Just what any Pitt fan wants to hear as the Pirates season gets under way (of course, that isn’t an issue for those of us who didn’t grow up rooting for the Pirates). It was going to be one anyways, with Troutman graduating and the no-brainer of Taft going pro. The fact that Krauser is taking a peek makes it just a little more unnerving.

During a telephone interview from the Final Four on Monday night in St. Louis, Dixon said Krauser “is still looking into things.”

“It’s not surprising to think he would work his way into it,” Dixon said. “He wants to go to (the NBA Chicago Pre-Draft Camp).”
…
Taft, as does Krauser, had until May 10 to decide on his NBA status, but Dixon had been expecting the 6-10 center to announce his intentions earlier.

“We support Chris in his decision and in his future,” Dixon said. “Chris has been a valuable contributor to our success over the past two years, and we feel fortunate to have had a person like Chris as a member of our program.”

Taft has hired an agent. A Billy Ceisler out of NYC . Don’t know anything about him. Chevon Troutman starts playing in the Portsmouth, VA, Invitational, an NBA pre-draft camp for seniors, on Wednesday. The Chigago Pre-draft camp that Krauser attends is in a week or so.

Wouldn’t that be a mixed feeling? Suppose Troutman and Krauser both have great camps that get them into the second round of the draft. Pitt would have produced a 1st and two 2nd round picks. While there is some pride in what the program accomplished, there would have to be frustrations. Pitt couldn’t even finish in the top-25 and get out of the first day of the NCAA. Think Coach Dixon might be forced to admit that the season was disappointing then?

Ron Cook, in an earlier “Final Four Notebook” column:

Pitino, who coached in the NBA with the New York Knicks and Boston Celtics, had a word of advice for Pitt’s Chris Taft and most of the other underclassmen who are thinking of leaving school early for the pros: Don’t.

“I think 90 percent of the young guys who come out are costing themselves $30 million to $40 million in the long run,” Pitino said. “For every LeBron James, there’s going to be five or six situations where players don’t develop. I think it’s ultimately going to kill the NBA.”

Today he includes that quote along with comments from the other 3 Final Four coaches and says:

Are you sensing a trend here from the Final Four?

Not that college players should stay in school instead of leaving for the NBA.

That the most successful coaches are sickeningly self-serving.

Cook agrees that Taft should go to the NBA. He’s also right to point out the self-serving hypocrisy of these coaches. I just find it amusing to point out how easily he first offered up the Pitino comment about going pro earlier as a warning to Taft and without any comment then.

The most laughable thing about any of the Pittsburgh sports writers who are even using quotes from coaches and analysts, saying Taft might make more money if he stays for another year and gets a better draft position. It’s the concurrent ignorance of the NBA structure.

It’s not just the economics of earning $2 million starting in 2005 rather than getting maybe $2.5 million in 2006 (you always want the money as early as possible).

It is the fact that the NBA Collective Bargaining Agreement is under negotiation. Come the 2006 Draft, there will be a new salary and draft structure. This means uncertainty about how much money will be slotted for each pick. It could very easily stay flat or go down. The expected minimum age floor is not really an issue for Taft. The fact that a top-10 pick might earn less next year is. Yet, I haven’t seen an article in the Pittsburgh papers mention that tidbit.