Pitt Basketball season outlook.

[Crimson's Ghost]

The two polls and preseason magazines have Pitt right around the top 30. I don't think anybody is ready to give Pitt the credit of being a top 25 team, but I feel they have top 25 talent.

The non conference schedule for Pitt is not much of anything. The Lehigh game early in the season will actually be the bets one on the home slate. Lehigh beat Duke last season and their best player is back.

Pitt may have the opportunity to play Top 5 Michigan at Madison Square Garden as a part of the preseason NIT. I hope everything works out that way, it would be a good test for Pitt.

Obviously when you step into the Big East, nothing is easy. Louisville and Syracuse are top 10 teams. Cincinnati,Notre Dame,Marquette, and Georgetown will see the rankings throughout the season also.

All in all, I look for a better season out of Pitt. 2012 was a product of no Point Guard or lost post scoring. Pitt addressed those needs in the offseason.

By now, everyone has at least heard of Steven Adams. The top 5 recruit is a 7 footer, whom Dixon has praised for his strength. He may not be what everyone is expecting. He won't average 22-10. But the 10 rebounds a game should happen, plus his defensive presence will be huge. 10-12 points would be big.

The other post players are Talib Zanna and Dante Taylor. Taylor is a senior, who is a nice bench player. Zanna should start. At 6-9, he was raw coming in, but continues to grow. Pitt has size in the starting lineup.


On the wings, Pitt appears set as well. Lamar Patterson started last season, and should be better this time around. He is versatile with his passing and rebounding. That glue guy, Dixon loves to have out there.

JJ Moore is a 6-7 athlete, who started playing tough at the tail end of last season. needs to make the jump Gilbert Brown did towards the end of his career.

Trey Zeigler is a transfer from Central Michigan. trey was a top 30 recruit who only went to play in the MAC cause his Dad was the coach. He will need to adjust, but has all the talent in the world.

Point Guards are looking pretty good too. Tra Woodall is back, and healthy. 5th year senior. He is a better shooter than when he first got here, should be a smarter player too. He will be backed up by the heir to his job. James Robinson is a true frosh, 6-3 physically strong PG. He will play a lot.


In a nutshell.....Pitt has top 10 talent in my opinion, its a matter of it coming together. Zeigler,Adams,and Robinson are all elite players. Pitt has a good core in place, that is healthy. Dixon is a good coach. Not a whole lot to dislike about this season.

I'm ready for Basketball

[bleacherbum]

Me too!!

[Crimson's Ghost]

Went down to the Pete to see the team live against Lehigh, here are some thoughts.

--Lehigh is actually a pretty good team. They should win the Patriot and should be in the Big Dance this year. CJ McCollum is an All American caliber guard that is projected to be be a lottery pick. They beat Duke roughly 7 months ago, and McCollum was the star outshining Austin Rivers and Seth Curry.

--Pitt basically manhandled Lehigh. Pitt is legitimately ten deep with three big guys, three guards, and four wings.

--Talib Zanna is the most improved player. He has a nice pick and pop shot, and finishes strong, and with Adams on the floor it allows him to be a solid scoring option at the PF spot.

--James Robinson is very important to this team. He played excellent D. He handles the ball and sets up the offense. He only scored two points, but he had a big hand in winning this game so convincingly.

--Tray Woodall is playing like a 5th year senior guard. He is shooting well, and thriving with Robinson on the floor.

--The raw talent of Steven Adams is scary good. He is not afraid to throw his body around. His presence alone makes this team better. I couldn't see him being a one and done though. His game needs a lot of work, but on size and natural ability alone he can be a 12-10 type of guy.

--This is getting back to old school Pitt Defense. Last year it was miserable to watch. And even before then for a few seasons, it hasn't been excellent. I know we are talking Mt. St. Mary's, Fordham, and Lehigh. But teams aren't even getting into their sets until 10 seconds on the shot clock.



Basketball is such a long season, and so much can change from month to month. But three games in last year, Pitt had already lost to a Long Beach State team. With a similar opponent this year, Pitt crushed Lehigh. Pitt is a tournament team, and has the ability to be a highly ranked team for the majority of the season. They don't have a ton of weaknesses.


Next Wednesday, Pitt plays #5 Michigan. The Wolverines are very talented, but Pitt can match with them. It should be a battle. It was not fun being bad for a season, I think Pitt is "good" again.

[bleacherbum]

They did look very good last night.
Barring major injuries this should be a fun year for Pitt basketball.

[S Cube]

This teams depth is freaking awesome. 10 deep with basically 2 players at each position, no one is playing out of position like last year. Obviously it's all about who gets hot in March, but if this team avoids the injury bug they have the potential to go a long way.

[WPIAL~Titan]

I will be there Saturday night sitting right on the floor.

[Crimson's Ghost]

Oakland is usually a solid team. But they are coming off losses to UL Lafayette and Boise. So maybe a down year.

[Goodwill]

I will be there Saturday night sitting right on the floor.

How much does a towel boy make for a game these days?

[El-Moldo]

Are there towel boys in the PSU men's locker rooms? Betcha there's alot of "wetness" going on in a place like that.

[KirkHerbstreit]

Hey what do ya know Moldy is making a Pitt basketball thread into a Penn State discussion.

I think Pitt will have a very good year in basketball.