Could former Pitt assistant Barry Rohrssen leave Kentucky?

Kentucky basketball assistant Barry Rohrssen is a hot commodity. Rohrssen, the former Pitt assistant, seems to have a pretty good gig with the Wildcats working with John Calipari, making a base salary of about $400,000, and helping to pluck five-star recruits with regularity.

The idea of Rohrssen leaving Kentucky just doesn't sound like it would make a lot of sense. But, well, this:

When this season ends, Rohrssen, 54, will likely face a tough decision about whether to return to his beloved New York City and join Chris Mullin’s staff at St. John’s or whether to remain with coach John Calipari at Kentucky.

The rumors are flying fast and furious here at the Final Four, with some folks believing it’s already “done” that Rohrssen will join Mullin’s staff and help to revive St. John’s, and others saying they can’t imagine Rohrssen leaving Kentucky, where he reportedly earns a base salary of $375,000 and more with bonuses. His contract reportedly runs through June 2016 and he must notify Calipari if he intends to leave for another job.

Rohrssen leaving with Kentucky being so dominant right now seems like a fool's move. That's particularly true when you consider that he'd have a heck of a challenge at St. John's and would be working for a first-time coach in Chris Mullin.

The ZagsBlog article mentions that St. John's would need to offer a similar salary, but so much of the Kentucky job is that he is at a school that can afford to turn down kids that would be premier recruits at other schools. His situation at Kentucky has to be one of the best around. Then there's the friendship factor. He and Calipari were said to be very close and that's another thing to consider.

The allure, of course, is going home since Rohrssen is a New York native and also getting a built-in challenge to help rebuild a St. John's program that has been up and down. Is that enough for him to leave perhaps the cushiest assistant post in the country? Time will tell.

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