The backcourt lost a key component and its main facilitator with the departure of Brad Wannamaker. Travon Woodall, a redshirt junior who has plenty of experience, must take Wannamaker's place in the offense. Woodall has shown flashes of greatness in the past, i.e. the game tying shot agianst St. Johns at the Garden last year, but he has been very inconsistent throughout his career. He will change that this year. He will finally have the ball in his hands and he will make plays. It's now or never for Mr. Woodall. Next, their are only two people in this world that I believe every jump shot they take they should make. One is Ray Allen, the greatest three point shooter in NBA history and the other is Ashton Gibbs. With a 49% three point percentage while still maintaining 16.8 ppg, this should come as no surprise. The dude is the purest of shooters with ice water in his veins. However, this year he must prove to NBA scouts that he can be a point guard at the next level so look for Gibbs to pass more. With that being said, he can't stop shooting because he is the best shooter in the country, period. After these two, the experience is minimal. Lamar Patterson will step into a starting role this year after spelling Wannamaker and Gilbert Brown last year. I'm hearing that he has reshaped in his body for a more prototypcial 3 guard which Pitt will need. He can shoot, pass, and defend so watch for Patterson to be on the court a lot this year. Jamie Dixon has said of Patterson that he is the best pure passer on the team and Pitt will need him to facilitate because passing is crucial to this teams offense. JJ Moore, a sophomore, will likely split time with Patterson at the 3 spot. Moore is the best athlete on the team, winning the team dunk competition the last 2 years proves this, and can really fill it up when he gets in the zone. The good thing about Moore and Patterson is that they are polar opposites in the way they play basketball and with them Pitt can throw many different looks at opposing teams, making them a very hard team to defend against. Also filling out the backcourt are Isaiah Epps and Cameron Wright. Both were redshirted last year, so they spent last year practicing with the team and adjusting to the pace of Big East basketball. They should be ready to make key contributions this year when called upon. Epps is a pass first point guard and if Woodall is not getting the job done facilitating, then Epps will jump right in and the offense shouldn't miss a beat. Wright is a 6'5 two guard who has the size and the overall game to maybe make the NBA if he continues to improve throughout his time here at Pitt (which most players do). John Johnson, a true freshman, score first point guard, might also see some time at point, bringing a nice change of pace from Woodall and Epps, who are both pass first points guards. Johnson never came across a shot he didn't like and Pitt may need someone like that to help ease the scoring load on Ashton Gibbs.
The frontcourt is loaded with size, talent, and athleticism and is the strength of this year's team. Athleticism is the key attribute here because most Pitt teams in the past just didn't have it. The most athletic team Pitt had in the past decade was the 2008-2009 team with Dejuan Blair and Sam Young and that team lost in the Elite 8 at the buzzer. I won't say more than that besides the fact that Socttie Renyolds is in now playing in the country Chad. Back to this year, this frontcourt is stacked starting with Nasir Robinson, an underrated rebounder and finsiher for being 6'5", Dante Taylor, a former McDonald's All American and my pick for Big East Most Improved Player this year, Talib Zanna, an althletic freak who can extend defenders away from the hoop with his jump shot, and two highly recruited freshman Khem Birch and Malcolm Gilbert. Watch out for Khem Birch as a freshman. It may be unfair for me and probably others to have such high expectations for this young man, but if you've seen him play, you know what I'm talking about. Birch had 15 points, 10 rebounds (9 offensive) and six blocked shots at the McDonald's All-American game which is against the best high school players in the nation. Sounds like old number 45 huh, and yes, he can be that good, maybe better. This frontcourt has the ability to compete and win against any in the nation. The X-factor though is Dante Taylor. He has steadily improved his first 2 years and needs to step up and have a breakthrough year. He has a high motor and can rebound on both ends better than most big men, but he must add a scoring touch this year. He has blown easy lay up after easy lay up his first 2 years and I believe this has caused him to lose some of his confidence. This year must be different. He must regain that scoring touch and that focus that led to to be a highly touted high school prospect. He needs to average close to a double double and finally live up to his McDonald's All-American moniker for this team to really make some noise in the Big East.
Prediction
Over the past 6 years, Pitt has been the best team in the Big East, which is considered the best overall conference in college basketball. In that time, they have earned a number 1 seed twice in the NCAA tournament, but have only made it to the Elite 8 once and Sweet 16 twice. This team is famous for chronically underachieving when the lights shine the brightest, but I believe this year will be different and here's why. The infusion of young talent will be the difference this year. Sure this team still has plenty of experience, but many of their young guys will be called upon to log major minutes and they have not felt the sting of the tournament losses quite like last years class did. With the mixture of experience and youth, this team is poised to have the perfect mix and make a deep run into the tournament and plus, Gibbs can shoot this team into any game against anyone. I believe they will finish second in the Big East in the regular season, gaining a #2 seed in the NCAA tournament. They will parlay their high seed with the team's first Final Four since World War II. (which really doesn't even count). Jamie Dixon deserves a Final Four and this will be the team to give it to him. This is the year.
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