The problem here is that you are insinuating that there are only two possible outcomes:
1. Pitino is hired, causes trouble with NCAA, and Jessup goes down in history as the President who hired the disgraced basketball coach. Or,
2. UNLV stays clear of Pitino and becomes a Tier one university.
These two issues are not mutually exclusive. Consider this scenario: UNLV hires Pitino and takes the basketball program to new heights, possibly final four or national championship. The billion dollar football stadium gets built and football starts to prosper as well. With a new Medical school, decent law school, and world class hospitality program, UNLV is sitting pretty. There's no reason not to think we could easily get Tier 1 status AND have an elite basketball program. If that's the case, I could see UNLV being invited to a better conference. Having an elite coach makes our case that much stronger.
Everybody is assuming that hiring Pitino is absolutely 100% going to lead UNLV into trouble with the NCAA. I don't think that's the case! If anything, hiring Pitino will help UNLV be very successful--and not just for the sake of the basketball program or its fans.