You probably know that Kene Chukwuka decided (at last) that he would remain at Pitt. Cynically, his choices were going to be limited — much like Malik Ellison. He played one year of junior college, and if he transferred would have to sit out a year and be a junior. Unlike Ellison, he is not a high-level player, so development and getting on the court are big deals.

Chukwuka has some potential. The hope coming into last year was that he would redshirt first. That became untenable. Don’t give him a green light to shoot threes, and he can be a more effective and efficient player. His minutes will likely go down, which is also a good thing for his overall development.

ACC meetings happened this past week. Jeff Capel along with several other Pitt coaches and administrators were down at Amelia Island. One thing we’ve kind of glossed over on his taking the Pitt job is that he’s really not taken any down time despite the loss of his father late last fall.

“It was weird being on his left,” Capel said. “I was normally on his right. It was. But it’s an amazing opportunity for me, and when all of this went down, it was very important for me to have his guidance.”

It’s the kind of ACC job Capel always wanted, the table where he always wanted a seat, no matter the challenges. He’s rebuilding Pitt’s roster on the fly after the turnover of the disastrous two-season Kevin Stallings regime and he has yet to get any kind of mental break since his father passed away in November. He missed one game then, dove right back into Duke’s season, and went from the Blue Devils’ elimination against Kansas — “It was a charge!” Capel insisted — right into the deep end with the Panthers.

But with his brother Jason aboard as an assistant coach and some clarity over which of the players who were allowed to pursue transfers have decided to return, the time is approaching when Capel can take a step back and absorb not only his personal loss but the way Duke’s season ended.

“That was the only reservation that I had: Did I have the energy to do it?” Capel said. “To be completely honest, I’m exhausted. And I was exhausted. The job has energized me. Once I made the decision that this was something I was going to do, I felt an amazing amount of energy. Most important, this is what my dad would have wanted me to do.”

Additional recruiting anecdote in this story.

Capel was taking a recruit out to dinner when former Steelers linebacker Joey Porter drove past, saw Capel on the sidewalk and circled back to say hello.

It’s the kind of sizzle Pitt basketball once had that Capel hopes to restore, the prime role it can play in a city without a pro basketball team, a sports-mad city that loves a winner – and has had plenty in recent years with the Steelers and Penguins.

“The fans are incredibly passionate,” Capel said. “They just need something to be passionate about again. That’s our job, to create that.”

I’ll quibble over “create.” I think rekindle would be more fitting.