Texas basketball: Is Rick Pitino a realistic choice to replace Shaka Smart?

Rick Pitino has been mentioned as a candidate for the open Texas basketball job, but could the former Louisville coach really replace Shaka Smart?

Texas basketball has a big decision to make in the near future: Who will take over for Shaka Smart?

The Longhorns need a new head coach, so speculation has been rampant. One name, in particular, stands out more than others.

Just how viable would Rick Pitino be?

The current Iona coach got a mention from CBS Sports’ Kyle Boone in a look at seven names who could succeed Smart.

The reality? There is no way in hell the Longhorns will bring in Pitino.

Texas basketball shouldn’t touch Rick Pitino with a 10-foot pole

It’s easy to see why Texas, or any school in the market for a head coach, would at least ponder Pitino. The man has won two national championships and can coach with the best of them.

In his first season with Iona, Pitino produced a 12-6 record. The Gaels won 66.7 percent of their games, marking their best season since 2016. They made it to the NCAA Tournament and were competitive in a first-round loss to No. 2 seed Alabama.

Winning was never Pitino’s problem. Staying out of trouble and running a clean program was.

Pitino was punished at Louisville because of a sex scandal involving escorts and Cardinal basketball recruits. Louisville had wins from 2010-14 vacated, including their 2013 national championship.

That alone might have made schools second-guess hiring Pitino, but he was fired for cause by Louisville in 2017 after the FBI’s bribery investigation stunned college basketball. The Cardinals were accused of paying five-star prospect Brian Bowen $100,000 to join the program.

Texas would be crazy to align themselves with a coach who has been the subject of multiple NCAA investigations. That’s not even mentioning the scandals in Pitino’s personal life.

Pitino is just too much of a risk to take a chance on.

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