Spot on.
Comparing Duke recruiting to Minnesota recruiting is not exactly apples to apples (as SPEGOPHER pointed out)! Guys like K and Cal don't recruit, they select. They point their finger at elite kids and say "I want you", and along with Kansas and North Carolina they're going to get the lion's share of the elite.
And for the record, I don't expect Pitino to land the elites like Tyus Jones, Tre Jones, Matthew Hurt, and Jalen Suggs of the world, but I think it's important to have some success getting those next-tier (highly regarded) Minnesota kids to stay home, which he has in some cases with the likes of Coffey, Oturu, and Kalscheur (not as highly regarded as the other two). You (the U) can win a lot of Big Ten games with a base of guys like that, as well as guys like McKinley Wright, Nate Reuvers, etc.
If the Gophers start winning on a consistent basis (read top 5 in Big Ten, 12+ conference wins on a regular basis, a couple Sweet 16s), it's at that point when I'd expect Richard to get a kid like Hurt or Suggs, at least on occasion.