The Louisville Cardinals’ college basketball betting odds to win the 2017-18 Men’s NCAA Basketball Championship currently at +2000. It could have been worse, all things considered. In a nutshell, the University of Louisville fired Rick Pitino (who looks uncannily like Richard Lewis, but that’s neither here nor there) for his alleged involvement 2017 NCAA Division I men’s basketball corruption scandal. On the plus side, Pitino, is apparently, hung like Les Grossman. Additionally, Pitino is the only men’s coach in history to lead two different programs to an NCAA Championship (Kentucky and Louisville), as well as the only coach to lead three different schools to a Final Four (Providence, Kentucky, and Louisville).
The indictment also says that former Louisville head coach Rick Pitino not only knew of payments to players, but he was instrumental in directing the payments to the players. https://t.co/4gQFctlse9
— WKYT (@WKYT) November 8, 2017
Moreover, Pitino is one of only four coaches in NCAA history (together with Dean Smith, Mike Krzyzewski, and Jim Boeheim) to take his school to the Final Four in four different decades, one of only three (with Roy Williams, and Jack Gardner) to have led two different schools to at least two Final Fours each, and one of only two coaches (with Williams) to have led two different schools to at least three Final Fours each. Pitino was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame but expected that to be rescinded soon. Regardless of how people who bet on college basketball feel about Pitino as a person, there’s no denying he’s among the greatest basketball coaches. You know, like Kevin Spacey is among the greatest actors. Nonetheless, college basketball betting odds-makers believe the Cards still have good chance, or at least almost as good as they did before all this came down.
The Rickshank Rickdemption?
According to the New York Post, former head coach and current basketball sportscaster Dick Vitale says Pitino is deserving of second chance. “He’s made mistakes, no doubt about it. I’ve made mistakes. I am sure you’ve made mistakes,” Vitale said. You know who has also made mistakes? Kevin Spacey. Doesn’t he deserve a second chance? Head coach of the University of Connecticut Huskies women’s basketball team, Geno Auriemma, would actually give Pitino a second chance, but there’s a caveat. “If I had a job opening? Yes,” Auriemma said. In other words, just like every team in the NFL would hire Colin Kaepernick.
The Cards are currently, as well as interim-ly, helmed by erstwhile assistant coach David Padgett, whom you may not remember from his very brief time with the Miami Heat in 2008, who is as shocked as we are about this turn of events. “There’s [sic] been certain moments that have been stranger than others,” he said. “The first time I was down here in this office, the first time I sat down at the desk in my office on campus, which obviously used to be Coach Pitino’s. Last week, the first time on the sidelines … All just because it’s stuff I’ve never done before. And all of a sudden, it’s just 180 degrees different. But the more time goes on, the more accustomed to it I get.” college basketball betting odds-makers also got accustomed to it soon, with a minor tweak.