Rick Pitino's resume helped St. John's beat out UNC, Villanova for four-star recruit

Rick Pitino is a legendary coach. He has a checkered past, which will follow him even well past the time he finally decides to retire. With that said, his results on the court are hard to argue.

And that's why St. John's hired him.

Players are willing to look past some of Pitino's scandals if they know winning is on the horizon, and there's a great chance winning is on the horizon for the Red Storm.

For a four-star wing recruit like Brady Dunlap from Newhall, California, that's reason enough to travel all the way across the country to play East Coast basketball for St. John's. 

Dunlap committed to St. John's on Tuesday, citing Pitino as a major reason why he made his decision.

"I was sold on his player development and his résumé," Dunlap told ESPN. "When you look at his track record, he has won everywhere he's been and his players have really improved into all-league players, such as Luke Hancock, Donovan Mitchell, Peyton Siva and many more."

For what it's worth, the projections suggest the Johnnies got a good one in Dunlap.

He's a 6-foot-7 wing ranked as a top-100 2023 recruit nationally by ESPN. St. John also landed his commitment over a pair of college basketball powerhouses: North Carolina and Villanova.

Penn State and Nebraska were also in the running for Dunlap's commitment, but Pitino undoubtedly gave St. John's the edge.