Capel has been criticized for his gameday coaching but I thought the strategy of coming out and going at them inside instead of chucking up 3s was really big because it got us off to a good start. Perhaps we miss our first 7 3s and get down early and dont recover. He saw something in their defense and got a few paint buckets for Hinson and then a few lobs to Fede. Looked like a completely different team in terms of what they try to attack.
Georgia Tech Game & Other Dribbles ...
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Capel has done a little coaching lately. I think your right that he wants them to try to work inside out as opposed to outside in. They have had good dribble penetration the last couple games. Hopefully it wasn't just bad defense by Duke and Tech. Anyway, I was getting used to Jeff sitting passively on the sideline most of the game. Lately, it seems he is up and engaged with the players encouraging them to stick with the game plan.
Also the decision to start Fede and have him key on Flip and run him off the 3 point line. He had made 9 of his last 10 3s and usually ends the game vs us early with a 1st Half 3 point barrage. He didnt make a 3 in the 1st Half Saturday.
Yes
He is the physical low post bull that rebounds that this program has desperately needed for 6 years under Capel. Elite defender, Elite on the hedge, good foot movement and lateral quickness and holds down the paint. He is going to start next year with Guillermo likely taking over the 4. Relentless motor with tenacity.
🤞
Hope PK has a full recovery and can get a good, full off-season to work on his game. Conditioning is also an important consideration for big guys.
Him being able to be a factor, along with the current signees to add to the roster, should be a plus. Plus there will be a chance to add a piece or 2 in the Portal.
Then there is the matter of keeping the other guys, who are playing big parts this season and eligible to return, on the Pitt roster. IF they all come back this should be an improved group for 2024-‘25.
Regardless, really would prefer that Pitt fill all 13 allowable scholarship spots. Pitt has been burnt by the unpredictable and the unexpected. With the Portal and NIL now, rosters are more “year-to-year” than ever. Fill up and adjust if needed. But don’t get caught undermanned or shorthanded.
We have not had a big man that plays anywhere near as "hard" as Kante in a very long time. When I say relentless motor I should probably capitalize it.
Performed very well in the EYBL and was the best defensive player on the best defensive team in the EYBL. His offer sheet also speaks for itself. Also, he is extremely coachable and an outstanding teammate.
Im confident with what I said.
You might enjoy this. This is the 1st time around when Kante committed to Michigan. This is an interview with Kante and also perspective on his game and what he brings to the table and his attitude from someone other than me.
Ann Arbor was ecstatic when they got this guy. And we should be too. He is being quite underrated on this board by what this board thinks he is as a player. I watched at least 10 NY Rens games with Kante if anyone wants to know.
Remember this about Papa Kante -
1) He tore an ACL and that's a devastating injury for a big man
2) The same guy pumped Max Amadasun
Let's wait til he actually puts on a Pitt uniform before worrying about him. Always next year smh
1) He tore an ACL and that's a devastating injury for a big man
2) The same guy pumped Max Amadasun
Let's wait til he actually puts on a Pitt uniform before worrying about him. Always next year smh
I'll never understand the hype some people give to guys who have never played a game in college at this level. I'll wait until I see this guy in a Pitt uniform and performing even adequately before saying anything about him. He has to prove himself.
For every one guy they hype that does actually perform well, there are 10 they hyped who didn't.
We have 2 of the best freshmen guards in the country in Lowe and Carrington.
Dior Johnson is the best player in juco basketball.
Judah Mintz is on track for 1st team all acc.
RJ Davis is the frontrunner for ACC player of the year.
My hype appears to be legit.
Its going to take several years for him or any non-elite frosh big to become a plus player.
Judah Mintz isn't here. Dior Johnson is a criminal. RJ Davis isn't here despite Steph freaking Curry being on campus for his visit.
And they are playing well. Good guards. But plenty of freshmen guards will be drafted in the first round of this year's NBA Draft. They will not be.
You also hyped:
Max Amadasun
Karim Coulaliby
Femi Odukale (hint, who's the only person on the board who knew he stunk)
Ithiel Horton
William Jeffress
John Hugley
Marlon Barnes
The Diaz twins
Basically you hype every player Pitt gets. We've been to the tournament one time in six years and are 3-5 in a bad ACC yet you are gonna pull a muscle patting yourself on the back.
Jakobe Walter, Rob dillingham, reed Shepard, Stephon Castle, Isaiah Collier
Those are the 5 best freshmen guards in the country.
Bub is somewhere in the 6-10 range and Lowe is somewhere in that 10-20 range. Really good guards. Now he needs to not have the team fall apart and keep them, then improve them next year.
Those are the 5 best freshmen guards in the country.
Bub is somewhere in the 6-10 range and Lowe is somewhere in that 10-20 range. Really good guards. Now he needs to not have the team fall apart and keep them, then improve them next year.
Lowe and Carrington are very good. But that's it. The rest are players who aren't at Pitt and are irrelevant to this discussion. I only care about the artificial hype for Pitt commits and players. And the debate can be made that Carrington has not played up to expectations yet. Give him some time to reach the level of your hype. Lowe is the better guard at this time of the 2.
And there are scores of players you hyped that never amounted to much of anything.
Sorry if this isn't what you want to hear. But I'll wait until I see Kante or Cummings in a Pitt uniform and playing in real games at the college level. Meaning ACC games. I'm frankly tired of the unfulfilled hype of many of these players.
I actually think that Lowe is better than Carrington at this time, but that's just me.
You're right, though. Lowe and Carrington aren't among the top 5 freshmen guards in the country right now.
I wonder how many people know that Carrington and Lowe are the number 2 and 3 scorers on this team in acc conference play. And number 4, Leggett, who had his injury issues, really isn't close to passing either of them right now.
That's the thing. If these hyped players were so good, why have we stunk so badly the last 6 years with the one exception of last year, when we had veteran players at key positions, not hyped freshmen?
He’s as good at cherry picking as SMF. It’s hysterical.
Elite is a strong word. And that's really impossible to say until we see him play against high major D1 competition on a regular basis. It takes most big men rated where he is a few years to develop.
Frontcourt is an area Pitt should consider portal help.
Maybe you guys would feel better if Vader said every player we get sucks. He was right that we got two really good freshman guards, and he is going to be right that Cummings is vastly underrated. Not sure about Kante, but, considering our current bigs, I am willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. Of course, none of it matters if Capel doesn't have them all back and ready to go.
We are getting producers in the EYBL in the last 2 classes besides Barnes and Ndiaye. Players that dont produce in the summer leagues struggle in college at least the first few years, redshirt, or bust. And you can see why Barnes is redshirting, he didn't produce well in the summer league and he didn't even play in the top summer league in the summer. Carrington and Lowe were great producers in the EYBL and they got better as the sessions continued.
Guys like Cummings and Kante are significant recruiting wins. Players that average almost 20 points per game in the EYBL pushing top 5 in EYBL scoring or bigs that are around a double double or better will produce in college and they will produce early. These production results don't come often. The amount of bigs for example that average near a double double in the EYBL is probably around 8 players per class. Thats it. In other words, they are few and far between.
Its not like Im making this stuff up. Players like Mintz and RJ Davis killed it in the EYBL too. And their results in college speak for themselves.
We need to continue to recruit producers in the EYBL and limit recruiting guys with "potential" like Barnes and Ndiaye.
Big men are often different. They usually don't live up to the hype early in their college careers. Thats not on them either. That's on the people setting unrealistic expectations.
Brandon Garrison & Aaron Bradshaw have shown flashes here and there, but nowhere near what the hype was coming into the season. I know Bradshaw had the foot injury, but we're about to go into Feruary..
Obviously Kante is going to help. I don't know if he makes the front court a team strength though. That's a big ask.
