As practice officially starts today, the only positions I personally feel should be set for starters is Carl Krauser at Point Guard and Aaron Gray at Center. Everything else should be expected to be wide open for competition.
Competition will be keen at every position except for Krauser’s point guard slot. The competition at shooting guard and small forward will be particularly close with six players vying for playing time.
Freshman Levance Fields is scheduled to be Krauser’s backup, but Krauser could play shooting guard, too. Ramon, once he is healed from offseason thumb surgery, and Keith Benjamin will compete with Graves for playing time at shooting guard.
The guards appear to be the team’s strength, and they could force Dixon to play a three-guard lineup more than he has in the past.
“We’ve always played three guards in certain instances over the years,” Dixon said. “A number of programs do that. Oftentimes, your smaller players are your better players. Last year, our bigger guys were our better players.”
Except for Fields, the guards can play multiple positions.
“All five of us can play,” Fields said. “We have different combinations we can use.”
Freshman small forward Sam Young, who is 6 feet 6, is expected to make an immediate contribution and perhaps start. He is competing with senior John DeGroat, although Benjamin could play small forward in a pinch.
DeGroat, 6-6, said the competition in workouts is different from last season when most players knew their roles.
“You’ve got a lot of new blood out there, a lot of fresh legs,” DeGroat said. “Everyone is going for it. Every day, it’s been battles and battles.”
Dixon must replace Chevon Troutman and Chris Taft at power forward and center. They combined for 28 points and 15 rebounds a game last season.
Kendall (6-9) and freshman Tyrell Biggs (6-8) will compete at power forward. Kendall played out of position last season at small forward and is looking forward to playing at his more natural spot.
Dixon is going to have a challenge and pressure in figuring out the rotation and crafting a starting line-up. This is the first season in several years where Pitt is almost a completely unknown quantity. This is not a veteran team. It does, however, have highly touted talent.
There’s a reason why Pitt is being projected for middle of the pack in the Big East and a bubble team for the NCAA. No one is sure about this team. It can go either way. That is why this season will also be crucial for Coach Jamie Dixon.
After a great first season that saw them finally go down to a very good Oklahoma St. team in the Sweet 16. Last season was a disappointment. Inconsistency all year long, the failure to develop any sort of rotation or bench, flat, horrible starts, and questionable coaching. This season will go a long way to determining not just Coach Dixon’s future at Pitt, but his overall reputation in coaching. Is he is a very good assistant and recruiter or can he be a good head coach?
This season, Pitt can get off to an average start, but the important thing will be for it to show noticeable and continual improvement over the course of the season. Players have to develop and roles defined for some.
Dixon, at least seems to recognize that the talent is there. He doesn’t seem willing to say much about expectations and goals — beyond the stock and obvious.
Relaxed NCAA rules have allowed coaches more time with their players leading into the start of formal practices today, and Dixon noted that the team’s short, informal workouts in recent weeks have revealed a sense of purpose.
“We’re excited about where we’re at,” he said. “Counting spring, summer and fall workouts, it’s by far the best offseason we’ve had in my seven years here. I’m really impressed with the guys in what they’ve done overall, and that’s everything — conditioning, workouts, academics.
“We’re excited about the young group, the new group that we have, I should say. It’s the best group that we’ve brought in in my seven years that I’ve been here.”
Dixon, indeed, would rather not describe his latest team as being youthful — three freshmen and one junior college transfer figure to challenge for playing time — but rather he labeled it as “a unique group.”
Yesterday was media day for the players, so over the next several days stories about Pitt basketball will be trickling out of the papers.
