Pitino went 102-146 in three-and-a-half seasons, a tough outcome for someone who once wrote a book titled, “Success is a Choice.”
Rick Pitino coaching the Celtics in Dec. 2000. AP Photo/Mark Lennihan
March 19, 2026 | 2:06 PM
2 minutes to read
(Alongside Boston.com’s March Madness-themed bracket of the best soundbites in Boston sports history, we’re taking a deeper look at the background behind some of this year’s entries in the field of 16).
When Rick Pitino ranted for nearly a minute-and-a-half during a postgame press conference on March 1, 2000 about Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish not “walking through that door” to rescue his struggling Celtics team, he did more than deliver a soundbite for all time.
In his lengthy soliloquy, he circumvented any blame for the team’s problems, showed off his Boston sports bona fides, and — lets admit it — offered an accurate assessment of the Boston sports fan and media mindset at the time. Heck, he practically predicted the rise of Michael Felger.
The Bird-McHale-Parish stuff is the gold, but there are some other memorable elements in his rant. Let’s break down the full quote:
“Larry Bird is not walking through that door, fans. Kevin McHale is not walking through that door, and Robert Parish is not walking through that door. And if you expect them to walk the door, they’re gonna be gray and old.” All true. What is left unsaid is that if they did walk through that door, Pitino probably would have traded them for five marginal NBA players who had played for him at Kentucky.
“I wish we had 90 million under the salary cap. We wish we could buy the world. We can’t.” This is where we must note that in 1997, Pitino — who took Red Auerbach’s team president title for himself and had full control over the roster — renounced the rights to nine players, including reliable forward Rick Fox. This was done in order to sign Lakers backup big man Travis Knight to a 7-year, $22 million contract. It was a huge deal at the time, especially for a player who had averaged 4.8 points per game the previous season. Pitino the impatient personnel guy undermined Pitino the coach over and over again.
“All the negativity that’s in this town sucks. I’ve been around when Jim Rice was booed. I’ve been around when [Carl] Yastrzemski was booed. And it stinks. It makes the greatest city in the world lousy.” You know, he’s not wrong, though we can’t go so far as to say there are no lies told here. There’s no way Pitino — the current St. John’s coach who showed up at Madison Square Garden to root for the Knicks in last year’s playoff series with the Celtics — thinks of Boston as the greatest city in the world.
“We’re going to stay positive all the way through, and if you think I’m gonna succumb to negativity, you’re wrong. You’ve got the wrong guy leading this basketball team.” – Well, he was right about that last part. Pitino resigned as Celtics coach on January 8, 2001. He went 102-146 in three-and-a-half seasons, a tough outcome for someone who once wrote a book titled, “Success is a Choice.”
This rant — and drafting Paul Pierce — is the entirety of his Celtics legacy.
Chad FinnSports columnist
Chad Finn is a sports columnist for Boston.com. He has been voted Favorite Sports Writer in Boston in the annual Channel Media Market and Research Poll for the past four years. He also writes a weekly sports media column for the Globe and contributes to Globe Magazine.
Sign up for the Today newsletter
Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning.