Rick Pitino opens up about potential reunion with Chris Mullins on Red Storm staff

Rick Pitino and the St. John’s Red Storm‘s reunion with Chris Mullin seems to be on the table. Pitino would be open to the prospect of having the program legend on the coaching staff.

Mullins represented the Red Storm as a player from 1981 to 1985. He was a three-time Big East Player of the Year and two-time All-American, getting the squad to the Final Four in his final year. He capped off his collegiate career as St. John’s all-time leading scorer with 2,440 points.

After a Hall of Fame career in the NBA from 1985 to 2001, he returned to St. John’s as a head coach. He led the team for four seasons from 2015 to 2019, going 59-73 but reached the First Four of the 2019 NCAA Tournament.

Mullins had praise for Pitino’s efforts in a SiriusXM interview, nicknaming him the Pat Riley of college basketball. The current Red Storm coach reacted to those comments, hoping that Mullins can return to St. John’s since his resignation in 2019.

“I’m not what St. John’s is about, Chris Mullin is what St. John’s is about. He’s the most famous player in the history of the school. He’s someone that everybody looks up to for what he’s accomplished, so he is St. John’s,” Rick Pitino said.

“Chris epitomizes everything that’s great about St. John’s…it just takes a little time to heal some wounds, but as far as I’m concerned my admiration is as high as it can be for Chris, he’s part of our family and he’s the greatest player in St. John’s history.”

What’s next for Rick Pitino, Red Storm

It would be notable for St. John’s to have a reunion with their former head coach and legend Chris Mullin.

The No. 7 Red Storm have a 24-4 overall record, going 15-2 after 17 Big East matchups as they are on a three-game win streak. They average 78.7 points on 44.8% shooting from the field and 30.2% from beyond the arc, beating teams by a solid margin of 13 points per game.

RJ Luis Jr. leads the way for St. John’s with numbers of 17.4 points, 7.1 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.4 steals. Zuby Ejiofor comes next with 14 points and 8.1 rebounds, Kadary Richmond puts up 12.9 points, 5.8 rebounds and 5.1 assists while Deivon Smith provides 9.9 points and 5.1 rebounds.

Following Wednesday’s matchup with the Butler Bulldogs, Rick Pitino and the No. 7 Red Storm will prepare for their next contest against the Seton Hall Pirates at the Carnesecca Arena on March 1 at 2:15 p.m. ET.