It’s been a long wait for Jamel Artis. The rumors of his commitment to Pitt have been happening since July. And again, last month. Well, finally it has happened. Artis was able to verbal to Pitt on Friday.
Pitt has long been the favorite school of Jamel Artis. He was just waiting for the right time to pick the Panthers, and that came during his official visit Friday to the Oakland campus.
Artis, a 6-foot-7, 225-pound point forward from Baltimore who plays at Notre Dame Prep in Massachusetts, said he committed to the Panthers after learning that he had academically qualified for freshman eligibility.
“Pitt was my main school,” Artis said. “Everybody else was just recruiting me, saying they loved my game but never really put in the effort. Pitt came to see me a couple times. I felt the love from them.”
The main hang-up after scholarships opened up, seems to have involved getting his academics in order to qualify. That appears to no longer be an issue.
His rankings haven’t changed since July. He is still a 3-star recruit, but as I said back in July, he is exactly the type of player that has developed and thrived at Pitt over the course of his career.
That still leaves Pitt with three available scholarships for the 2013 class. This is where it gets interesting. Pitt will also have three scholarships available in 2014 (J.J. Moore, Lamar Patterson and Talib Zanna will be seniors). I have a hard time seeing Pitt burning through all three of the remaining scholarships for this year. The more realistic thing is that Pitt saves a scholarship to make 2014 a 4-man class. That is, unless Pitt finds a particular graduate transfer for only one year.
My honest guess is that Pitt takes only two more players. Filling all three spots this year happens only if Pitt gets all of its remaining top targets — Josh Davis, Joseph Uchepo and Jon Severe.
Josh Davis is a graduate transfer from Tulane. He is being hotly pursued. A 6-7 (or 6-8) power forward, he rebounds exceptionally well and can score inside. He would provide inside strength paired Zanna. Technically Zanna would be moved to the center spot, but they would essentially be two PFs with size. Not to mention not forcing too much on Mike Young right away.
Uchepo is a JUCO center who would provide more desperately needed help at the center spot. Obviously an immediate need, it has been reported that both Davis and Uchepo were visiting Pitt this weekend. It’s been a while since Pitt has taken a JUCO player, and even longer since they had any significant impact.
As for Severe, he is down to Pitt, Wake Forest, WVU, Seton Hall, Fordham and Duquesne (??). He is apparently taking a trip to Pitt after this weekend’s Jordan Brand Classic. He’s a shooting guard that has become very much in demand late in the recruiting process. There’s no question that Pitt could use a consistent shooter from outside. J.J. Moore has never shown any consistency out there, and while Durand Johnson has no conscience about shooting, he also needs consistency.
There are a couple other guys that Pitt is in the mix of pursuit for 2013, but these are the primaries. Given the recent misses for Pitt on recruiting, I’m not sure how much Pitt can afford to reach on other players.
i was right along with the rest of you yelling “throw it down to him”, especially when he worked hard for position, but I have to assume that the guards had seen enough and knew Adams had no idea what to do with it once he got it.
I’ve played with plenty of big men like that and after a while you just don’t bother feeding them because you know it’s going to be disaster……
another year or two, different story……
Adams doesn’t get up quick enough to be productive from a defensive and rebounding perspective in the NBA yet. He’ll need some offensive skills in order to contribute and I think those skills are a couple years away. Not to say he won’t get there and be a productive NBA player, just saying it won’t happen on the basis of his athletic gifts.
“Pittsburgh freshman center Steven Adams declared for the NBA draft on Tuesday, and his decision was met with surprise in some circles. The 7′ 250-pound big man is only 19 years old, and is still considered very raw on the court. Many people assume Adams will need at least a year or two of grooming before he is ready for meaningful NBA minutes.
Don’t count me among them.
You can’t teach size and you can’t teach a feel for the game. Adams possesses these two vital qualities and it makes him an intriguing prospect. Because of his size and skill set, Adams should be ready to make a small impact in the NBA immediately. He can bang the boards, he can block shots and he can run the floor well. Those traits will warrant playing time.
However, it is obviously Adams’ long-term potential that makes him interesting, and a top-10 pick in my eyes. Adams is from New Zealand and has only limited experience playing basketball at a high level of competition. His play dramatically improved as his freshman season progressed, and there is no reason to expect this improvement will not carry over to the next level. He is still learning the game on the fly, and as I said, he has a feel for it that cannot be taught.
Unlike Isaiah Austin and Alex Len, two other highly touted 19-year-old center prospects, Adams is ready to contribute to an NBA team because of his mature frame. The fact that he had a solid, but not overly impressive, freshman year does not matter much.
Adams’ dominant physicality is meant for the NBA, not college, and his situation is similar to that of Andre Drummond’s. Drummond had an underwhelming freshman year at UConn, but has been an exceptional rookie for the Detroit Pistons. I doubt Adams will have the same stellar success as Drummond, but there is a legitimate chance he will turn into a very good pro center, and that means he is worth a high pick in the upcoming draft.”
