Roger Rubin: Rick Pitino has faith in St. John's 'program guys'

When St. John’s takes to the court this coming season, it will have a completely different starting lineup than the one coach Rick Pitino was sending out in the final stretch of the 2025-26 season, when the Red Storm clinched the Big East regular-season title, won the conference tournament and reached its first Sweet 16 since 1999.

But the starting five for what Pitino on Monday said would be “another great year for St. John’s basketball” won’t be a bunch of unfamiliar faces and, should the Storm win big like they have the past two seasons, that could potentially strike a nice chord with the diehard St. John’s fans.

Pitino and his staff have been very effective working in a college basketball landscape where transfers have become central in building a team each season. And each St. John’s team, even though they have had many players who came for just a single season, has been embraced by Red Storm fans long starved for consistent success. They’ve packed the Garden regularly through consecutive 30-win campaigns.

Still, there is something special about the so-called “program guys.” In an era not long ago, many players stayed in a program and developed together. Fans got to know them, grew attached and relished it when those players got a turn in the spotlight.

It’s a little different today in that the players who stay in the program and eschew opportunities for more playing time or more Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) dollars, do so out of loyalty to St. John’s and Pitino. And Red Storm fans reward that loyalty. You could feel it in the roar coming from the Garden crowds last season every time Ruben Prey or Lefteris Liotopoulos checked into a game.

Whether or not one was high on Ian Jackson last season, he is absolutely one of those guys now. The Bronx product had a difficult 2025-26 — and Pitino took the blame for that by asking him to learn a new a premium position (point guard) — but then he turned down more lucrative offers and even took a pay cut to stay.

“He showed great loyalty to me and St. John's,” Pitino said.

The presumptive Storm rotation at the moment has Prey starting at center, Jackson starting at shooting guard and Liotopoulos as one of the first players off the bench.

In addition to saying he expected Jackson to have an “unbelievable” season, Pitino said, “[Liotopoulos], I also think, is going to have a breakout year. He’s someone that's a microwave guy. He can score. He's now two years in the program — I expect big things from [him]. And Ruben Prey has played behind Zuby Ejiofor, and he'll come into his own this year at the five spot. We're excited about Ruben's development as well.

“Those three guys give us a great nucleus to build around.”

New additions like EuroLeague point guard Quinn Ellis, German pro Babacar Sane, Syracuse transfer Donnie Freeman and Djordije Jovanovic, another European pro, all have the potential to make a major impact. But to hear Pitino tell it, those three program guys are going to get their shots at a star turn even though they didn’t get a ton of playing time last season. Jackson averaged 18.3 minutes, Prey 10.7 and Liotopoulos 7.8.

Pitino’s rep has not only been about winning big, but that he’s done it by developing players who might not have been viewed as pros coming out of high school into NBA players. His ability to get players to realize and reach their potential is now part of the St. John’s allure. Ejiofor is an excellent example. He was a solid defender with little offensive game when he arrived, and three seasons later he was the Big East Player of the Year and could be a first-round NBA Draft pick.

Prey was already coming on at the end of last season. He had 12 points on four three-pointers in the Sweet 16 loss to Duke and averaged 8.3 points in the three NCAA tourney games.

“I don’t think he’s going to be Zuby Ejiofor,” Pitino said. “But I think he’s going to be an outstanding basketball player. He’s paid his dues and he’s going to be a good shot-blocker [and] good rebounder. He’s improved his jump shot immensely.”

Prey and Liotopoulos are going into their third Storm season and Jackson his second. Pitino is going to reward their loyalty to St. John’s by counting on them. And one can bet no one wants to see them succeed more than the Red Storm fans.

By Roger Rubin

roger.rubin@newsday.com@rogrubin

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.