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February 8, 2016

Frustration of Pitt Basketball This Year

Filed under: Basketball — Chas @ 8:10 pm

Let’s get this out of the way. Virginia is a very good team. They dismantled Louisville at the Yum! Center by 16 a couple days before coming to the Pete. They’ve been playing some of their best basketball in the past week. So losing to the Hoos, even by double-digits should not have been a stunner.

The Cavs even acknowledged that they have been getting into a groove.

“I think it’s fun to watch,” Bennett said, “when you share the ball and guys move it and they make the next pass. … They’re playing, in my opinion, the right way, the way that gives us the best chance to be as good as we can, when we’re that unselfish, on both ends, defensively kind of playing for each other, and offensively.

“Hopefully our guys understand, and very clearly, this is how we’re at our best on both ends of the floor.”

Bennett called Saturday “one of our better position games defensively. For most of the day we were always in the right spots.”

That said, watching Pitt fall apart in a short span in the second half, and never recover, was just so familiar.

I mean, for variety’s sake Pitt waited until the second half. But it seemed oh, so familiar. A sudden burst of sloppy play, offense goes cold and defense gets even worse than slightly below average.

Pitt battled hard in that first half. Despite the efficient and patient offense by Virginia it was primarily Malcolm Brogdon doing all the damage. Pitt countered with Jamel Artis playing a strong first half and almost matching him.

Then in the second half, Pitt came out looking strong as Sheldon Jeter had one of his little bursts, and Pitt had the game tied at 31. And that score by Sheldon Jeter at 18:52 was the last basket Pitt would make for the next 7+ minutes.

But the game got put out of reach in a 2 minute stretch where UVA hit two 3s and had two and-1’s to go up a dozen. In that stretch, Pitt committed 3 turnovers and 4 fouls and did not even get a shot attempt. Pitt actually went nearly 4 minutes without a shot attempt — they did have 4 FT attempts, but that is still more than a little lousy.

In the second half, Artis and Mike Young only combined for 8 points as the Virginia defense collapsed on them. Daring anyone else to shoot. That leads to the biggest frustration with Pitt this season.

The guard play.

Yes, James Robinson has reverted back to being a horrid shooter. A damn awful game for him, and it was reflected in the fact that Coach Jamie Dixon basically pulled him midway through the second half. He only played ten minutes in the second half.  He had zero points and less confidence even as he hoisted 7 bricks.

The problem is no one else on the perimeter shoots. Chris Jones has little confidence in his shot, and looks to pass it to someone else. Damon Wilson is not taking too many shots when he is in the game.

Sterling Smith should be the guy taking the shots from outside or a few more anywhere. Yet he only attempted 3 shots for the game, and only one in the second half. He is being so selective in his shots, that when Pitt faces a team with even an average defense, he doesn’t pull the trigger. Just passes it back on the perimeter. In the four conference losses and the Purdue loss, Smith had at most 3 FGAs. In all five of those games he attempted only five 3-point shots. 46% shooting on threes for the year, but he won’t shoot when Pitt needs to open the floor up for the frontcourt.

That means, when the ball can’t get inside to the frontcourt — or specifically Jeter, Artis or Young — the ball ends up in the hands of James Robinson. You can see it happening when the offense stops working.

The ball gets passed to guys standing still, rather than cutting or setting screens. They don’t have room. It moves slowly and then ends up back in Robinson’s hands at the top of the key. Maybe 5 seconds left in the shot clock. The defender backs off, to prevent a drive and clog any interior passing. Daring Robinson to shoot. Robinson looks for anyone. Since the offense had previously come to a stop, there is no one coming free. Maybe a player or two belatedly starts to move, but it is too late in the clock to get free in time. Robinson sees nothing, and is forced to take the shot he doesn’t want with 2 seconds or less on the shot clock. It may simply be my perception, but about twice a game, you can see that happen.

Robinson took (and missed 7 shots) against Virginia in 27 minutes. Five came in the first half. Smith, Jones and Wilson played a combined 42 minutes and took a total of 7 shots (making only 2). Only Cam Johnson seems willing to hoist when he’s out on the court. I know  all of us would like to have Robinson take less shots. I’m rather certain, Robinson would as well. But that requires someone else being willing.

That doesn’t even begin to address how this team is so, so bad on defense. I’m sure they understand the concept. But they sure don’t like the idea of it.





@@@@@

Pitt is not a good team. The team is
limited offensively. The schedule ahead
is brutal. By next Monday the record will
6-6 with Duke, Louisville, and Syracuse
on the horizon. Must wins vs VT, GT, and
WF. 9-9 and a win or 2 in the conf tourney
gives us a chance for a bid to the big dance
Anything less and it’s the NIT.
Pitt needs talent badly

Comment by JR 02.08.16 @ 8:32 pm

Tidbits from the Barnes presser today:

Q: Do you see synergy between the football and basketball programs? Does success in one, whether in ticket sales or any avenue, translate to the other?
SB: Yeah, I think our coaches are always watching each other and learning and growing and doing things. Whether there’s direct synergy, I think, as I’ve said before, a rising tide lifts all ships. Football, because of our opportunity to grow, is going to help all of our programs. That’s more from the standpoint of funding, but I think it is, to your point, the energy that’s created around that is helpful. Again, men’s basketball has been a key to our success over a long, long time. We need to not only be good stewards and maintain that, but we’ve got to grow that back a little bit as well. I will say this, a lot of times folks will talk about being a football school or a basketball school. We’re going to be all of that, and there’s no reason you can’t have excellence in all of your programs, including football and basketball at the same time. That’s our plan, absolutely.

Q: Are you concerned about basketball attendance this year?
SB: I think it’s a product of what’s going on nationally, a little bit. Am I concerned? I think we’ve slipped a little bit. There’s no question about that, but is that keeping me awake at night? No. But it’s certainly something that we have our eye on, and it’s not unlike our conversations around the NCAA Tournament. We were slipping there, as well. You’ve got to continue to dial in on what the fans want, and what their expectations are. What does a fan experience mean? We’ve got to continually be in tune with that. When I say ‘we,’ I say that from a national perspective. College athletics, we’ve got to be in tune with that and we’re all grappling with that.

Comment by Tossing Thabeets 02.08.16 @ 8:45 pm

The Barnes presser is good read. Transcripts via Werner and the Red Shirt Diaries. I don’t care what Upitt says, this guy gets it.

To basketball … I think Dokish says it best. The program has become stagnant.

But … Dixon is as close to un-fireable as there is.
But … You can’t fire the players.
But … you CAN fire the assistants … it’s time to go.

I think we see a whole sale rebuild with the assistants. I’ve said it before, I think Smoke is the only safe one. Time to get some fresh blood into the program and this is the easiest and quickest way to do it.

Despite what people say, Dixon earned the contract. There is no argument from me that he hasn’t lived up to that contract though. I, personally, think he wasn’t really put in much of position to succeed by our former AD but that’s neither here not there. SP has been tossed to the wolves. Dixon now has an AD with a basketball background and I’m assuming (and hoping) deeper pockets.

No more excuses. This is the last basketball season stained by SP.

Increased assistant pay plus an increased recruiting budget would go a long way toward fixing the walking in mud sensation we’re seeing with the basketball team. The team really isn’t that far off. Nailing one recruiting class would make us forget the last 5 years.

You can see what Dixon was trying to build but instead of going to Ethan Allen he went to IKEA. Looks good for a while but becomes old real fast.

Pitt has ACC money now. It’s time to dress for success and clean up a little bit. Driving around the ACC in the Camry when everyone else is driving BMW’s isn’t a good look.

Comment by Tossing Thabeets 02.08.16 @ 9:15 pm

Jones seems like s different player since his injury, he never seemed shy about taking shots before. Johnson and Smith have the purer shots but always seem to fade in big games.

I would like to see Wilson start at the 1 with Robinson at the 2, since our 2 has become a non-scorer anyway

Comment by wbb 02.08.16 @ 9:17 pm

JR, as I posted in the game link, Dixon and his boys have this lined up so far for the foreseeable future:

link to pittsburgh.n.rivals.com

link to pittsburgh.n.rivals.com

We might as well be Duquesne….

Comment by Jackagain 02.08.16 @ 9:18 pm

Chas, you really nailed it. But the question is why are these guys afraid to shoot, especially Smith?

Comment by gc 02.08.16 @ 9:25 pm

I like Artis, Jeter and Young next year. Robinsin is addition by subtraction…and if Nix can stand in the paint and spread his arms and not foul anyone in the process their low post play is upgraded.

I think next years team may be pretty decent. That said……Jamie has to bag a solid recruiting class that can truly perform at this level.

Comment by tallahassee panther 02.08.16 @ 9:27 pm

Dixon was showing a drop off before he was offered this albatross of a contract. And in a business where all contracts are one way (i.e., it’s only binding for the university), this was a sub-moronic contract given the length of it.

It may have been earned if Dixon was better in the NCAA’s and got to at least a Final Four or played in or won a NC. No way he deserved this contract.

Tossing, Mike Tomlin won a SB and coached in 2 of them….you think he deserves a 10 year contract extension? Well, maybe does, (maybe he doesn’t), but not Dixon…

Comment by Jackagain 02.08.16 @ 9:27 pm

Why are these guys afraid to shoot? Are they afraid of being benched if they miss/or take one and make it without that extra pass coaches love so much?

Dixon bagging a solid recruiting class over the next 2-3 years is a pipe dream right now IMO.

Comment by Jackagain 02.08.16 @ 9:31 pm

Funny how far we’ve come from a few years ago when only a FEW dared to hold Jamie Dixon and Pitt Basketball to a HIGHER standard.

Comment by PittofDreams 02.08.16 @ 9:37 pm

What has Dixon done for Pitt lately? If anything, he is earning himself a one way ticket out of town.

Dixon was hurt by the move to the ACC but he doesnt even has the assistants now that can land kids from the City, DC or Philly.

Dixon now plays in a half empty Pete. So much be tearing down Pitt stadium for this product.

Stagnation is a dirty word like mediocrity. Its a word that can get you fired.

What can Pitt do to jump start the program?

Hire new assistants with a passion to recruit. Increase the recruiting budget. Well, how about placing Dixon out of his comfort zone. A little bit of accountability and comfortableness can go a long way to achieving results.

BTW – kids are afraid to shoot because that aint that good of a shooter and yes, Dixon will sit their ass on the bench for being selfish. But true shooters gotta shoot.

Comment by TX Panther 02.08.16 @ 9:42 pm

Jackagain – Dixon’s track record stands up just fine, especially when you look at Pitt basketball and what it’s done historically. Pitt was a #1 seed in the NCAA’s as recently as 2011.

Besides it’s already done. The ink dried long ago on that contract and here is nothing you or I can do about it … He’s here at least 5 more years before a buyout would be considered. 4 at a minimum.

You might as well check out now if you don’t like it because unless Dixon leaves on his own accord I doubt a wealthy booster will be buying out his $14M still owed anytime soon.

We might as well focus on what can be fixed and that leaves us with the assistants and recruiting which go hand in hand.

Comment by Tossing Thabeets 02.08.16 @ 9:42 pm

uncomfortableness that is. Dixon was too complacent and protected under Cornhole. Our former AD didnt place enough pressure on Dixon and contributed to the stagnation. So cant blame all this on Coach. But Cyanide is a poison that continues to kill long after the pill is popped.

Comment by TX Panther 02.08.16 @ 9:45 pm

If they tore down Pitt Stadium, they sure as hell can fire Jamie Dixon.

Comment by PittofDreams 02.08.16 @ 9:45 pm

Dont buy out Dixon. We need the money for a feasibility study on a new OCS. 🙂

Comment by TX Panther 02.08.16 @ 9:47 pm

It all depends on what the fans, alums, administration want.
It’s expectations. If you keep Jamie for the next five years, you will get what you have now. NIT team that can beat Duquesne and the 11 dwarfs but that’s it. Maybe a 9 seed and out in the NCAA S.

Dixon will never be able to recruit better no matter who else gets fired and his coaching is what it is! Mediocre at best…player unfriendly during the season and if by some miracle Pitt gets to a big game, their will be a huge Dixon brain fart like not pulling players off the line, not having a safety back vs Nova or just plain mismanagement of the time.

That’s reality. If you like what we have now …. Keep him. If not,
Bite the bullett and fire his ass and bring in a Narduzzi like
energetic teacher and innovator. Your call.

Comment by Dan 72 02.08.16 @ 10:17 pm

I agree Tossing that we are stuck now (thanks again Cyanide), but I don’t agree that he deserved it.

What if he was caught in some kind of scandal a couple years into the contract? It’s a stupid contract since it’s ALWAYS a one way contract.

BTW, Dixon & company crapped the bed with that #1 seed. They beat a 16 seed, and lost to the 8 seed not even making the Sweet 16.

Name me one time Dixon beat and higher seed in the NCAA’s and I’ll agree that he deserved the contract.

Comment by Jackagain 02.08.16 @ 10:29 pm

I feel as if we’ve already lived through the high point of Pitt basketball. The years where the Panthers battled for Big East Championships. The great performances at the Big East Tournament in Madison Square Garden. Sometimes it’s not so easy to get magic back when things start moving in a different direction. As with Pitt football, I remember when Jackie Sherrill left for Texas A&M. People said it wouldn’t matter because Pitt had everyone returning and we had the program in place. It really was the end of an era in Pitt Football. Pitt football hasn’t come anywhere near the national rankings it held in those years.

Comment by Justinian 02.08.16 @ 10:47 pm

About Pitt Stadium, it may have old and lacked amenities, but it had wonderful sight lines for watching the game. All the seats were close to action with no upper deck nose bleed section. It was on campus. Too bad we didn’t have the leadership or foresight to renovate Pitt Stadium like Georgia Tech did with their vintage stadium in downtown Atlanta or like they did with Rose Bowl where they removed the benches and put in modern seating other improvements.

Comment by Justinian 02.08.16 @ 10:56 pm

Agree with you, Justinian

Comment by Tony77019 02.08.16 @ 11:36 pm

Barnes is still pretty much hands off Jamie’s program except non-conference scheduling.

“Concerned from a national perspective?” What the hell kind of answer is that.

Comment by Tony77019 02.09.16 @ 12:00 am

I’m sorry, but when you can say the following statement about a team that starts 2 seniors at guard and 3 juniors in the front court, there is a serious problem:

“Pitt actually went nearly 4 minutes without a shot attempt (2nd half vs UVA) — they did have 4 FT attempts, but that is still more than a little lousy.” From Chas article above.

There was also a span of 7-1/2 minutes in the second half where Pitt did not score a bucket. The drought was long, but when watching the game live, it did not seem that long. But it was…

And I don’t think Damon Wilson was on the court for that horrible stretch.

There seems to be no leadership amount the players and I’m starting to wonder about the coaching staff regarding leadership. AD Barnes definitely inherited a “project”.

“Taken this road show to Miami could be just what the doctor ordered?” Hottest guard in the ACC vs the coldest guard. Three bigs over 6’10” vs zero bigs over 6’9″

Remember, Jamie has options and the right mix of changes tonight could spark new life…

Optimism by the fan base is not necessary tonight as this game is not in the Pete (with it’s one sellout this season).

HTP!

Comment by Erie Express 02.09.16 @ 5:01 am

well, Notre Dame just beat Clemson at Clemson .. and two days before, beat UNC at home. I don’t think there will be any more complaining if they are ranked this week

Comment by wbb 02.09.16 @ 7:41 am

I think JD has to get Wilson some PT even if he makes playground behind the back dribble on drives – just has to learn from his mistakes. Next year starts now, here and on the recruiting trial. I agree with TT that there must be massive assistant changes, perhaps they can recruit if JD cant. JD will be here at least 4 or 5 years – could be a long time.

Comment by rkb 02.09.16 @ 8:52 am

I guess we can say that the experiment with fifth year transfers had little or no positive impact.

I suppose it was the best Jamie could do under the circumstances, but obvious now that these guys do not have the talent to compete in the ACC. Smith probably with the best contributions, but has all but disappeared against better competition. Someone needs to tell him that a shooting guard needs to shoot.

I agree with RKB and others that say that Wilson must play more, if only to get him ready for next year.

I think Jones is the biggest disappointment on the team. A starter last year, this should have been his year to be the guy. He has the skills, just doesn’t seem to have the will.

Comment by gc 02.09.16 @ 10:25 am

For me, the most maddening player is JR. I want to break s@#$ every time he finally gins up the courage to penetrate, only to stop in the middle of the lane and look to pass it back out to the perimeter. Combine that with failing to push the tempo on break opportunities and horrid shooting and he is a useless PG. His shortcomings drag down the whole team down with him. I hate to criticize a 21- or 22-year old, but he’s a 4-year starter and shouldn’t be having these kind of issues. He’s pretty much reached Ashton Gibbs territory for me – I can’t wait until his career is over. And at least AG had the excuse that he was forced to play out of position for most of his senior year. If JR sucks it up in the first half tonight, Wilson should get the lion’s share of the minutes in the second half. Trial by fire. What do they have to lose?

Comment by Carmen 02.09.16 @ 11:09 am

On the Dixon contract issue:

*With his contract running through 2023, with probably between $10-$15 million buyout, his decent win/loss record and no Pitino like scandals, Dixon is absolutely UNFIREABLE at this point.

*The Dixon extension was ridiculous. I said it at the time and have said it ever since. It was an over reaction to the rumors that west coast teams were interested in him combined with the mess Smug Smile made of the coaching situation with football.

*There are very, very few college basketball coaches who are truly worth the money they’re paid. If you just use the “WAR” Wins Above Replacement model, there aren’t many who can either recruit or coach soooo much better that they can achieve a sustainable winning program ABOVE what an average D1 coach could achieve.

*For example, you’ll never convince me that a middle of the pack D1 (or in many cases D2) coach wouldn’t win as many games @Pitt as Dixon does. Take Mitch Henderson at a Princeton as an example. He’s smarter than Jamie, he’s more articulate, he’s a better recruiter and knows as much basketball (if not more). You can’t convince me he wouldn’t do just as well at Pitt as Jamie. Yet Henderson makes 1/10th of what Dixon makes. How does that make sense? The 1% of coaches who truly make a difference (like Calipari with recruiting or Izzo with his program building or Coach K with his reputation), have driven up the price for all these average bears, like Dixon.

*Smug Smile Steve is the gift that keeps giving. He felt compelled to over pay Dixon and he saddled us with an average bear for the next 5 years. Thanks Stevie.

Comment by Boubacar Aw 02.09.16 @ 12:18 pm

Tossing – So we keep blaming Pederson for Dixon’s failures?

Barnes absolutely gets it? Show me examples…. The money being spent is from Gallagher.

Comment by Upittbaseball 02.09.16 @ 12:33 pm

Do some of you believe that Dixon is absolutely incapable of fielding a winning team? Some weird hyperbolic notions here that the guy was given a huge contract on his first day and has never produced a favorable result.

Comment by tacocat 02.09.16 @ 12:45 pm

Taco- we’re just ready for change. We want better results. Even earlier this year I thought Dixon had turned a corner and we were primed to be a top 5 seed. Now we’re two games away from being out of the field completely. It’s frustrating. There’s probably a good assistant somewhere that would be open to coming to Pitt and recruiting offensive players (afterall that’s what every rule change has been geared towards) and be willing to let guys play and make mistakes and learn. Dixon has his favorites and often doesn’t care when they screw up. Tonight they’ll get hammered download and on Sunday too, unless they turn it to a track meet. We’ve never seen Dixon be willing to do that despite the obvious lack of talent to play with the big boys in the half court.

Comment by ShorePitt 02.09.16 @ 1:03 pm

We have a lot of depth that you would think we could wear teams down by running more.

Comment by ShorePitt 02.09.16 @ 1:04 pm

GC … it isn’t just that 5th year transfers are/were a bad experiment … it is getting the right transfers … Louisville got 2 that seemed to fit right in and perform at a high level. Cleveland State and Drexel … decent programs but nothing to write home about. Our transfers, Brown, Richmond and Coppin State – not terribly different but the guys just aren’t performing as well

Comment by Tomas 02.09.16 @ 1:10 pm

I watched Duke and Louisville guards last night…what a difference from watching our guard play..hoping for a positive result tonight……teams are double teaming Artis and Young. This team really needs a guard or anyone to step up tonight and on a consistent basis for the rest of the year. Too many times vs. UVA did JR pick up his dribble in the lane and put himself in a bad position. It seems that when Jeter plays well, he gives the rest of the team a lift…hoping that JD doesn’t sit Jeter tonight for most of the 1st half like he did vs. UVA

Comment by Jerry S 02.09.16 @ 1:31 pm

Tomas, those guys went to Louisville for a chance to go deep in the NCAA’s. Didn’t work out for them but as with normal recruiting the good fifth year guys go to the best programs.

Jamie is better off bringing in guys that will develop over 4 or 5 years. A few years of extremely sub-par recruiting have emptied his pipeline. A guy like Luther would have benefited from a redshirt and given more time to develop has been playing before he is ready.

A great fifth year guy should be gravy, but when you are in dire need of two starters, something is dramatically wrong.

Comment by gc 02.09.16 @ 1:47 pm

Carmen, less disappointed with JR, because we have known for a long time what his ceiling and limitations are. At least Gibbs had a great junior year. Lately Jamie has had too many guys that never got better, like Robinson, Jones, Newkirk and DJ. Unlike his previous teams with Young, Wannamaker, McGhee, Gray, Patterson, Zanna and others who were significantly better by their junior years. Artis looks to be one of those guys and Jeter is borderline. Young has gotten better each year but he was pretty good to begin with.

Comment by gc 02.09.16 @ 1:57 pm

The game tonight is one of the first that I’m not even excited to watch. Normally a Pitt basketball game is the centerpiece of my day but now I’m sitting here pondering if we’ll be far enough behind to justify me switching over to watch The Flash at 8pm.

Comment by tacocat 02.09.16 @ 2:09 pm

U people r experts now??? I keep stressing the fact that Pitt doesn’t have a center. These kids r doing the best they can with what they have… Ease up, Already !!! Most of u don’t even know what ur looking at , u r not experts and all u do is criticize these kids. Don’t watch if u can’t be supportive… These kids “Owe u NOTHING”…

Comment by Mona 02.09.16 @ 5:50 pm

Relax Mona…Dixon is taking in 2.5 mil that we know of and is getting most of the heat here, as well as his assistants who can’t recruit….and Pitt’s guards stink too BTW, starting with a guy who’s been starting for 4 years at PG. It’s not just the lack of a center.

We all agree that the kids are doing the best they can with what they have…..but that’s the point. Most of them should be playing at Robert Morris or Duquesne, not Pitt.

Comment by Jackagain 02.09.16 @ 6:08 pm

It is difficult for these kids when their coach suffers from “mania”. I agree w u there, and I also question a lot of his decisions. I don’t agree w u as far as JR is concerned, he’s a great point guard. He does his job and he does it well. A true PG distributes the ball to the open man; it’s not his job to score. This kid has the best A/T ratio in the entire history of the NCAA. Think about it Jackagain.

Comment by Mona 02.09.16 @ 6:20 pm

Angel Rodrigues was 0 for 6 against Georgia tech , so does he stink now??? Is he terrible too? Come on???

Comment by Mona 02.09.16 @ 7:12 pm

His A/T ratio is a joke…JR doesn’t turn the ball over because he only passes on the perimeter. He doesn’t feed the ball inside or take any chances with his passes. If a guy happens to shoot and make a bucket, he gets an assist.

Comment by Jackagain 02.09.16 @ 10:15 pm

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