"You can’t replace them with high school kids": Rick Pitino gives a clear update on high school recruiting in NIL era

Rick Pitino is known by many for his history as one of the most successful college basketball coaches of all time. However, the NIL era has been a challenge for him and the St. John's Red Storm.

Pitino reflected on the current state of high school recruiting in the state of New York after the Red Storm beat the then-No. 24 Creighton Blue Jays on Sunday. He named the players they already recruited but noted others they lost due to the ongoing issue of NIL.

“Well, we’re not recruiting any high school basketball players, not this year. We’ve already recruited Ruben [Prey], Lefty [Liotopoulos], Khaman [Maker]. We’re building from that," Pitino said.

This year we’re not even looking at high school basketball plan because we’re losing Deivon [Smith], Kadary [Richmond] and Aaron [Scott]. You can’t replace them with high school kids."

What's next for Rick Pitino and St. John's Red Storm

Despite the recruiting issues in the NIL era, Rick Pitino has been successful in his time with the St. John's Red Storm so far.

St. John's boasts a 22-4 overall record, winning 13 out of 15 Big East matchups. Their winning rhythm has garnered a positive reception from AP voters as well.

The Associated Press revealed the new rankings on Monday, showing the Red Storm at the 10th spot. They were No. 9 last week, going down by one spot. Currently, they are below the likes of Iowa State and Texas Tech while being above Wisconsin and Michigan.

The Red Storm ideally produce 78.2 points on 44.7% shooting from the field and 29.3% from beyond the arc, beating opponents by a margin of 12.8 points per game. Their rebounding and playmaking are notable, grabbing 41 rebounds and creating 15.7 assists in the process.

Notably, RJ Luis Jr. leads contributions with 17.6 points and 7.2 rebounds on shooting splits of 44.5% overall and 26.6% from downtown. Similarly, Zuby Ejiofor is their next-best talent with 13.9 points and eight rebounds, while Kadary Richmond chips in with 12.6 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 5.1 assists.

Following Wednesday's matchup against DePaul, Rick Pitino and the No. 10 Red Storm will next face the UConn Huskies at Madison Square Garden on Feb. 23 at noon ET.