If you’re an avid NBA fan there’s a chance you’ve used the infamous “____ is not walking through that door” whenever a team is losing badly. Well that all begin with Rick Pitino when he was the coach of the Boston Celtics. Rick Pitino is being inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame this weekend and he decided to make a joke about his now famous line. Read more after the jump.
In a rant following a tough loss while coach of the Celtics, Pitino told reporters, “Larry Bird’s not walking through that door, fans. Kevin McHale is not walking through that door, and Robert Parish is not walking through that door. And if you expect them to walk through the door, they’re going to be grey and old. What we are is young, exciting, hard-working, and going to improve. People don’t realize that.”
Fast forward to Sunday, where Bird is there to present Oscar Schmidt, and Pitino, upon seeing Bird enter the room, referenced his memorable press conference.
Here’s the video in case you want to relive the moment:
