List time for subjective debate and overreactions from fanbases. ESPN.com has a list of the the most desirable coaching jobs in basketball by conference. In the Big East (for now), the list is:
1. Syracuse
2. Louisville
3. UConn
4. Georgetown
5. Pitt
6. Villanova
7. Notre Dame
8. Marquette
9. St. John’s
10. Cincinnati
11. Rutgers
12. Seton Hall
13. DePaul
14. Providence
15. South Florida
Here’s what they said about Pitt:
With one of the toughest home gyms in the country, the Panthers have built a reputation of blue-collar success. There is football money to cull from, but hoops does pretty well on its own merits thanks to a string of savvy hires.
I really don’t have a problem with Pitt’s placement. Especially when I think back to where it would have ranked at the start of the new millennium.
In the overall ranking, I think I would flip Cuse and Louisville. Yes, Louisville may be number two in Kentucky, but they are completely committed to basketball. More, I believe, than Syracuse. In that respect, I’d bump Marquette up a spot or two from number eight. The school and athletic department has focused intently on making basketball their calling card.
Looking at the ACC list, I would estimate that Pitt would still fit in around 5th or 6th when Cuse and Pitt get there. WVU ranked 4th in the Big 12, Duquesne 14th (out of 16) for the A-10, and PSU was dead last in the Big 10.
There’s been a lot of talk with Pitt and Cuse heading to the ACC on how it helps the ACC and hurts the Big East in basketball. It also doesn’t help the Big East when they lose WVU as well and their additions are Temple, Memphis, Houston, SMU and UCF. Luke Winn runs the numbers and confirms it. The new realignment would have had the ACC as the toughest conference in 8 of the prior 10 years — the ACC averaged out to still be the #1 conference in the period. The Big East with all the upheaval, dropped hard. From 2d to 5th.
When assessed purely in terms of gains vs. losses, the realignment picture looks worse. Of the nine leagues whose membership was affected, six became less efficient overall. The ACC is the only conference that made a noteworthy gain — but that gain was nowhere near the magnitude of the losses suffered by the Big East, Mountain West and (worst of all) C-USA
Not a surprise that basketball suffered more, expansiopocolypse is driven by football money. Even Pitt and Cuse was about upping football money. The basketball was just the icing.
Here’s something fun. Reranking the top-100 2012 recruits in terms of what they actually did on the court. It obviously favors players who got more action right away. As such, Malcolm Gilbert was down at #81 because of playing less than 100 minutes. Khem Birch came in at number 64 based on his 10 games.
Seriously? And recreate the situation the big east has already proven fails miserably?! Why create a basketball-only faction in a conference you joined to escape a conference dominated by the basketball-only faction!
ND in all sports or nothing for the ACC.
1. Center
2. Small Forward
3. Shooting Guard
4. Point Guard
5. Power Forward
Based on what I’ve seen and read of Adams, I think he will be the best and most productive player on the team next year. He’s a for sure NBA first rounder based on potential alone. He should have no problem fitting into Pitt’s system. He will be a defensive presence immediately and should develop into an offensive threat. Put him down for 12 points, 10 rebs. Gilbert will improve, he is an NBA prospect. His defense will be very good next year. Taylor might have found his role, third center.
Patterson and Moore are both “starter capable”. If they continue to improve at the same rate they have been, both could be considered for third team all Big East honors (if pitt does well). Cameron Wright and Durand Johnson both could add some nice depth behind those two.
Zeigler provides Pitt its first big two guard in years. We know he can rebound and score going to the hoop. If he can play ANY defense (no reason to believe he can’t) he will fill a big hole. His shooting and free throws are suspect. John Johnson can provide some instant offense/shooting off the bench and free throws at crunch time. Wright will provides some depth just in case.
Woodall as a starter at point scares me. He can shoot. He can make free throws at crunch time. But he his decision making is inconsistent, he is limited in creating for others and too small to play great defense. He would be a great third guard. Robinson seems to have potential to be the kind of PG Pitt has been looking for since Fields left, but it is hard to imagine a freshman coming in and starting immediately. I hope he does, but don’t expect it.
Zanna is the only PF on the team (don’t give me any Taylor non-sense, until we see it, I won’t believe it). I am a big Talib fan. He was misused as a back-up center last year. He can move his feet on defense, he can rebound, dribble drive a little, make a 10 footer and block an occasional shot. I don’t love his ball handling. He will be a good compliment to Adams/Gilbert. He can grab rebounds when teams focus on Adams, he can also knock down shots when teams double Adams. With the addition of Zeigler, I think Pitt can go small at PF and play either Moore or Patterson there for short stretches. Who knows maybe Taylor will surprise everyone and be a serviceable back up PF. I just can’t see him moving his feet well enough to play even ok perimeter defense. Jamie may be forced to use him there…
1. Small Forward
2. Center
3. Point Guard
4. Shooting Guard
5. Power Forward
I think Patterson and Moore give Pitt great depth and talent at small forward. I don’t rank center #1 because I am not sure about the depth–Gilbert is still extremely raw–and while Adams is a rare talent, he will also be a freshman. I think it can be too easy to build great expectations . . . think of him as more of a 10 and 10 guy, but I don’t think he will be the most productive player on the team, I think that will be Lamar Patterson, who has the capability to average 16 points, 6 boards and 6 assists next year and be a real do-everything player for Pitt.
I am a Woodall fan . . . I think he was really playing hurt last year and I was impressed with him and his leadership. I expect him to make a huge step forward as a senior. Depth behind him is not great, and I don’t want to pin my hopes on James Robinson stepping in right away, but he certainly could.
Shooting guard I almost ranked higher, because Zeigler is a major addition, and I think John Johnson has a sweet stroke from 3. Don’t rule out the possibility of Pitt going big next year and moving Patterson to the 2 in some situations (Robinson, Patterson, Moore, Zanna, and Adams would be a huge, athletic, and scary lineup). However, without a returning starter there, I am too hesitant to rate that position highly, but its got great potential.
Power forward is a black hole of suck. Zana has not done much to distinguish himself against good teams, and Taylor is a disaster. Don’t discount the possibility of Lamar Patterson seeing a lot of time here either, with Adams in the post, Pitt does not need a huge PF.
Just for funsies, your “small” lineup:
PG – Woodall
SG – Johnson
SF – Zeigler
PF – Patterson
C – Taylor/Zana
Regardless of who is out there, all positions need to defend better, and that is where I think Adams will have his biggest impact. 7 foot shot blocking rebounding machine!!
Agree with Tartan on this. Patterson is versatile and experienced and makes relatively few mental mistakes. Look for him to step up leadership and assertiveness. And the light turned on for JJ Moore last year as he started playing excellent defense, rebounded well, and finally started to utilize his atheltic ability to take it to the rack. He still spins and chucks sometimes, but not as much. Cam Wright’s defense and rebounding were also used in the 3 spot. Durand
Johnson may be able to add something from outside here as well. This is our deepest position.
2. Point Guard
People shit on him on this blog, but Tray Woodell is not looked down upon elsewhere. When healthy and under control, he’s productive, has a pass first mentality, and is tough as nails. He’s also experienced. James Robinson seems to have all the attributes of a classic Pitt PG and based on his high school experience, capable of playing as a freshman. Apparently Zeigler has some experience at the point as well. Defensively, this position is not so strong.
3. Center
Adams is an amazing athlete and has stepped up in his performance in each challenge he has met competitively, but the learning curve will be steep for him. He’ll get double digit rebounds, maybe many of them simply based on athletic ability and not positioning, he’ll get his share of blocks, and he’ll get into his share of foul trouble. If he averages double digit scoring in league play, I will be pleasently surprised. He’ll still be a freshman on a team that is basically frontcourt oriented. Malcom Gilbert is large. There’s really not much else you can say. He had a few moments as a shot blocker/alterer last year and probably should have gotten a few more opps to play. He looked lost on offense, picked up the same annoying hedging fouls all Pitt big men do, and seems to be incredibly slow. He’s a project. Did I mention he is large? Dante will probably be leapt over a third time in his career for an underclassman, but he’ll still be one of the first guys off the bench. We’ve broken him down enough here.
4. Shooting Guard
What a mixed bag. The law of averages caught up to John Johnson shooting-wise. He’s rep is as a whirling dervish, penetrator, not a shooter. But he’s undersized as a 2 and not so hot as a 1. He’s a 5’11” 1.5. Wright is maybe the best defensive guard since Jermaine Dixon. His offense got better but is a work in progress. Durand Johnson has height and rep as a shooter. One h.s. scounting report also called him one of the best defenders in his class. Let’s see. Trey Zeigler sounds like a bit more athletic Mike Cook- which is a good thing. Still, hard to call this position strong at this point.
5. Power Forward
Zanna and Patterson are the only players on the roster who have played this position. Maybe Taylor makes the move. That would definitely be interesting. Zanna has the attributes of a good Big East 4 but needs to put it altogether consistently. He sometimes seems to lack confidence. Patterson is a more finesse version of Nasir Robinson. Good interior passer and smart defender but obviously undersized. Still, I definitely see him playing at the 4 to make room for JJ Moore. There were some nice sequences when they were both on the court last year. JJ Moore though, I seriously doubt will every play 4. Gilbert Brown did, but he was more physical and not as quick as JJ. Anyway, this position lacks depth, experience, and
size.
Woodall may be OK, but he’ll have to prove it. I just don’t think he is quick enough to match up with the competition. Everything else has me as excited as I’ve been in a long time. Can we please work on our foul shooting in the off-season?
Otherwise, everything he does looks light years ahead of our other big guys. Our guards cans whip the ball into him and he will easily catch it. He is very quick up and down the court. Will be a very strong presence for us on both ends of the court.
Patterson is a nice player. Glue guy, passes, competent, floor game, can do a bit of everything.
We all know Moore is an athlete, but I’ll be surprised if he ever realizes the potential.
Wright’s offense is suspect and we haven’t seen Johnson yet, except a bit in Greentree.
So I like having 4 guys to talk about, but I don’t think there’s a standout in that group. Depth is great — where’s the stud?
