Pitino ready for Panathinaikos return
Rick Pitino has agreed to become the new head coach of Panathinaikos, according to reports.
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The 67-year-old American recently accepted a proposal to become the head coach of the Greek national team for the pre-Olympic competition next summer.
Last year, Pitino moved to Greece for the first time in his career, replacing Xavi Pascual as the Panathinaikos boss. Becoming a fans’ favourite in the process, Pitino steered Panathinaikos to the Greek double and the EuroLeague playoffs, but he left after the season ended citing family reasons.
However, after Panathinaikos sacked Argyris Pedoulakis following an inconsistent start to the EuroLeague campaign, Pitino is now on his way back to Athens to become their head coach for the second time.
Reports have revealed that an announcement from Panathinaikos is expected in the coming hours.
Pitino subsequently confirmed the news by publishing this following post on his official Twitter account:
Pitino will fly back to Greece from the USA in the next few days, before he returns to the Panathinaikos bench for the home match against Baskonia in the EuroLeague which is scheduled to take place on November 28. The length of Pitino’s contract with Panathinaikos has not been stipulated.
According to the media, the legendary American coach initially gave a negative response when asked to return to Panathinaikos, but club supremo Dimitris Giannakopoulos eventually managed to persuade Pitino to become the manager again. Pitino is known to be in excellent relations with Giannakopoulos.
There is no clause in Pitino’s deal with the Hellenic Basketball Federation which would prevent him from working with a club at the same time as coaching the national team.
Panathinaikos currently occupy eighth place of the EuroLeague regular season standings with five victories from nine games. The Prasini claimed a vital win at Zalgiris Kaunas on Tuesday under the temporary leadership of Giorgos Vovoras.
