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Welcome Delalic!!!!

Dunn only 17 minutes? Cummings 16?

Leggett only 25?

I would be shocked if Dunn only plays 17

Dunn was the 7th man for Houston in Big 12 Conference play. He only averaged 15 minutes per game mostly at wing in the Big 12 scoring a paltry 5 points per game with an ORTG offensive power rating of 98, which is well below where we hope he is going to be next year on our team.

I think he is being grossly overrated by how good he is by this board because he simply is not efficient enough on offense, he's not a good 3 point shooter, and he is not a good midrange shooter and there is 4 years worth of previous data to support that. He's good at one thing, dribble penetration to the basket, scoring in the interior, and getting to the free throw line.

Leggett only getting 25 minutes is on the low side, but I really like our depth in the backcourt.


I am very high on Brandin Cummings and his lethal shooting ability. This board should have learned its lesson already in terms of freshmen impact with Lowe, Carrington, and how Judah Mintz dominated as a freshmen as all 3 put up big time stats in the EYBL. 2 of our best players last were true freshmen, and Cummings scored more points than all 3 of these guys in the EYBL on high level efficiency.

Cummings is highly skilled scoring the basketball both in the midrange and from 3. Its his defense where he needs work.
 
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PG-Lowe- 32 Cummings- 8
SG-Leggett- 25 Cummings-8 Dunn 7
Sf-Delalic-22 Dunn-10 Austin- 8

9 man rotation with Guillermo, Corhen, Kante and this is easily the deepest team Pitt has had since 2011.


Amdy redshirt, Barnes plays minimal or in defensive trap / press situations. Like the last 2 years, I dont see where Jorge fits or how much time he gets although he is going to be at the 4 for backup playing time.


I think the minutes breakdown for the frontcourt is far more difficult to project as opposed to the backcourt.

We have plenty of offense on this team. We need a stud defensive player in the post that can rebound and play high level defense, and the only player that is anywhere close to offer that is Papa Kante. Kante's progress / health determines minute distributions at the 4 and 5.


I think Guillermo is going to get a lot more minutes at the 4 as opposed to the 5. Im also quite intrigued with playing Corhen and Kante together as I think that pair has the potential to do quite a bit of damage together and Corhen being in a potential Troutman type role. But that again depends on Kante's health and where he is at season tipoff.
Good insight Vader!!! H2P
 
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He may end up being the best player on the roster. Rebounding and defense will be his weak areas. I think he’ll end up starting, but if not, he is a guy.
"Rebounding and defense will be his weak areas"...why? You've watched a lot of his games I take it?
 
I still think you are under rating Dunn. He has an opportunity here he didn't have at Houston. I think he is going to surprise.

These are his numbers in his last year at Temple playing starters minutes while only starting 20 out of 31 games at Temple playing in the American league.

Team Record- 16-16
Team SOS- 83rd in the country

ORTG- 103.5

interior scoring- 53% shooting percentage
midrange-40%
3 point 34%
Free Throw- 81%
TO rate- 20
EFG- 48%

This was by far his best year.

These splits would be fine for a 6th man or 7th man bench reserve or maybe a starter with a low usage rate and shooting rate like an Austin this year who started but clearly took a backseat trying to score the basketball while watching his teammates (including Leggett) do the bulk of the scoring. Dunn was 8th on the team in win shares at Houston which is what his stats say he should be. His stats at Houston tell you he was the 8th most valuable player in their rotation. He didn't even play that tough of a schedule at Temple and still had issues both shooting the ball and protecting the basketball on offense.


If Pitt wants to improve on last year and be better, either this guy needs to make major improvement shooting the basketball while not turning the basketball over nearly as much or he needs to come off the bench. When he plays significant minutes, he has shooting percentage issues and turnover issues, so did Trey Mcgowens who was a 1 trick pony that could do nothing except drive to the basket and score in the interior.



If you are going to play him heavy with Leggett, opposing defenses are going to collapse heavy on this team because of the lack of legit 3 point firepower from the outside at the 2 and 3 positions. We will get zoned a lot or with man to man sagging defenses collapsing into the interior and the middle.
 
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Agree. Dunn is starting and playing 25+ minutes. Leggett's gonna play 30, he played 28+ last year.

Leggett played 27 minutes on average in ACC conference play this past year.

If you remember, Pitt basically had a 7 man rotation for the bulk of ACC Conference play. Jorge only saw action in 5 total ACC games and barely played before the season ending injury. Jeffress averaged 8 minutes per game.

In other words, Leggett got zero competition from anyone trying to take minutes from him this past year because we had zero depth on our team this past year.

Leggett did perform well, even with his injuries he performed well. With that said, there will be more competition on next years roster with far better depth, including a freshmen stud guard that is ready.
 
Leggett played 27 minutes on average in ACC conference play this past year.

If you remember, Pitt basically had a 7 man rotation for the bulk of ACC Conference play. Jorge only saw action in 5 total ACC games and barely played before the season ending injury. Jeffress averaged 8 minutes per game.

In other words, Leggett got zero competition from anyone trying to take minutes from him this past year because we had zero depth on our team this past year.

Leggett did perform well, even with his injuries he performed well. With that said, there will be more competition on next years roster with far better depth, including a freshmen stud guard that is ready.

BTW, we are in the Torvik preseason top 25 national rankings going into next year before Delalic even committed, which was a big get. Expectations should be high next year in the preseason.

If Dunn is better than I think and as good as the people on this forum think, then preseason top 25 might be to low.

We finished 30th in the country on Torvik this past season. And everyone knows we should have been in the NCAA tournament.
 
Leggett played 27 minutes on average in ACC conference play this past year.

If you remember, Pitt basically had a 7 man rotation for the bulk of ACC Conference play. Jorge only saw action in 5 total ACC games and barely played before the season ending injury. Jeffress averaged 8 minutes per game.

In other words, Leggett got zero competition from anyone trying to take minutes from him this past year because we had zero depth on our team this past year.

Leggett did perform well, even with his injuries he performed well. With that said, there will be more competition on next years roster with far better depth, including a freshmen stud guard that is ready.

Leggett is playing a lot of minutes, and Dunn is too. They're established vets who have proven they can play on both sides of the floor.

Hey, if Cummings and Delalic are good enough to steal more minutes, great. I just don't think it's prudent to expect that to happen with the two guys in front of them.
 
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These are his numbers in his last year at Temple playing starters minutes while only starting 20 out of 31 games at Temple playing in the American league.

Team Record- 16-16
Team SOS- 83rd in the country

ORTG- 103.5

interior scoring- 53% shooting percentage
midrange-40%
3 point 34%
Free Throw- 81%
TO rate- 20
EFG- 48%

This was by far his best year.

These splits would be fine for a 6th man or 7th man bench reserve or maybe a starter with a low usage rate and shooting rate like an Austin this year who started but clearly took a backseat trying to score the basketball while watching his teammates (including Leggett) do the bulk of the scoring. Dunn was 8th on the team in win shares at Houston which is what his stats say he should be. His stats at Houston tell you he was the 8th most valuable player in their rotation. He didn't even play that tough of a schedule at Temple and still had issues both shooting the ball and protecting the basketball on offense.


If Pitt wants to improve on last year and be better, either this guy needs to make major improvement shooting the basketball while not turning the basketball over nearly as much or he needs to come off the bench. When he plays significant minutes, he has shooting percentage issues and turnover issues, so did Trey Mcgowens who was a 1 trick pony that could do nothing except drive to the basket and score in the interior.



If you are going to play him heavy with Leggett, opposing defenses are going to collapse heavy on this team because of the lack of legit 3 point firepower from the outside at the 2 and 3 positions. We will get zoned a lot or with man to man sagging defenses collapsing into the interior and the middle.
6th or 7th man reserve?


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• 2022-23 All-American Athletic Conference Third Team
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• 2020-21 All-Philadelphia Big 5 Second Team
• 2020-21 American Athletic Conference All-Freshman Team
 
BTW, we are in the Torvik preseason top 25 national rankings going into next year before Delalic even committed, which was a big get. Expectations should be high next year in the preseason.

If Dunn is better than I think and as good as the people on this forum think, then preseason top 25 might be to low.

We finished 30th in the country on Torvik this past season. And everyone knows we should have been in the NCAA tournament.
I am not into the level of specificity of predicting each players minutes. Nevertheless, I generally agree with Vader in concept. I expect Dunn to be something like next season's "Nike Sibande." Really good off the bench but not a starter. I also would expect Cummings to eventually start--just not from game one.

For me Delalic is the primary key. He needs to provide much of the outside scoring punch lost by Blake Hinson's departure and provide it from early-on. The second key for me is Cummings. He needs to develop similarly to how Lowe did last season and be an effective stater by January so Legett can go back to being the ACC's best 6th man and not need to start.

Capel and staff will be doing lots of experimenting with lineups, IMHO, in November and December. That should be fun to watch.

Given that, my W.A.G. looks like this--

(A) I would expect the starters and primary subs for game #1 to be--

Corhen
Austin/G. D-G
Delalic
Leggett
Lowe

Dunn
Cummings
Kante
J. D-G

(B) By January I would expect it to have morphed into--

Corhen
G. D-G/Austin
Delalic
Cummings
Lowe

Leggett
Dunn
Kante
J. D-G
 
I think Ish is primed to be one of the better guards in the ACC this year - I don’t think there’s any genuine threat of him having a lesser role than he did last year. He’s really, really good and should be even better. As for Dunn, he’s a guy who the staff has had at the top of their transfer target board for two straight offseasons now, and Capel described him as having a similar game to Burton with better shooting. If he plays as well as the staff seems to think, he’s going to play a whole lot. Cummings is going to be a really good player here, but I think Ish and Dunn are both going to be better players with larger roles in 2024-25. That’s no disrespect to Cummings - I just think it’s going to be a really good team and the minutes have to come from somewhere.
 
I think Ish is primed to be one of the better guards in the ACC this year - I don’t think there’s any genuine threat of him having a lesser role than he did last year. He’s really, really good and should be even better. As for Dunn, he’s a guy who the staff has had at the top of their transfer target board for two straight offseasons now, and Capel described him as having a similar game to Burton with better shooting. If he plays as well as the staff seems to think, he’s going to play a whole lot. Cummings is going to be a really good player here, but I think Ish and Dunn are both going to be better players with larger roles in 2024-25. That’s no disrespect to Cummings - I just think it’s going to be a really good team and the minutes have to come from somewhere.
Yeah, they just have a massive experience edge over Cummings, and coaches will default toward that if they are making good on it.
 
I am not into the level of specificity of predicting each players minutes. Nevertheless, I generally agree with Vader in concept. I expect Dunn to be something like next season's "Nike Sibande." Really good off the bench but not a starter. I also would expect Cummings to eventually start--just not from game one.

For me Delalic is the primary key. He needs to provide much of the outside scoring punch lost by Blake Hinson's departure and provide it from early-on. The second key for me is Cummings. He needs to develop similarly to how Lowe did last season and be an effective stater by January so Legett can go back to being the ACC's best 6th man and not need to start.

Capel and staff will be doing lots of experimenting with lineups, IMHO, in November and December. That should be fun to watch.

Given that, my W.A.G. looks like this--

(A) I would expect the starters and primary subs for game #1 to be--

Corhen
Austin/G. D-G
Delalic
Leggett
Lowe

Dunn
Cummings
Kante
J. D-G

(B) By January I would expect it to have morphed into--

Corhen
G. D-G/Austin
Delalic
Cummings
Lowe

Leggett
Dunn
Kante
J. D-G

I am most intrigued by this lineup below to be perfectly honest and its not all that close. Might not be the starting lineup, maybe not the best lineup on game 1, or maybe not the best lineup all season long, but most intrigued by the offensive firepower potential to put people away during games with major scoring runs where the opposing team just simply cannot keep up.

Lowe
Cummings
Leggett
Delalic
Corhen


- 5 players that dont turn the ball over very often

-4 players with the potential to shoot close to 40% from 3, Lowe was 41% and Leggett 37% last year in ACC conference play

-4 players that should shoot over 80-85% from the free throw line

-4 players that should be over 110-115+ ORTG offensive power rating with a center pushing 120-130 ORTG

-4 players at the 1-2-3-4 that should be 3 level scorers that can potentially beat you all over the floor

-1 Center that shoots 65% from the field and 50% from midrange


The offensive spacing from this 5 man lineup would be incredible. You couldn't zone it, you couldn't trap it, you couldn't press it, you couldnt sag to the interior on it or play the shooters heavy with the fear of getting beat off the dribble. You certainly dont want to foul this 5 man group.

This 5 man lineup could / would be absolutely lethal on offense. Obviously there are serious questions with the defensive and rebounding capabilities of this 5 man team, but offensively, that 5 some would be a juggernaut if Delalic is anywhere near the hype as a 42% 3 point shooter and a 3 level scorer.
 
I really like the Delalic signing, but I think some of you need to pump the brakes a little. He's taking a big step up in competition, particularly from what I've seen in some of these highlights.

He's got a nice release and a decent handle to go along with size. Plenty to work with, but I'm not sure I'd be penciling him in as a starter or anywhere near a leading scorer next year. I'd be thrilled to get 20mpg and 8-10ppg.
 
I really like the Delalic signing, but I think some of you need to pump the brakes a little. He's taking a big step up in competition, particularly from what I've seen in some of these highlights.

He's got a nice release and a decent handle to go along with size. Plenty to work with, but I'm not sure I'd be penciling him in as a starter or anywhere near a leading scorer next year. I'd be thrilled to get 20mpg and 8-10ppg.

For the most part Ill agree with this since I didn't put any scoring numbers next to him. How close can he get to Gregg Elliot at Pitt?

This is what we got from Elliot

ORTG-122
PPG- 10.4
RPG-4
APG-1
44% FG
41% 3 point shooting
83% FT
usage rate-14
Low Level Defense

If he is somewhere close to matching those offensive numbers I would be ecstatic and Elliot's usage rate was half of Delalic. Based off the advanced metrics for what I saw what he did in Europe including the defensive win shares and DR rebound rate, I think he will easily be better than Elliot on the glass and on defense, although the bar there isn't real high.
 
For the most part Ill agree with this since I didn't put any scoring numbers next to him. How close can he get to Gregg Elliot at Pitt?

This is what we got from Elliot

ORTG-122
PPG- 10.4
RPG-4
APG-1
44% FG
41% 3 point shooting
83% FT
usage rate-14
Low Level Defense

If he is somewhere close to matching those offensive numbers I would be ecstatic and Elliot's usage rate was half of Delalic. Based off the advanced metrics for what I saw what he did in Europe including the defensive win shares and DR rebound rate, I think he will easily be better than Elliot on the glass and on defense, although the bar there isn't real high.
Elliott was a perfectly competent defender here. 13.7% DR, 1.5% steal rate, 1.8 DBPM, 1.2 DWS. He was one of the better defenders on an admittedly extremely deficient defensive team in 2022-23. You’ll sign up for that from a shooting small wing any day of the week. Those are very similar defensive numbers to Bub last year.
 
Elliott was a perfectly competent defender here. 13.7% DR, 1.5% steal rate, 1.8 DBPM, 1.2 DWS. He was one of the better defenders on an admittedly extremely deficient defensive team in 2022-23. You’ll sign up for that from a shooting small wing any day of the week. Those are very similar defensive numbers to Bub last year.

There is a wild misconception of how good our defense was in 2023. Our team defense was ranked 123rd in the country in the efficiency metrics by Torvik and Ive read over and over again how Fede, Burton, and now Elliot are "strong defenders". There was nothing strong about our defense in 2023 and Burton was the best defensive player on the roster. Cummings and Elliot were constantly getting beat off the dribble which is why we had so many defensive problems on that team in general. Elliot finished with a DRTG of 106 which is not good. Considering he was a 6'3 guard playing wing with below average athletic ability and foot speed, its not hard to figure why our defense was consistently torn up most of the season when you add in Cummings at 5'11 who couldnt guard anybody. The rebounding was ok and quoting the defensive win shares on a team that played bad defense is not something you should be doing.
 
I am most intrigued by this lineup below to be perfectly honest and its not all that close. Might not be the starting lineup, maybe not the best lineup on game 1, or maybe not the best lineup all season long, but most intrigued by the offensive firepower potential to put people away during games with major scoring runs where the opposing team just simply cannot keep up.

Lowe
Cummings
Leggett
Delalic
Corhen


- 5 players that dont turn the ball over very often

-4 players with the potential to shoot close to 40% from 3, Lowe was 41% and Leggett 37% last year in ACC conference play

-4 players that should shoot over 80-85% from the free throw line

-4 players that should be over 110-115+ ORTG offensive power rating with a center pushing 120-130 ORTG

-4 players at the 1-2-3-4 that should be 3 level scorers that can potentially beat you all over the floor

-1 Center that shoots 65% from the field and 50% from midrange


The offensive spacing from this 5 man lineup would be incredible. You couldn't zone it, you couldn't trap it, you couldn't press it, you couldnt sag to the interior on it or play the shooters heavy with the fear of getting beat off the dribble. You certainly dont want to foul this 5 man group.

This 5 man lineup could / would be absolutely lethal on offense. Obviously there are serious questions with the defensive and rebounding capabilities of this 5 man team, but offensively, that 5 some would be a juggernaut if Delalic is anywhere near the hype as a 42% 3 point shooter and a 3 level scorer.
Cummings is a gifted offensive player. Good shooter, sees the court well and is a good passer, quicker 1st step than most give him credit for with a solid handle and a nice array of finishing moves around the basket. If he defends hard and isn't a big liability there, they are going to have to consider giving him starter minutes.
 
For the most part Ill agree with this since I didn't put any scoring numbers next to him. How close can he get to Gregg Elliot at Pitt?

This is what we got from Elliot

ORTG-122
PPG- 10.4
RPG-4
APG-1
44% FG
41% 3 point shooting
83% FT
usage rate-14
Low Level Defense

If he is somewhere close to matching those offensive numbers I would be ecstatic and Elliot's usage rate was half of Delalic. Based off the advanced metrics for what I saw what he did in Europe including the defensive win shares and DR rebound rate, I think he will easily be better than Elliot on the glass and on defense, although the bar there isn't real high.
Would you be able to find dunn’s catch and shoot numbers. I think i saw somewhere that they were good but cant find them
 
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