St. John’s Rick Pitino wants his money’s worth from Kadary Richmond: ‘We gave him a very large contract’
- Feb. 12, 2025
- By Adam Zagoria | For NJ Advance Media
St. John’s coach Rick Pitino has high expectations for Seton Hall transfer Kadary Richmond – and says those expectations are rooted in the fact that “we paid him a lot of money.”
“Kadary came here ... look, he wanted to play for me,” Pitino said in the first episode of Pitino: Red Storm Rising that aired Tuesday night on ViceSports. “But we paid him a lot of money. We gave him a very large contract. If Seton Hall gave him the same contract, he would’ve stayed at Seton Hall.”
The 6-foot-6 Richmond, the No. 1 recruit in the transfer portal, received an NIL deal in the high-six figures, according to NJ Advance Media’s reporting.
Pitino’s comments in the documentary echo those he made after last month’s St. John’s-Seton Hall game in which he said Richmond would have stayed at Seton Hall “if the money was close.”
The Brooklyn native has stepped up his level of play in recent weeks and is now a contender for Big East Player of the Year honors – along with teammate RJ Luis, Creighton’s Ryan Kalbrenner and Marquette’s Kam Jones.
Big East coaches vote for the award, and, as far as the St. John’s players, they are split on whether Luis or Richmond is more deserving. One Big East assistant said, “Kadary probably has a better chance.”
The assistant added that Richmond’s Player of the Year impact is also reflected at Seton Hall, which sits in last place in the league without him.
“Seton Hall is a completely different team without him,” the assistant said.
Several coaches also said they think Kalkbrenner is the most deserving of Big East Player of the Year.
Richmond is averaging 12.1 points, 5.6 rebounds and 5.0 assists while shooting 49% from the field and 21% from deep.
Although he is a master of the mid-range game, shooting from distance remains his weakness and Pitino recently said Richmond doesn’t utilize his new shooting form in games.
“If you don’t spend hours upon hours by yourself at night, you’re not changing anything,” Pitino said in the documentary. “It’s a matter of how strong do you want to make the changes.”
He added: “Kadary’s a very talented basketball player that will not reach his potential unless he changes that jump shot.”
Richmond is not currently on any of the major mock drafts, and shooting is the major knock on him although he does so many other things well.
“He affects the game in multiple ways, defensively, we know he can score the ball, rebounding,” St. John’s associate head coach Steve Masiello said in the doc. “He’s an elite level passer, makes everyone around him better.”
Richmond’s ultimate goal is to make the NBA after hopefully leading St. John’s on a deep playoff run. The team has won 10 straight and is projecting as a 3 or 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
“Basketball changed my life for the better,” Richmond said in the doc. “It took me places I never thought I’d go growing up in Brooklyn. The main goal is winning on the big stage and portraying my talents. I want to be able to put my self in position to help my family for generations to come.”
As far as how deep Richmond and the Red Storm can go during March Madness, Pitino said it remains to be seen.
“I don’t have any illusions of grandeur with this basketball team,” he said.
“Can they make the NCAA ? Yes. Can they go far? Yes. Can they not make it? Yes.
“They have enough frailties to not make it, they have enough talent to make it so we’ll see what happens.”
The No. 9 Red Storm visit Villanova on Wednesday night.
St. John’s Rick Pitino wants his money’s worth from Kadary Richmond: ‘We gave him a very large contract’
Big East coach on St. John's Kadary Richmond: 'Seton Hall without him is a completely different team'
