St. John's and finesse . . . is that a positive or a criticism?
St. John's Red Storm head coach Rick Pitino directs his players during a timeout in the first half against the Bucknell Bison at Carnesecca Arena on Nov. 20. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
St. John’s had its best season in a quarter-century in 2024-25. The Red Storm tied a program record with 31 wins, captured the Big East regular-season and tournament championships and earned a No. 2 seeding in the NCAA Tournament. They managed to do all that by overcoming terrible outside shooting with relentless rebounding and tenacious defense.
When opposing coaches and players were asked about that St. John’s team, what did we hear? That the Red Storm played harder than they did. That their physicality couldn't be matched. That St. John's defensive connectivity was unassailable.
Never did we hear the word “finesse” used in describing them. Yet that’s exactly the word St. John’s coach Rick Pitino has been using since the 14th-ranked Red Storm lost to Alabama on Nov. 8.
It didn’t sound like a compliment the first time he used it. And though he has since tried to shape it into one by praising all the considerable skills the current group possesses to win games without the brute force of last season’s team, it still doesn’t linger as a positive.
The first time Pitino used it was between the Alabama loss and the win over William & Mary, and the context was this: “We have to be more physical at every single position in order to become a great team down the road — we are a finesse team right now,” he said.
The place in sports in which we most often hear the word “finesse” is in baseball to describe pitchers who get hitters out with their craftiness. At the other end of the spectrum is the power pitcher who throws with a force that’s hard to catch up with. Keep in mind that both kinds can be successful.
Pitino is a master motivator who, over time, gets his players to be the ones who never let their frailties prevent them from winning. And he has a reputation for choosing words that bring about results.
This past week, when Pitino was asked about his use of “finesse,” he conceded how it could sound but added, “I don’t mean that they’re soft — they’re not soft at all . . . I tell them all the time, ‘You’ve got to be more physical,' but that’s not what I meant by the finesse comment. Their strength is that they’re an athletic team.”
We’ll take his word for it for the time being. Still, that doesn’t mean it sounded flattering to his team. It also doesn’t mean we’re not about to see a much more physical version of the Red Storm on Monday against No. 16 Iowa State in Las Vegas and going forward.
When Dillon Mitchell was asked if the term could be heard as disrespectful, he replied, “It can be, and we take that as a team, we don't want to be a team that just gets away with things because of our athleticism . . . I’d never heard that before, but we’re trying. . . . to pick up on things like blocking out, physicality, hitting someone on rebounds. Those are things where we’re getting away with our athleticism, and that could be where the finesse part comes into play.”
Superbly gifted as many of the new players are, they have excellent examples of the toughness Pitino wants in returning players Zuby Ejiofor and Ruben Prey. Ejiofor’s hard-working and physical style became a beacon to the rest of the team last season, and Pitino has praised Prey’s embrace of hard contact a number of times.
So maybe Pitino didn’t mean to use “finesse” to send a message about toughening up. The days ahead should tell if they got one anyway.
Plenty of confidence in Darling
This week’s trip to the Players Era Festival in Las Vegas, where St. John’s will play three games in three days against Iowa State, Baylor and a team to be determined, will be a major measuring stick for the Red Storm. Especially after they did a lot of things well but ultimately failed the first test in the loss to Alabama.
It also could be an opportunity for Dylan Darling to cement his place as the starting point guard by showing he is capable of competing at the highest level after transferring from Idaho State. Darling didn’t face the Crimson Tide because of a right calf strain but has been the starter the past two games, averaging 7.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 0.5 turnovers.
Pitino clearly believes the 2025 Big Sky Conference Player of the Year is up to it.
“He's got the best credentials of any player coming in here,” he said. “This guy was Player of the Year in the Big Sky . . . He's lightning-fast. He's tough. Everybody struggles with Iowa State, right? [It’s] because they're like Houston, they're relentless with their pressure. But I have absolutely no reservations at all that he could play against anybody, anytime, anywhere.”
High on Liotopoulos
Pitino has brought a number of European players into the program, and sophomore center/forward Prey, from Portugal, has made the most obvious strides in adapting to the American college game. However, sophomore guard Lefteris Liotopoulos, an exceptional shooter, might not be far behind if he can improve his defense. Pitino said Liotopoulos “is on the same plane” as Prey but is battling Ian Jackson, Joson Sanon and Oziyah Sellers for backcourt minutes.
“It's tough for minutes now,” Pitino said. “Next year, he'd get a lot of minutes, obviously, because he's going to be an upperclassman. He has a great chance to start.”
Asked if he is confident that Liotopoulos will return for his junior season, Pitino wasn’t making any promises but said, “I feel very confident he wants to be at St. John’s and he’ll be a player for the future.”
Roger Rubin returned to Newsday in 2018 to write about high schools, colleges and baseball following 20 years at the Daily News. A Baseball Hall of Fame voter since 2011, he has covered 13 MLB postseasons and 14 NCAA Final Fours.
