Pitino leaves Greece, seeking return to the NBA

Rick Pitino is leaving Panathinaikos, the team he coached to a Greek League championship this season, he told ESPN on Friday.

The Hall of Famer said he turned down an offer to return as the franchise's president and head coach in order to pursue a job in the NBA, either in coaching or in a player personnel or advisory role.

Pitino, 66, was fired after a long run at Louisville following an FBI probe into college basketball recruiting. He coached the Cardinals from 2001 until the end of the 2016-17 season, taking the program through three conference changes (Conference USA, Big East and ACC) while posting a 416-143 record.

Pitino, who also coached at Hawaii, Boston University, Providence and Kentucky, has 770 career college victories over 1,041 games, winning an NCAA title in 1996 with Kentucky and 2013 with Louisville.

Back in October, Pitino first...