Dunlap reporting multiple people have said Capel has asked Knight to be on staff
- Thread starter ratking17
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If capel wants him, I want him. And it would be a smart move as far as reconnecting with the ex players and fan base.
Knight is a "regular" assistant at maybe the worst P6 program. If he is offered the AHC, he'd be insane not to take it. Even if just a regular assistant, he should take it
I agree with the former, but the latter doesn't hold much water. Our former players are almost entirely inconsequential when it comes to building our program. They are not well known or influential. Recruits won't know more than a couple of their names and are unlikely to base any thoughts on their opinions.
He should get whoever he wants. Too much is made of needing a “Pitt Guy”. Anyone who comes here and kicks ass can easily become a “Pitt Guy”
I'd have to imagine he'll ask one of the "lower level" guys from Duke...Nolan Smith type. I'd look at Mike Rice hard too.
No idea who he brings in as his AHC though. I wouldn't think it would be someone like Knight. You'd think it would be a strong X & O type.
No idea who he brings in as his AHC though. I wouldn't think it would be someone like Knight. You'd think it would be a strong X & O type.
If Capel sees value in having on staff - that’s fine. It’s his clean slate to start with, and if BK adds what he needs out of an assistant I trust Capel.
Well he can't be happy at Rutgers but agree not bringing him here just because he's a Pitt guy. If he fills a role Capel thinks needs filled bring him on board and I'll trust he'll do as good a job as he did under Jamie. I think him having been here when times were as good as they ever have been in my life he has a little vested interest in seeing us get back to respectability and hopefully back to where we were need to be but Capel needs to bring in the best staff he can to be successful.
Knight needs to go where he can to best build his resume to position himself to become a HC some day....maybe that’s some place other than Pitt
I disagree on the fact that he is not happy at Rutgers. He is close to family and friends which goes a long way. Pittsburgh is a very tough shut out city, especially for family of coaches who aren't home a lot. Michelle has family she can stop in and visit and has developed a business there herself. Also, SP at RU has them moving in the right direction and with an extension is more secure. The main reason he would make the move IMO is the green stuff! money - and since Rutgers is a state entity and a OPRA exists you can see what he makes pretty easily.
Mike Rice would be my 1st call. He has two five star players waiting to play for him once he gets hired.
No brainer
No brainer
I wouldn't hate Rice, Knight and Nolan Smith
It seems the Duke staff are and have primarily been Duke guys. Maybe Capel feels the Pitt staff should be Pitt guys. Maybe he believes in maintaining some connectivity to the program's past.
Agree...100%...
I wouldn’t want Knight as the first assisnt either.
Need a better coach & recruiter in that role.
He’s got 2 star players on his AAU team? Or is it a prep school?
Either way I want Rice as an assistant.
He's talking about these two from Rice's AAU team:
https://247sports.com/Player/Bryan-Antoine-86994
https://247sports.com/Player/Scottie-Lewis-86974
I want Rice as well. Great recruiter, veteran coach and well connected in areas where we traditionally pulled a lot of our best players from. He'd be a great shout as first chair if Capel wants him.
Mike Rice, Brandin Knight and Nolan Smith would be a pretty damn good staff.
Seek those types of players makes me want Rice even more (even tho you would have to wait a year to get them).
I think with all of the recruiting connections Rice has built the last several years, it makes him that much better of a hire.
As for Knight, has he really brought in any medium/high end talent? Or would we want him more for his coaching?
According to 247, he hasn't. Of course, you have to consider that he's been an assistant at a school with a head coach (Dixon) who had considerable trouble closing and a school with a program in disarray (Rutgers). There's certainly no evidence to suggest that he's a great recruiter, but you'd have that covered by Rice and Smith. I do think that Knight is a guy who can relate to players and I think he could help a lot with development. Plus, you never know, maybe he grows as a recruiter under Capel. He's only 36, after all. We could do worse.
Ya it could work...
If he could be a big part of player development alone, he could make a good 2nd or 3rd assistant.
Is Smith a good recruiter?
Go Pitt
Smith is currently a grad assistant, but everyone raves about his charisma, work ethic and ability to connect with recruits. He's young, he was a superstar in college and he played in the NBA. I think he's going to be an excellent recruiter whenever he gets an assistant job. If not here, it'll happen somewhere very soon.
Yeah, at Duke. He has the same position that Scheyer had before Wojo left for Marquette. I know a lot of Duke fans want to see him get promoted, I've never heard a single negative thing about him from those that are connected to Duke's program. Plus he knows how to dress well:
Not disagreeing with you in the least - Just adding that it kind of sucks that, as a whole, our former players in hoops and football are not visible, not necessarily in decision making roles, in general.
Our former hoops players aren't visible because they didn't/haven't made NBA impacts as players or NCAAB/NBA coaches, other than Steven Adams, who was only here for one season.
I have no doubt he values a guy like Brandin because of their shared recruiting grounds. Also because as someone above stated, Brandin as a player is Pitt royalty arguably the second best player in program history. You think Capel knows a bit about why lineage is important when selling a program?
Brandin needs to be in the third chair if that's the case though, not the second chair.
Brandin needs to be in the third chair if that's the case though, not the second chair.
There are thousands of players who had solid NCAA careers who never got a sniff at the NBA. I don't think that should disqualify a guy from being a visible basketball alumnus. The same can be said for football.
Once a Pitt Man, always a Pitt Man and that should also extend to athletics.
I agree and he would probably run through a brick wall to get back into coaching at this level. Ultimately though Capel has to be comfortable with the guys he hires, and I have no idea if they know each other.
It appears that Chris Carrawell is coming back to the Duke staff from Wojo's Marquette squad which means that Nolan Smith is likely heading your way. That's tremendous news for you guys... Smith, is one of the best guys you'll ever come across. His dad was Derek Smith whose name should ring a bell for all the old farts (like me) as he was on Louisville's 1980 championship "Doctors of Dunk" team. Nolan's exceptionally tied into the DC/Baltimore AAU scene having come up through there with the likes of Michael Beasley on some great DC Assault teams.
He's a "can't miss" kind of guy. To be honest, we always knew that we'd probably lose Capel if K didn't retire soon so seeing him go hurts but isn't surprising. But part of the thought process for me was that if he does leave Nolan could step in and really shine and while I like Carrawell, losing Nolan really stings.
I guarantee that if Smith ends up on Capel's staff within 3 months there will be at least one "I met Nolan Smith today and he couldn't have been cooler" stories on this board.
He's a "can't miss" kind of guy. To be honest, we always knew that we'd probably lose Capel if K didn't retire soon so seeing him go hurts but isn't surprising. But part of the thought process for me was that if he does leave Nolan could step in and really shine and while I like Carrawell, losing Nolan really stings.
I guarantee that if Smith ends up on Capel's staff within 3 months there will be at least one "I met Nolan Smith today and he couldn't have been cooler" stories on this board.
Right, and the overwhelming majority are not "visible basketball alums". Most aren't local and they don't help sell the program without some sort of notable public presence, so I am not sure what you expect them to be involved in.
Listening to him this morning, it would seem he does value that from his comments about how Duke's bench has been filled with alums over the years. If he is comfortable with BK, and believes him to be an asset, go for it.
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