Thoughts on the Future of Jamie Dixon ...

[DT_PITT]

** After the Panther loss to the Badgers, there was only one thing I knew completely for certain. That is the "Fire Dixon!" contingent would be out in full force on the PantherLair.

** I’m not in that contingent.

** It’s an understatement to say that Dixon didn’t coach his best game on Friday night. And with that, second guessing the coach follows. We all get that. But let’s try to look at the bigger picture.

** Before getting into a deeper dive into Dixon and the program, let’s make one thing completely clear. He’s not going to be fired, and not just because he’s got a huge buyout making it economically unfeasible. It’s my understanding is that Barnes and Gallagher are very pleased with Dixon, and there is no way in the world the any AD and Chancellor are going to fire a coach with the success Dixon has had, including making three of the last four NCAA Tournaments, while maintaining a highly respectable program. That would be ridiculous.

** Those who somehow think that Gallagher is “all in” on sports success, any more than Nordenberg, are likely to be very disappointed.

** Otherwise, there are so many places to go next, so I’ll start by sharing the conversation about Dixon I had with my very good friend of nearly 40 years as we watched our kids at a swimming meet today.

** He’s done with Dixon. For him, like many others I suppose, last night was the straw that broke the camel’s back. In some respects, that part I can understand.

** But there’s much more to his opinion I can’t understand. That is, he believes that the first eight years of Dixon’s career at Pitt were only carryover from Howland, and luck because he snagged the local kid in DeJuan Blair. Accordingly, he believes that the last five years of Dixon are the only results truly indicative of Dixon’s abilities as a coach. In short, he doesn’t believe now (as he probably never believed) that Jamie Dixon has the attributes one needs to be a high level coach. He said the last five years are proving him right.

** I say now what I said to him then. That’s crap.

** Nonetheless, I do suspect there are many who want Dixon gone now, who at least in some ways, agree with part of my friends’ notion that Dixon wasn’t really ever that good to begin with.

** This is why I suspect some pick apart Dixon’s idiosyncrasies, at times like catty school girls, as if we have the only coach in the country who is stubborn or is wildly demonstrative on the sidelines.

** If one is to assess Dixon and the current state of the Pitt Basketball program, I believe there are two very important “givens.” If these two givens can’t be accepted, I don’t know where any middle ground can exist.

** These are: 1) Jamie Dixon is a highly capable Division One Basketball coach and 2) the program, while not nearly where it was in 2011, is not in shambles.

** I think it’s also important to reiterate how incredibly good this program was during Jamie Dixon’s first eight years, and how hard it is for any coach, not to mention at a program without previous high level success such as Pittsburgh, to perform at such as high level for so long.

** I don’t think many Panther fans realize how hard this is, and because of it, don’t want to credit the man responsible, or think it can easily be replicated.

** It’s not easy to have a career in the Big East that ended in that League with the highest winning percentage of any coach in that League. Ever. But that’s what he did. That’s not a fluke. That’s a man who knows how to coach.

** Still, whether it be easy or not, this is indeed the bar Dixon has set for himself and the Panther Hoops program. It’s understandable that he should receive criticism that he’s now falling well short of that high bar.

** So let’s get to that falling short side of things. We live in a world where many folks say “what have you done for me lately?” That’s reality.

** A year ago, many asked me if I thought Dixon should be on the hot seat, and at the time I replied no. But I also suggested that if things didn’t look any better a year later, I might be singing a little bit of a different tune.

** Perhaps I must confess that my response even signaled that I started my own clock ticking on Dixon.

** I do think this year’s results slowed the ticking of that clock for me, even if it be ever so slightly. But it is one more year of only adequate success against the high standard Dixon set for himself. And I think it’s fair to suggest the clock is still ticking, and the fact that another year has gone by matters.

** If you are concerned that things won’t be much improved next season, and could possibly get worse, I’m not going to try to convince you that the thought is off base. That’s because that could be the way it goes. I wish I could say I was highly confident it won’t be the case.

** But I have seen the man who I know can coach rebuild his program several times in his tenure, and that’s why I believe he’s the best chance to do it again.

** I know there are those who do think Dixon can coach, but just don’t think he’ll be able to get this team back to where it was. Maybe you think something has changed. Maybe the ACC, or different kids, or recruiting strategies, or anything else. I completely understand the logic here, and again, I wish I could say that I was highly confident this thought won’t end up being right.

** Let’s face it. Dixon has his work cut out for him. I don’t know how much his returning upperclassmen players can improve, nor how much the newcomers will add. And we could go into next year without Artis or Young or both.

** I also don’t know how much changing assistants is required. I know this is a popular thought here on the Lair, but I honestly don’t have any spurious information to make any responsible judgement as to whether an assistant or two needs to go.

** It’s logical to think Dixon needs to shake things up for a program that has flatlined at a spot lower than where it thrived. If it’s his assistants that need to be shaken up and Dixon resists that idea due to loyalty, stubbornness, if not lack of insight, then that’s on him if this is what holds the program back from where it once was.

** But the shakeup I see that needs to take place more than any other is that Dixon’s players need to get better. Either they need to get more talented ones or they need to become more connected to what Dixon is coaching, much like was the case for Dixon’s first 8 years.

** If you believe my given that the program is not in shambles, then you might also agree that totally breaking it up at this time just doesn’t make sense.

** Regardless, I still believe the best chance to get the program back to where it was is using the abilities of the man who put it there in the first place.

** I don’t know if he’ll get us back there, and my ticking clock metaphor demonstrates that it would be disingenuous to deny that I’m at least a little concerned or impatient.

** I believe it will become completely clear when or if the time comes that Dixon’s time here must end. Heck, maybe Dixon will head out to Stanford or TCU in the next few days and that time will become sooner than later.

** But for now, that time is not now.

 

[pghboy]

DT

Respect your dribbles and your insight but as someone who runs a multi mlllion dollar business something has to change.

I do not believe at this time firing Dixon is the answer as he can flat out coach but something has to give.

What are your thoughts on the solution?

 

[bobfree]

Great thoughts.


I could have done without the catty schoolgirls comment.

I think some Dixon fans act like wives of Dixon. How does that advance anything.

But just a small point.

 

[Panthervision]

Good thoughts DT. My thoughts on Jamie is that he hired great assistants at the beginning of his tenure. Keeping slice adding Lombardi ,Herion, and Rice were great moves. Skerry Barton knight Barton have been failures on the recruiting and player development stage.

If Jamie stays we may know what to expect by off season assistant moves or development of players and recruiting.

 

[steel_curtain]

-Have to recruit better. We have had literally zero guard talent. Everyone knew Robinson was a pass first point guard. The guy averaged 11 points per game in high school. That's it. When you dont have consistent scoring to help him and he is forced to try to score, you are trying to jam a square peg in a round hole. In the offseason I thought Sterling Smith could be the difference maker. As the season continued that proved to be incorrect.

-We dont have any guards that can consistently score. None. Finally that changes next year, we have a guard that can score.

-Our 2 guard Chris Jones finished the season shooting 28% from 3. At least its improvement over Cam Wright, who tried to single handidly redefine the word shooting guard, as a 3 pointer from him, you have a better chance of winning some type of lottery.

-I dont know what it is and this programs failure to recruit any type of guard that can shoot the basketball consistently. Is it really that difficult to find a true guard that can shoot? Midmajor programs find these players constantly. Again, what are we doing.

-The guards on on our current team are completely 1 dimensional. They can't penetrate that well, and they cant shoot. We are in dire need this off season to try to bring in another guard that can either shoot or penetrate, one or the other. And For pete sake give the word rebounding a rest already Dixon. I hope Dixon doesnt invest his money in the stock market. He doesn't really like the word diversification. Just rebounding.

 

[SouthSidePanther]

I think the ACC move got to Dixon in the sense that he thought he needed to change his recruiting philosophy and go after more athletic scoring types like Artis and Young.

However, his issues are two-fold. One, he is striking out on plan a targets and ending up with second tier recruits that are athletic to a degree but lack the signature toughness and high basketball IQ of the early years of the regime. Two, even when Pitt has an athletic advantage, Dixon just can't bring himself to let his players play loose uptempo (like against Wisconsin).

Dixon won't wade into the recruiting cesspool and apparently is unable or unwilling to change his defense/rebounding emphasis. I think he needs to re-examine what made the program strong in the first place and recruit players willing and able to execute his basketball philosophy, regardless of conference affiliation. Perhaps Kithcart and Maginault are a step in that direction.

 

[DT_PITT]

Great thoughts.


I could have done without the catty schoolgirls comment.

I think some Dixon fans act like wives of Dixon. How does that advance anything.

But just a small point.

Small point, but fair, as is your suggestion in rebuttal.
But I'll stand by it.

 

[DT_PITT]

DT

Respect your dribbles and your insight but as someone who runs a multi mlllion dollar business something has to change.

I do not believe at this time firing Dixon is the answer as he can flat out coach but something has to give.

What are your thoughts on the solution?

Yes, something has to give.

I think the solution is very simple and incredibly difficult.

Dixon needs to get his players to play better, and/or get better players.

For his first eight years (and even for 2012-13, 2013-14 for that matter), I saw a group of players who where bought into what their coach wanted them to do.

That has not looked to be the case to the same extent the last two years.

So either he needs to continue to stress what he does and what he expects and get them on board or get different players.

Perhaps an assistant coach shakeup will send a message to the team. I simply do not know about that.

 

[DT_PITT]

I think the ACC move got to Dixon in the sense that he thought he needed to change his recruiting philosophy and go after more athletic scoring types like Artis and Young.

However, his issues are two-fold. One, he is striking out on plan a targets and ending up with second tier recruits that are athletic to a degree but lack the signature toughness and high basketball IQ of the early years of the regime. Two, even when Pitt has an athletic advantage, Dixon just can't bring himself to let his players play loose uptempo (like against Wisconsin).

Dixon won't wade into the recruiting cesspool and apparently is unable or unwilling to change his defense/rebounding emphasis. I think he needs to re-examine what made the program strong in the first place and recruit players willing and able to execute his basketball philosophy, regardless of conference affiliation. Perhaps Kithcart and Maginault are a step in that direction.

Very, very fair suggestion.

 

[bobfree]

Small point, but fair, as is your suggestion in rebuttal.
But I'll stand by it.

And that's your prerogative.

Great thoughts though seriously.

Everything matters. And when you win it matters less and when you lose it matters more.

This seems like a more time.

I'd break his tenure into two but that's been discussed ad nauseum.

I just don't know why someone who is recruiting at an 80 in the country level is going to start bringing in talent that's going to move us up from where we are.

 

[Saboteur]

Great thoughts.


I could have done without the catty schoolgirls comment.

I think some Dixon fans act like wives of Dixon. How does that advance anything.

But just a small point.

Im not a fan of the catty schoolgirl metaphor myself, but that aside the assessment ignores that the primary job of a college coach is to find and develop talent.
That's not the responsibility of some outside 3rd party.
Pitt will do what it thinks is best...of that I have no doubt.
But it had better be prepared for thousands of empty seats in (for a P5 program) a medium sized arena.

 

[Protes]

I'll reply with the patented DT double asterisks.

**As frustrated as this Pitt fan is in our decline and latest March failure, I've refrained in joining the chorus who say he needs to go.

**Though admittedly, I thought it might have been time to go before he got his big contract. And I will also admit that I think there's at least an iota of truth in your friend's argument.

**That said, as fans we often say a team is never quite as good or as bad as it looks. Perhaps the same can be said for a coach. And last night Jamie looked very bad. Nadir bad.

**The flip side is, Jamie Dixon just took a team to the Big Dance that easily could have been--and perhaps should have been--on the outside looking in. From an eye test perspective they certainly did not look worthy.

**I don't think any among us had much faith in this bunch for reasons that have been talked about ad nauseum. But I also saw a team yesterday that not only did fans not believe in, but a team that didn't seem to believe in themselves.

**The bottom line is good players make coaches look good. And right now we do not have a lot of good players. Basketball is more than athletic ability, we all know. And this is probably the lowest basketball IQ team Jamie's ever had.

**I can't say I'm confident either that Jamie can turn things around. The ACC is a different animal than the old Big East IMO. Even in very good years, we'll be lucky to be the 4th best team. But the bottom line is Jamie has to find a way to get us to that level and it will indeed only happen with better recruiting and recruiting the right players, of course.

**Jamie has shown that if he has those players he can succeed.

**However, last night's debacle still left open the criticism that despite his regular season successes, Jamie has consistently fallen short in the Big Dance. For whatever reason, we never play our best in the NCAAT and Jamie also frequently seems to get out-coached.

**Yesterday, though, he outsmarted himself.

 

[DT_PITT]

And that's your prerogative.

Great thoughts though seriously.

Everything matters. And when you win it matters less and when you lose it matters more.

This seems like a more time.

I'd break his tenure into two but that's been discussed ad nauseum.

I just don't know why someone who is recruiting at an 80 in the country level is going to start bringing in talent that's going to move us up from where we are.

I'm not sure I'd agree with the #80 suggestion. This would apply perhaps to the group of Luther, Cam and Sheldon (and as a transfer wouldn't have been included). I don't even know how they ranked last year's class with 3 grad transfers actually. But the Kithcart, Corey, Chrishaw group seems solid, if unspectacular.

Still, Luther and Cam could end up being pretty darn good.

But no one can say it any better than:

Everything matters. And when you win it matters less and when you lose it matters more.

This seems like a more time.

Truer words there cannot be!

 

[wbrpanther]

** After the Panther loss to the Badgers, there was only one thing I knew completely for certain. That is the "Fire Dixon!" contingent would be out in full force on the PantherLair.

** I’m not in that contingent.

** It’s an understatement to say that Dixon didn’t coach his best game on Friday night. And with that, second guessing the coach follows. We all get that. But let’s try to look at the bigger picture.

** Before getting into a deeper dive into Dixon and the program, let’s make one thing completely clear. He’s not going to be fired, and not just because he’s got a huge buyout making it economically unfeasible. It’s my understanding is that Barnes and Gallagher are very pleased with Dixon, and there is no way in the world the any AD and Chancellor are going to fire a coach with the success Dixon has had, including making three of the last four NCAA Tournaments, while maintaining a highly respectable program. That would be ridiculous.

** Those who somehow think that Gallagher is “all in” on sports success, any more than Nordenberg, are likely to be very disappointed.

** Otherwise, there are so many places to go next, so I’ll start by sharing the conversation about Dixon I had with my very good friend of nearly 40 years as we watched our kids at a swimming meet today.

** He’s done with Dixon. For him, like many others I suppose, last night was the straw that broke the camel’s back. In some respects, that part I can understand.

** But there’s much more to his opinion I can’t understand. That is, he believes that the first eight years of Dixon’s career at Pitt were only carryover from Howland, and luck because he snagged the local kid in DeJuan Blair. Accordingly, he believes that the last five years of Dixon are the only results truly indicative of Dixon’s abilities as a coach. In short, he doesn’t believe now (as he probably never believed) that Jamie Dixon has the attributes one needs to be a high level coach. He said the last five years are proving him right.

** I say now what I said to him then. That’s crap.

** Nonetheless, I do suspect there are many who want Dixon gone now, who at least in some ways, agree with part of my friends’ notion that Dixon wasn’t really ever that good to begin with.

** This is why I suspect some pick apart Dixon’s idiosyncrasies, at times like catty school girls, as if we have the only coach in the country who is stubborn or is wildly demonstrative on the sidelines.

** If one is to assess Dixon and the current state of the Pitt Basketball program, I believe there are two very important “givens.” If these two givens can’t be accepted, I don’t know where any middle ground can exist.

** These are: 1) Jamie Dixon is a highly capable Division One Basketball coach and 2) the program, while not nearly where it was in 2011, is not in shambles.

** I think it’s also important to reiterate how incredibly good this program was during Jamie Dixon’s first eight years, and how hard it is for any coach, not to mention at a program without previous success such as Pittsburgh, to perform at such as high level for so long.

** I don’t think many Panther fans realize how hard this is, and because of it, don’t want to credit the man responsible, or think it can easily be replicated.

** It’s not easy to have a career in the Big East that ended in that League with the highest winning percentage of any coach in that league. Ever. But that’s what he did. That’s not a fluke. That’s a man who knows how to coach.

** Still, whether it be easy or not, this is indeed the bar Dixon has set for himself and the Panther Hoops program. It’s understandable that he should receive criticism that he’s now falling well short of that high bar.

** So let’s get to that falling short side of things. We live in a world where many folks say “what have you done for me lately?” That’s reality.

** A year ago, many asked me if I thought Dixon should be on the hot seat, and at the time I replied no. But I also suggested that if things didn’t look any better a year later, I might be singing a little bit of a different tune.

** Perhaps I must confess that my response even signaled that I started my own clock ticking on Dixon.

** I do think this year’s results slowed the ticking of that clock for me, even if it be ever so slightly. But it is one more year of only adequate success against the high standard Dixon set for himself. And I think it’s fair to suggest the clock is still ticking, and the fact that another year have gone by matters.

** If you are concerned that things won’t be much improved next season, and could possibly get worse, I’m not going to try to convince you that the thought is off base. That’s because that could be the way it goes. I wish I could say I was highly confident it won’t be the case.

** But I have seen the man who I know can coach rebuild his program several times in his tenure, and that’s why I believe he’s the best chance to do it again.

** I know there are those who do think Dixon can coach, but just don’t think he’ll be able to get this team back to where it was. Maybe you think something has changed. Maybe the ACC, or different kids, or recruiting strategies, or anything else. I completely understand the logic here, and again, I wish I could say that I was highly confident this thought won’t end up being right.

** Let’s face it. Dixon has his work cut out for him. I don’t know how much his returning upperclassmen players can improve, nor how much the newcomers will add. And we could go into next year without Artis or Young or both.

** I also don’t know how much changing assistants is required. I know this is a popular thought here on the Lair, but I honestly don’t have any spurious information to make any responsible judgement as to whether an assistant or two needs to go.

** It’s logical to think Dixon needs to shake things up for a program that has flatlined at a spot lower than where it thrived. If it’s his assistants that need to be shaken up and Dixon resists that idea due to loyalty, stubbornness, if not lack of insight, then that’s on him if this is what holds the program back to where it once was.

** But the shakeup I see that needs to take place more than any other is that Dixon’s players need to get better. Either they need to get more talented ones or they need to become more connected to what Dixon is coaching, much like was the case for Dixon’s first 8 years.

** If you believe my given the program is not in shambles, then you might also agree that totally breaking it up at this time just doesn’t make sense.

** Regardless, I still believe the best chance to get the program back to where it was is using the abilities of the man who put it there in the first place.

** I don’t know if he’ll get us back there, and my ticking clock metaphor demonstrates that it would be disingenuous to deny that I’m at least a little concerned or impatient.

** I believe it will become completely clear when if and when the time comes the Dixon’s time here must end. Heck, maybe Dixon will head out to Stanford or TCU in the next few days and that time will become sooner than later.

** But for now, that time is not now.

To put it simply, I don't think Jamie's coaching should be in question. You can make all the right moves but if the players don't put the ball in the hoop you are going to look like you suddenly forgot how to coach.

What is in question is the personel he has to work with and that is soley on him as the head coach.

I am too old to be jumping off the bridge because my college team went out in the first round. In reality this team achieved just about exactly what everyone thought it would. Middle of the pack ACC. Went onto the dance as a 10 against a 7 and the line said they would lose a close game, which they did.

As I said before these next two years are the key. The transition from the BE has been anything but smooth. Getting the right kind of player in here is crucial and these next two classes need to take care of that problem.

 

[PittPoker]

Respectfully disagree DT. Even in the "success" the first 8 years we totally underachieved come tourney time. We weren't Cinderella's most years where getting to a few sweet 16's and an elite 8 would be amazing. No, we were number 1 seeds, 3 seeds whatever and we continually choked and didn't advance like we should have. 1 or 2 times maybe could be considered an anomoly. 7 or 8 or 10 times is considered a bad trend.

Sorry Jamie has not shown any ability to change. He continues to micromanage his teams, the players start tuning him out and he never stops with his maddening substitutions. Your friend is right imo. The straw that broke the camel's back last night was his decision to bench Luther for 2 grad stiffs that did next to nothing most of the year.

Overall Jamie did some nice things for us but after 13+ years, no uptick in recruiting(74th this year) and dwindling attendance, it is time for Jamie Dixon to go.

 

[DT_PITT]

I'll reply with the patented DT double asterisks.

**As frustrated as this Pitt fan is in our decline and latest March failure, I've refrained in joining the chorus who say he needs to go.

**Though admittedly, I thought it might have been time to go before he got his big contract. And I will also admit that I think there's at least an iota of truth in your friend's argument.

**That said, as fans we often say a team is never quite as good or as bad as it looks. Perhaps the same can be said for a coach. And last night Jamie looked very bad. Nadir bad.

**The flip side is, Jamie Dixon just took a team to the Big Dance that easily could have been--and perhaps should have been--on the outside looking in. From an eye test perspective they certainly did not look worthy.

**I don't think any among us had much faith in this bunch for reasons that have been talked about ad nauseum. But I also saw a team yesterday that not only did fans not believe in, but a team that didn't seem to believe in themselves.

**The bottom line is good players make coaches look good. And right now we do not have a lot of good players. Basketball is more than athletic ability, we all know. And this is probably the lowest basketball IQ team Jamie's ever had.

**I can't say I'm confident either that Jamie can turn things around. The ACC is a different animal than the old Big East IMO. Even in very good years, we'll be lucky to be the 4th best team. But the bottom line is Jamie has to find a way to get us to that level and it will indeed only happen with better recruiting and recruiting the right players, of course.

**Jamie has shown that if he has those players he can succeed.

**However, last night's debacle still left open the criticism that despite his regular season successes, Jamie has consistently fallen short in the Big Dance. For whatever reason, we never play our best in the NCAAT and Jamie also frequently seems to get out-coached.

**Yesterday, though, he outsmarted himself.

Asterisks are the way to go!! So I'll respond to them ...

**Though admittedly, I thought it might have been time to go before he got his big contract. And I will also admit that I think there's at least an iota of truth in your friend's argument. (Not more than an Iota!)

**That said, as fans we often say a team is never quite as good or as bad as it looks. Perhaps the same can be said for a coach. And last night Jamie looked very bad. Nadir bad.
(Not all fans say this, but I wish they did. But yes, Nadir bad.)

**The flip side is, Jamie Dixon just took a team to the Big Dance that easily could have--and perhaps should have--been on the outside looking in. From an eye test perspective they certainly should not have made it.
(And that means something)

**I don't think any among us had much faith in this bunch for reasons that have been talked about ad nauseum. But I also saw a team yesterday that, not only did fans not believe in, but the players didn't seem to believe in themselves.
(They haven't all year, and that's on their coach)

**The bottom line is good players make coaches look good. And right now we do not have a lot of good players. Basketball is more than athletic ability, we all know. And this is probably the lowest basketball IQ team Jamie's ever had.
(A bummer, isn't it)

**I can't say I'm confident either that Jamie can turn things around. The ACC is a different animal than the old Big East IMO. Even in very good years, we'll be lucky to be the 4th best team. But the bottom line is Jamie has to find a way to get us to that level and it will indeed only happen with better recruiting and recruiting the right players, of course.
(I'm not buying the ACC arguments. The differences in the style of play in the league are wildly overstated and we were at the top of the Big East in 2009, and that was an incredible conference that year, much better than the ACC this year.)

**Jamie has shown that if he has those players he can succeed.
(Yes)

**However, last night's debacle still left open the criticism that despite his regular season successes, Jamie has consistently fallen short in the Big Dance. For whatever reason, we never play our best in the NCAAT and Jamie also frequently seems to get out-coached.
(Cannot be denied)

**Yesterday, though, he outsmarted himself.
(Perhaps that too kind of a characterization)

 

[pelfrey]

DT...Jamie is certainly a very respected coach among his peers, and his regular season accomplishments over the years have been impressive. His body of work in the tournament, however, is woeful, and I don't see it changing. He's wound so incredibly tight, and failure like last night, I'm afraid, will only make him (and his players) even tighter next year. I just don't want Jamie calling the shots come the opening tip off of next year's tourney.

Do you?

 

[DT_PITT]

Respectfully disagree DT. Even in the "success" the first 8 years we totally underachieved come tourney time. We weren't Cinderella's most years and getting to a few sweet 16's and an elite 8 would be amazing. No, we were number 1 seeds, 3 seeds whatever and we continually choked and didn't advance like we should have. 1 or 2 times maybe could be considered an anomoly. 7 or 8 or 10 times is considered a bad trend.

Sorry Jamie has not shown any ability to change. He continues to micromanage his teams, the players start tuning him out and he never stops with his maddening substitutions. Your friend is right imo. The straw that broke the camel's back last night was his decision to bench Luther for 2 grad stiffs that did next to nothing most of the year.

Overall Jamie did some nice things for us but after 13+ years, no uptick in recruiting(74th this year) and dwindling attendance, it is time for Jamie Dixon to go.

I have always agreed that we have underachieved come tourney time.

 

[DT_PITT]

DT...Jamie is certainly a very respected coach among his peers, and his regular season accomplishments over the years have been impressive. His body of work in the tournament, however, is woeful, and I don't see it changing. He's wound so incredibly tight, and failure like last night, I'm afraid, will only make him (and his players) even tighter next year. I just don't want Jamie calling the shots come the opening tip off of next year's tourney.

Do you?

Yes, I do.

 

[pelfrey]

Yes, I do.

Fair enough. I genuinely hope Jamie can prove me wrong...

 

[Chairman Moe]

DT, I will throw in a few asterisks too:

How the *!*# did we _____________ (fill in the blank)?
What the *&*^ were ______________ (fill in the blank)?
Why didn't he _____________ (fill in the blank) when he *$*&ing could've?
Where were the *^%*ing ___________________ (fill in the blank)?
When will we ever again be *#@*ing good? (I filled in that blank myself!)
Who the %*%* does _________________ (fill in the blank) think he is? ________? (fill in the blank)

Seriously, we all have been beating this "dead horse" to death the past 24+ hours. I for one am still going to enjoy the tournament, Pitt or no Pitt, and hope that I can at least have a shot at saying I picked the overall National Champion in my bandaged bracket sheet. Plenty of good hoops to watch, even though the team we all support here is no longer playing. Keep the faith brother.

 

[DT_PITT]

Fair enough. I genuinely hope Jamie can prove me wrong...

I hope so too. I wish I could say "don't worry, he will." But I can't.

 

[DT_PITT]

DT, I will throw in a few asterisks too:

How the *!*# did we _____________ (fill in the blank)?
What the *&*^ were ______________ (fill in the blank)?
Why didn't he _____________ (fill in the blank) when he *$*&ing could've?
Where were the *^%*ing ___________________ (fill in the blank)?
When will we ever again be *#@*ing good? (I filled in that blank myself!)
Who the %*%* does _________________ (fill in the blank) think he is? ________? (fill in the blank)

Seriously, we all have been beating this "dead horse" to death the past 24+ hours. I for one am still going to enjoy the tournament, Pitt or no Pitt, and hope that I can at least have a shot at saying I picked the overall National Champion in my bandaged bracket sheet. Plenty of good hoops to watch, even though the team we all support here is no longer playing. Keep the faith brother.

Keep on enjoying the tournament my good man!

 

[Jeffburgh]

He lost his focus and identity in the late 2000s, before the acc accepted pitt.

Started tinkering w what was working, though his guard recruiting has always been spotty.

Haw had a bad run of recruiting kids who dont have the kind of mental toughness they got lucky in getting the first half of thd howland/dixon years.

Hes going on his last stand - kithkart, maginault supported by luther, cam john, clark, and the 2017 class.

 

[ratking17]

I refuse to be in the fire Dixon crowd because I was in school for the Ralph years. I also maintained that Dixon got more out of nothing.

But here is my biggest problem with the program. We used to own the "most improved" award and/or had guys that vastly improved by their senior year. The past few years I have not seen one guy take those types of steps where you said "man, where did he come from." Lamar finally put it together his senior year but he always had the talent. Maybe wannamaker? But the current group of guys just haven't become better. Young and artis are the logical choices for next year but I wonder if the heart is there for jamel. Maybe it's Luther or johnson, but we haven't seen the Aaron greys that go from a player that could barely tie his shoes to a NBA player in a long time. And maybe those guys were just flukes. But I would love to see someone actually improve their overall game for next year

 

[jcpitt]

** After the Panther loss to the Badgers, there was only one thing I knew completely for certain. That is the "Fire Dixon!" contingent would be out in full force on the PantherLair.

** I’m not in that contingent.

** It’s an understatement to say that Dixon didn’t coach his best game on Friday night. And with that, second guessing the coach follows. We all get that. But let’s try to look at the bigger picture.

** Before getting into a deeper dive into Dixon and the program, let’s make one thing completely clear. He’s not going to be fired, and not just because he’s got a huge buyout making it economically unfeasible. It’s my understanding is that Barnes and Gallagher are very pleased with Dixon, and there is no way in the world the any AD and Chancellor are going to fire a coach with the success Dixon has had, including making three of the last four NCAA Tournaments, while maintaining a highly respectable program. That would be ridiculous.

** Those who somehow think that Gallagher is “all in” on sports success, any more than Nordenberg, are likely to be very disappointed.

** Otherwise, there are so many places to go next, so I’ll start by sharing the conversation about Dixon I had with my very good friend of nearly 40 years as we watched our kids at a swimming meet today.

** He’s done with Dixon. For him, like many others I suppose, last night was the straw that broke the camel’s back. In some respects, that part I can understand.

** But there’s much more to his opinion I can’t understand. That is, he believes that the first eight years of Dixon’s career at Pitt were only carryover from Howland, and luck because he snagged the local kid in DeJuan Blair. Accordingly, he believes that the last five years of Dixon are the only results truly indicative of Dixon’s abilities as a coach. In short, he doesn’t believe now (as he probably never believed) that Jamie Dixon has the attributes one needs to be a high level coach. He said the last five years are proving him right.

** I say now what I said to him then. That’s crap.

** Nonetheless, I do suspect there are many who want Dixon gone now, who at least in some ways, agree with part of my friends’ notion that Dixon wasn’t really ever that good to begin with.

** This is why I suspect some pick apart Dixon’s idiosyncrasies, at times like catty school girls, as if we have the only coach in the country who is stubborn or is wildly demonstrative on the sidelines.

** If one is to assess Dixon and the current state of the Pitt Basketball program, I believe there are two very important “givens.” If these two givens can’t be accepted, I don’t know where any middle ground can exist.

** These are: 1) Jamie Dixon is a highly capable Division One Basketball coach and 2) the program, while not nearly where it was in 2011, is not in shambles.

** I think it’s also important to reiterate how incredibly good this program was during Jamie Dixon’s first eight years, and how hard it is for any coach, not to mention at a program without previous high level success such as Pittsburgh, to perform at such as high level for so long.

** I don’t think many Panther fans realize how hard this is, and because of it, don’t want to credit the man responsible, or think it can easily be replicated.

** It’s not easy to have a career in the Big East that ended in that League with the highest winning percentage of any coach in that League. Ever. But that’s what he did. That’s not a fluke. That’s a man who knows how to coach.

** Still, whether it be easy or not, this is indeed the bar Dixon has set for himself and the Panther Hoops program. It’s understandable that he should receive criticism that he’s now falling well short of that high bar.

** So let’s get to that falling short side of things. We live in a world where many folks say “what have you done for me lately?” That’s reality.

** A year ago, many asked me if I thought Dixon should be on the hot seat, and at the time I replied no. But I also suggested that if things didn’t look any better a year later, I might be singing a little bit of a different tune.

** Perhaps I must confess that my response even signaled that I started my own clock ticking on Dixon.

** I do think this year’s results slowed the ticking of that clock for me, even if it be ever so slightly. But it is one more year of only adequate success against the high standard Dixon set for himself. And I think it’s fair to suggest the clock is still ticking, and the fact that another year has gone by matters.

** If you are concerned that things won’t be much improved next season, and could possibly get worse, I’m not going to try to convince you that the thought is off base. That’s because that could be the way it goes. I wish I could say I was highly confident it won’t be the case.

** But I have seen the man who I know can coach rebuild his program several times in his tenure, and that’s why I believe he’s the best chance to do it again.

** I know there are those who do think Dixon can coach, but just don’t think he’ll be able to get this team back to where it was. Maybe you think something has changed. Maybe the ACC, or different kids, or recruiting strategies, or anything else. I completely understand the logic here, and again, I wish I could say that I was highly confident this thought won’t end up being right.

** Let’s face it. Dixon has his work cut out for him. I don’t know how much his returning upperclassmen players can improve, nor how much the newcomers will add. And we could go into next year without Artis or Young or both.

** I also don’t know how much changing assistants is required. I know this is a popular thought here on the Lair, but I honestly don’t have any spurious information to make any responsible judgement as to whether an assistant or two needs to go.

** It’s logical to think Dixon needs to shake things up for a program that has flatlined at a spot lower than where it thrived. If it’s his assistants that need to be shaken up and Dixon resists that idea due to loyalty, stubbornness, if not lack of insight, then that’s on him if this is what holds the program back from where it once was.

** But the shakeup I see that needs to take place more than any other is that Dixon’s players need to get better. Either they need to get more talented ones or they need to become more connected to what Dixon is coaching, much like was the case for Dixon’s first 8 years.

** If you believe my given that the program is not in shambles, then you might also agree that totally breaking it up at this time just doesn’t make sense.

** Regardless, I still believe the best chance to get the program back to where it was is using the abilities of the man who put it there in the first place.

** I don’t know if he’ll get us back there, and my ticking clock metaphor demonstrates that it would be disingenuous to deny that I’m at least a little concerned or impatient.

** I believe it will become completely clear when or if the time comes that Dixon’s time here must end. Heck, maybe Dixon will head out to Stanford or TCU in the next few days and that time will become sooner than later.

** But for now, that time is not now.

"That’s a man who knows how to coach."

DT, a man who "knows how to coach" would not leave his hottest player the past six weeks on the bench for 36 minutes in an NCAA tourney game. Luther playing only 4 minutes in your biggest game of the season is indefensible. How do you explain Jamie's thinking that Maia & Ano could possibly give Pitt a better chance to win than Luther??

 

[Chaos]

"-Our 2 guard Chris Jones finished the season shooting 28% from 3. At least its improvement over Cam Wright, who tried to single handidly redefine the word shooting guard, as a 3 pointer from him, you have a better chance of winning some type of lottery. "

I was asking myself last night if we were better with Wright at the 2 than we were this year. At least he drove the hoop a little, and could hit a mid-range jumper, and play some D. We got nothing from the 2 this year. I never would have thought that we could get worse at the 2 after Wright left, but I think we did.

 

[Pav9870]

DT, thanks for posting. Not easy to have a measured, reasoned discussion of this situation at this time. I think the thing that jumps out to me is your phrase, "they need to become more connected to what Dixon is coaching". I haven't seen a team since Ben took over that showed so little will or desire to execute the coaches plan. Puzzling to me that these players couldn't or wouldn't stay on course.

 

[KiwiJeff]

"-Our 2 guard Chris Jones finished the season shooting 28% from 3. At least its improvement over Cam Wright, who tried to single handidly redefine the word shooting guard, as a 3 pointer from him, you have a better chance of winning some type of lottery. "

I was asking myself last night if we were better with Wright at the 2 than we were this year. At least he drove the hoop a little, and could hit a mid-range jumper, and play some D. We got nothing from the 2 this year. I never would have thought that we could get worse at the 2 after Wright left, but I think we did.

Chris drive the hoop a lot this year. And often it actually went in, and if fouled, could actually make more FTs.

 

[BuffetParrothead]

Not sure about Dixon but after watching Indiana Kentucky we PITT have no hope to compete against the players and coaches my wife and I watched in last nights game.
Our guys have trouble making simple put-ins/ layups, they throw up lots of bricks, and make jams /dunks look like a degree of difficulty of a gymnastics TEN.
I hope you had the pleasure to watch some of the layups/put-ins made in that game. Big guys stuffing the ball from all angles and spots on the court, and guards lighting it up from all over the place.
The biggest difference was:
-both teams Indiana and Kentucky had player / leaders on the court actually moving players around on the court as the game was in progress.
- during timeouts the players were intently gathered around the coaching staffs heads down watching the coaches explain stuff. When they broke the "huddle" lots of talk amoungst the players seemingly going over what they were just told!
Our guys gaze around the arena during timeouts looking halfway interested in whats going on.
Big difference in the interest and level of involvement of the players!

My assessment is those coaches have the interest / respect of their teams and it shows on the court!

 

[Jeffburgh]

I refuse to be in the fire Dixon crowd because I was in school for the Ralph years. I also maintained that Dixon got more out of nothing.

But here is my biggest problem with the program. We used to own the "most improved" award and/or had guys that vastly improved by their senior year. The past few years I have not seen one guy take those types of steps where you said "man, where did he come from." Lamar finally put it together his senior year but he always had the talent. Maybe wannamaker? But the current group of guys just haven't become better. Young and artis are the logical choices for next year but I wonder if the heart is there for jamel. Maybe it's Luther or johnson, but we haven't seen the Aaron greys that go from a player that could barely tie his shoes to a NBA player in a long time. And maybe those guys were just flukes. But I would love to see someone actually improve their overall game for next year

Ive made that point, too.

Getting most improved player was his signature.

I would add sam young in, too.

Sam had raw physical talent, but did not come in as a natural basketball player.

It took a LOT of drive, desire and hard work for him to become the player he became.

IMO, what differentiates him and wannamaker from young and artis is that next level mental toughness.

 

[drgags]

Question. We all agree a talent upgrade is needed. So, can Dixon and current staff evaluate talent? There seems to be a lot of talent at the mid major level we miss on?

 

[Delpanther]

Dixcn was the wrong hire 13 years ago and he's still the wrong hire

Chris drive the hoop a lot this year. And often it actually went in, and if fouled, could actually make more FTs.

Yea but he went GAMES where he put up complete gooseggs. Didn't even shoot the second half against Wiscy. He's a third rate talent.

 

[IamHeisenberg]

Not sure about Dixon but after watching Indiana Kentucky we PITT have no hope to compete against the players and coaches my wife and I watched in last nights game.
Our guys have trouble making simple put-ins/ layups, they throw up lots of bricks, and make jams /dunks look like a degree of difficulty of a gymnastics TEN.
I hope you had the pleasure to watch some of the layups/put-ins made in that game. Big guys stuffing the ball from all angles and spots on the court, and guards lighting it up from all over the place.
The biggest difference was:
-both teams Indiana and Kentucky had player / leaders on the court actually moving players around on the court as the game was in progress.
- during timeouts the players were intently gathered around the coaching staffs heads down watching the coaches explain stuff. When they broke the "huddle" lots of talk amoungst the players seemingly going over what they were just told!
Our guys gaze around the arena during timeouts looking halfway interested in whats going on.
Big difference in the interest and level of involvement of the players!

My assessment is those coaches have the interest / respect of their teams and it shows on the court!

Wow, I watched Kentucky and thought how undisciplined this team is. Thank God they can score because they make more mistakes per minute than we do. I really am not sure what team you watched but it certainly wasn't Kentucky. I knew that they wouldn't pull it out against IU because they act as five individuals on the floor with no leadership whatsoever.

 

[meadvillecoach]

First point: I respect your opinions as much if not more than any poster.Reason, you are level headed and a true Pitt fan.I really enjoy and look forward to reading your posts.

Second: In any program there are going to be knee jersey reactions to what is happening at the present time.

Third: This is where I have a problem figuring out what is going on,I don't think
we have very good players.That said we defeated a bunch of teams that are still playing and came close to a few more.What does that say about a coach who wins games with inferior talent.He must know what the hell he is doing

Fourth: I have always maintained that programs can be defined by a number of things.One is attendance,we are dropping off at an alarming rate.Another is apathy,your friends comment has been repeated to me a number of times. Are we stale?Is the program going backward at such a rate that we are a second tier acc program. I don't think we are yet

Fifth: Can a coach go backwards? The guys that run businesses are better served to answer this one.Do employees level out or become less efficient once they hit a certain level.I will admit the inheriting Howlands players and Blair scenario has run thru mind.

Sixth: Purely my opinion. Dixon is a coach who has lost his idenity.Good teams reflect their coaches attitudes and ideas. Does anyone know what our idenity is?Recently our teams have been in a word puzzling.Very rarely can you solve a problem with one solution, in this case recruiting seems to be the culprit and because of this Dixon has lost the idenity he had when his first teams played with the proverbial chip on their shoulder.

Seventh: Any time you keep someone because you are afraid he is the best you can do well think about that for a second.Safe to say program is at a crossroads
Interested in opinions.

 

[Harve74]

"-Our 2 guard Chris Jones finished the season shooting 28% from 3. At least its improvement over Cam Wright, who tried to single handidly redefine the word shooting guard, as a 3 pointer from him, you have a better chance of winning some type of lottery. "

I was asking myself last night if we were better with Wright at the 2 than we were this year. At least he drove the hoop a little, and could hit a mid-range jumper, and play some D. We got nothing from the 2 this year. I never would have thought that we could get worse at the 2 after Wright left, but I think we did.

I'd have to spend more time researching this than I want to, but somebody posted a stat something like when we got 14 points from our 2G position, we won every game. Some quick research seems to bear that out. Wright averaged 10 in a little under 28 minutes per game in his last 2 years. Over 40 minutes, that's right at the 14 points.

That 10 ppg is more than we got from the other guys who played the 2. If we had Wright for his 28 minutes and some combination of Johnson, Jones and even Smith for the other 12 minutes, we'd have been a better team, particularly given that playing at a faster pace this season would probably have increased Wright's scoring by a tick or so.

People gloated that we had found our 2G after Sterling Smith's 16 points against Duquense, but he only managed double figures 4 times after that and not at all in the last 14 games. Wright was more valuable here than many critics thought.

Unfortunately, I fear we will be saying the same thing about Robinson next year at this time.

 

[Delpanther]

The burden of proof is on Dixon. While there's no scientific poll to prove this, I strongly believe you're now in the minority in terms of your assessment of him. His contract makes him untouchable which means if he continues on this path, from a fan standpoint it's going to get very ugly for him. He's defensive when queried about his team's failings and that tendency will only serve to further fans' antipathy for him. Whether he gets Pitt back to where he had them or not, and I find that doubtful, because he's a woeful recruiter who endorses a style of play good players HATE, under him Pitt will have a very definite disappointedly low ceiling in that even when he gets a team in the tournament, he has them so tight mentally that they can't function to the best of their ability. Gone is the hope that if a Pitt team gets in the tournament that they can actually make some noise. They have been and will continue to be the team that experts expect to play beneath their seed and most likely to be unceremoniously dumped out of the tournie early. That's now Dixon's well earned reputation.

Fans including me can be fickle. Views can change but what I doubt will change is that Under Dixon Pitt will NEVER get beyond the middle of the ACC and a sweet 16 finish in the tournie. For this reason, I hope he goes sooner rather than later. He's now at the point where Pitt was with FB coaches like Harris and Wannstedt, we know what Dixon is and he's not after thirteen years going to transform into something else. What it boils down to is that even a JD at his best isn't good enough for me(see Butler and see the Nova tournie games) let alone the version we saw the last 5 years including that abomination of a coaching job we saw Friday night. Add to that, unlike the self-loathing, no respect for Pitt types who frequent this board, my views aren't altered by the fact that before Dixon, Pitt had a woeful BB program. Pitt can create its own destiny and isn't limited by its past history. See ya, Jamie, and thanks for the memories.

 

[gary2]

I refuse to be in the fire Dixon crowd because I was in school for the Ralph years. I also maintained that Dixon got more out of nothing.

But here is my biggest problem with the program. We used to own the "most improved" award and/or had guys that vastly improved by their senior year. The past few years I have not seen one guy take those types of steps where you said "man, where did he come from." Lamar finally put it together his senior year but he always had the talent. Maybe wannamaker? But the current group of guys just haven't become better. Young and artis are the logical choices for next year but I wonder if the heart is there for jamel. Maybe it's Luther or johnson, but we haven't seen the Aaron greys that go from a player that could barely tie his shoes to a NBA player in a long time. And maybe those guys were just flukes. But I would love to see someone actually improve their overall game for next year

I have to believe this has to be as a result of the current coaching staff. It is not up to the standards set by previous staffs.

 

[npl1127]

DT As usual good and insightful posts. IMHO this team didn't have any chemistry - it had the pieces but couldn't make them work together. I'm going to get the specifics wrong here I'm sure but I remember a game early in the season a number of years back against someone like New Hampshire where Pitt mailed in the worst first half offensive performance I'd ever seen from them. The question then was who the h*ll can put the ball in the basket for this team. Shortly after that game Jamie began to run the offense through Brad Wanamaker from the 3 position and it took off. I thought he tried the same thing this year with Artis and it didn't work (except against Syracuse's 2-3 zone). I give him credit for making the change. I think he's a good enough coach to figure out what needs to happen. He just couldn't get this group to respond at all.

On a side note, I think it's all well and good to manage the game from the sideline but I'd like to see Jamie just sit and watch the game once in while and have faith that the preparation was in place and game time was time to relax and let it happen.(the John Wooden approach)

Lastly, it's beyond my comprehension how he doesn't get T'd up for walking onto the court while the ball is in play.

 

[PittPoker]

DT As usual good and insightful posts. IMHO this team didn't have any chemistry - it had the pieces but couldn't make them work together. I'm going to get the specifics wrong here I'm sure but I remember a game early in the season a number of years back against someone like New Hampshire where Pitt mailed in the worst first half offensive performance I'd ever seen from them. The question then was who the h*ll can put the ball in the basket for this team. Shortly after that game Jamie began to run the offense through Brad Wanamaker from the 3 position and it took off. I thought he tried the same thing this year with Artis and it didn't work (except against Syracuse's 2-3 zone). I give him credit for making the change. I think he's a good enough coach to figure out what needs to happen. He just couldn't get this group to respond at all.

On a side note, I think it's all well and good to manage the game from the sideline but I'd like to see Jamie just sit and watch the game once in while and have faith that the preparation was in place and game time was time to relax and let it happen.(the John Wooden approach)

Lastly, it's beyond my comprehension how he doesn't get T'd up for walking onto the court while the ball is in play.

Good coach hmmm?? Yeah the guy was brilliant leaving Luther on the bench the whole game when it was obvious we needed some offense, especially in the 2nd half. Oh and it was a stroke of genius to play 2 grad transfers who gave us a combined 0 points for 27 minutes.