If you didn't already want to punch Rick Pitino in the face, you will after reading this column Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski.
Even more despicable than Rick are "his crew of sycophants and enablers – with and without basketball credentials – who accompany him job to job, restaurant bar to restaurant bar."
First, there was the personal assistant, Vinnie Tatum, watching the door for him during his escapade in 2003. That’s one thing. But here’s the story that’s getting too little attention but speaks prominently to Pitino’s world: His assistant equipment manager – a pseudo-make-believe position given to his driver with the Boston Celtics - took a stunning, sobering bullet for his boss. Six months after Pitino’s “indiscretion” with Karen Cunagin, crony Tim Sypher married her.
Maybe Pitino didn’t order it, but he had to think it was a good idea. It would’ve never been allowed otherwise. Pitino must have feared her on the loose, feared the information she possessed. He had to want her quiet, wanted her looked after, and this was the easiest way.
Talk about loyalty. This Syper guy marries his boss' crazy one-night-stand - as a favor. But wait there's more.
This is how it works with Pitino, and this is the reason he’ll never again get offered anything but a lousy NBA job for a lousy franchise. Privately, his employees called him King Leer (as well as “The Aging Prom Queen”) when he was with the Boston Celtics. He had a fiefdom of sham basketball minds and cronies who took over the Celtics and bombarded general manager Chris Wallace daily with insane and ill-informed trade proposals.
Only now, no GM wants Pitino. Why take the chance of him undermining them? Why waste money hiring all his buddies?
Maybe it was Syphers who came up with the 7-year, $22 million dollar contract for Travis Knight?
