In the end, Rick Malnati was true to himself in making the decision Friday to resign as basketball coach at New Trier after a successful 12-year run.
“I’m leaving a pretty special place,’’ Malnati said. “You don’t get any better than New Trier. I love New Trier, the kids and all the support. It was such a comfortable place to work and teach.
“But being comfortable is not something I strive for. I need to be a little scared when I go to work. I need a change to make me better. I need to have a little more drive. That’s who I am.
“I’m not leaving for some particular other job. It’s more like a leap of faith. And I’m not limiting myself to a job on the college level. I’m looking for another challenge.”
Malnati was a standout point guard at New Trier West and went on to play that position at Bradley. After graduating from college, he worked for 15 years in the family business—Lou Malnati’s pizza restaurants—and then the dozen years heading up the Trevians.
Few coaches in the state were better at getting the most out of his players. Rarely blessed with major-college recruits, Malnati’s precision-passing offense featuring high screens and backdoor cuts and the way his system maximized three-point shooting led the Trevians to a number of upsets.
Perhaps the most memorable was the United Center supersectional in 2002, when Proviso East boasted a lineup of three Division I recruits—Dee Brown (Illinois), Shannon Brown (Michigan State) and Charles Richardson (Nebraska). The Trevians pulled off a stunning upset and finished fourth in Class AA.
“I’ve really enjoyed working with all the kids,” Malnati said. “Look at Todd Townsend. He is an assistant coach at Northeastern now. He is really an exceptional young man and what a turnaround in his life.”

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