer beater by Christian Laettner later deemed “The Shot.” That game from 1992 went down as one of the greatest ever played in college basketball history. Pitino is hoping to get revenge on Duke in Friday’s game.

Legendary Blue Devils coach Mike Krzyzewski responded to Pitino’s wish by reminding him it’s been 34 years. In the same breath, Coach K praised Pitino for how he handled the loss in 1992. Pitino gave Krzyzewski his flowers back on Thursday.

“I’ve got grade admiration for the Coach K years as well as Jon Scheyer now doing a tremendous job,” Pitino said. “They epitomize the greatness about college basketball in so many different ways because they've sustained success for so many years. It's been an amazing thing to watch.”

Pitino also admitted he doesn’t dwell on the 1992 loss as much as people think he would. He looks back on that game fondly, surprisingly.

“I treasure that game in so many ways, not the loss, but the way the game was played,” Pitino said. “Give all the credit in the world, I can't escape—Grant Hill has done seven games for me this season.”

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