St. John's Rick Pitino not interested in Knicks HC job

If the New York Knicks want their next head coach to be one who has Big East ties, they might have to look for someone other than two of the conference's top current coaches. St. John's Rick Pitino has turned down interest in the Knicks' head coach vacancy, while UConn's Dan Hurley dismissed discussing the subject at all.

Hurley has been viewed as a possible frontrunner for the Knicks' head coach position after expressing interest in the Los Angeles Lakers' head coach job last offseason. However, he ended up turning down Los Angeles after receiving an offer, with his ties to the Northeast being cited as a reason why he opted to remain at UConn.

"Not another summer of that," Hurley told The Hartford Courant when asked if he had any interest in the Knicks' job. Whether Hurley meant another summer of questions about leaving UConn for the NBA, or another summer of back-and-forth negotiations, is unclear. What is known is that he isn't willing to discuss any interest publicly, if it exists. FOX Sports' college basketball expert John Fanta, appearing on "The Herd" on Wednesday, expressed that a repeat of last summer was unlikely, however, Hurley would likely "entertain" the head coaching job with the Knicks, were they to reach out.

Hurley wound up agreeing to a six-year, $50 million extension with UConn after turning down the Lakers. The Huskies' bid to become the first team to three-peat as national champions in over 50 years fell short, with UConn losing in the Round of 32 last season.

Pitino's St. John's squad was one of the roadblocks UConn dealt with along the way as the Johnnies won the Big East regular-season and tournament titles. It marked the first time since 1992 that St. John's had won the regular season title and