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April 3, 2012

Pitt Recruiting Everyone

Filed under: Basketball,Recruiting,Transfer — Chas @ 2:56 pm

Apparently, now that the CBI is over and the final recruiting push is underway Pitt is pursuing every option and player out there:

And then followed by this:

Both are heavily pursued players.

Zeigler was a top-50 recruit in the 2010 class. He opted to play for his father — who was a Pitt assistant under Ben Howland. After Trey Zeigler’s father was fired, Trey (not surprisingly) made it clear he was gone from Central Michigan. The most prominent names in recruiting him have been UCLA (Howland, natch) and Duke. Trey has already taken a visit to Duke, but isn’t sold yet.

Now the issue with Zeigler is he is a wing/small forward. While a good argument can be made that Pitt needs guards and power forwards, Zeigler’s spot is a little more of an issue. There is already J.J. Moore, Lamar Patterson and the redshirting Durand Johnson at that position. In addition, Pitt recently got the verbal from Chris Jones who is also expected to play that position in time. Now Jones, as far as I know, has not signed his LOI (Letter of Intent) yet, so technically Pitt could revoke his scholarship.

Complicating things further, is the fact that Zeigler is seeking an NCAA waiver to play immediately because his dad was fired (no I’m not sure how it would play out, but I think there is some precedent). Honestly, though, Zeigler seems like a long-shot and something of a luxury. Still, how do you turn down a 4-5 star player who already has a year experience?

As for Savon Goodman, I hadn’t heard about him in some time. He committed and then decommitted from Villanova. There are concerns about his academics (Insider subs.) — hence to comment about prep school. He’s also a very talented consensus 4-star player. ESPN.com lists him as the 98th best player nationally. Scout.com says 89th. Rivals.com chimes in at 53d.

He is listed as both a small and power forward. The potentially exciting thing is that he sounds a bit like a mix of Sam Young/Chevy Troutman type player for Pitt (or worst case, Nasir Robinson) — which would make him a fit at power forward in Coach Dixon’s style.

From Scout.com’s evaluation:

Goodman looks like he could play football as well as basketball. There is no better physical specimen in the class, and he uses that strength and athleticism to his advantage. Goodman loves to drive to the bucket and finish through contact. Also he attacks the glass.

On the down-side his shooting — especially from the perimeter is a work-in-progress. Then again, so was Sam Young early on. And this from ESPN.com:

Goodman is a blue collar forward that scores above the rim on the break, attacks defenders from the high post and along the baseline and has recently showed the ability to hit the open three with time and space. He is a big time finisher and also does a great job of drawing fouls because he welcomes contact. Goodman has a good basketball IQ as well. He reads defenders and cuts to the basket and is a willing passer when he draws a second defender. Goodman rebounds on both ends in and out of his area and can defend both forward positions. Goodman plays with great effort at all times and is productive on a consistent basis.

…If he can continues to build his perimeter game the sky is the limit on how good he could become. He’s the ultimate tough guy and competitor.

Prep or not, I want Pitt to keep pursuing Goodman. If not for this class, then for 2013.

 





Absolutely pitt should secure goodman. Hes the perfect “jamie dixon” 4. Strong, athletic, mobile, rebounds, attacks the rim. He might actually get some pt right away if he choses pitt

Comment by Pk 04.03.12 @ 3:01 pm

I quess he can assume Epps is gone.

Comment by steve 04.03.12 @ 3:06 pm

Goodman seems like exactly what we need next year. Think the rest of the positions can be adequately filled next year with who we have, and that’s assuming everyone is pretty much the same player this year as they were last.

Goodman doesn’t need to be an outside shooter. Sam Young developed the skill by Sr year, but we didn’t need him to have it until then either. Same thing here. Not that we have assassins in our back court but Trey, Patterson and J.Johnson are good enough if we’re strong in other offensive aspects (presence at C, Moore decides to drive, etc). Plus, this kid is a bruiser, the exact type we need to toughen up our defense.

I’d take him any year, esp if he stays in the 2012 class.

Comment by PantherP 04.03.12 @ 4:16 pm

Phucking Twisters!

Comment by TX Panther 04.03.12 @ 4:24 pm

Be safe TX Panther!

Comment by Dan 72 04.03.12 @ 5:07 pm

Saw Goodman twice this year – let me tell you fellow PITT fans he is without a doubt the final missing piece to the championship puzzle ! He is the slasher/scorer that Patterson & Moore will never be. Will start immediately as a fresham,

Comment by Rocky20 04.03.12 @ 7:51 pm

We need tall athletes. Period. See KY.

Comment by steve1 04.03.12 @ 8:55 pm

Did someone mention Epps. lol. goner.
Get both of these guys if you can.
Then you can dump Wright as well.
Goodman sounds like a Pitt guy to me.

Let’s get some players who can create their own shots for a change. We going to the ACC, where you got to slash to the hoop and hit the 15 footer.

Comment by Emel 04.03.12 @ 9:01 pm

We’re not EVER going to have KY. type one & dones.
PITT isn’t willing to bend their academics for either those type of players or that type of coach.

And I really don’t know if I would want us to go low

Comment by Emel 04.03.12 @ 9:04 pm

OK, Emel, how about this: taller, more athletic

Comment by steve1 04.03.12 @ 9:08 pm

Either one would be great.

Comment by Tony C 04.03.12 @ 9:18 pm

OK steve1….I’m in. lol

Those are two good traits for hoops players. 🙂

Comment by Emel 04.03.12 @ 9:24 pm

Rocky evaluation of Goodman would make him a perfect fit for Pitt next year. With Adams there is no need for the 4 to be an offensive player. The 4 needs to be physical and strong, a good finisher on offensive rebounds and good hands for ocassions that Adams will be sagged on.

About the other player if Duke is interested he obviously can do with consistency what Pitt could use a 3 point assassin. Woodall is certainly not the answer.

Get them both if possible. Adams and Robinson at the two most important positions despite being freshman, in my opinion, makes Pitt dangerous -now we need the supporting cast

Comment by drw 04.04.12 @ 3:18 am

Maybe a bad season finally lit a fire under some asses to get out their and find quality players that fit the Pitt mold. Give me a Chevy Troutman, Gary McGhee, Levance Fields or Wannamaker any day instead of these over hyped Mcdonalds All Americans that want to be treated like Kings and skip to the NBA after one, maybe two years.

Comment by Coach Ditka 04.04.12 @ 7:37 am

Pitt ties to Kentucky — Pitt misses Orlando Antigua, the guy who recruited NY players for Pitt. He went with Clarion University grad and former Pitt assistant John Calipari to Memphis then Kentucky. I think Orlando was a better recruiter than basketball player (an excellent 3 pointer shooter) and that says a lot about Orland. I’m glad he is doing well in Lexington. I believe he was a McDonald’s All American.

Comment by MariettaMike 04.04.12 @ 7:57 am

The more good players, the better — regardless of position, etc. Things will work themselves out.

Comment by JW 04.04.12 @ 8:56 am

Coach Ditka, history shows that you have to have at least one NBA caliber player on your team to win a title. Pitt should not shy away from the All-Americans. The difference with Pitt and UNC or even KY is that we only have one of them so their failure is magnified. UNC can hide their failures behind the other 5 starting on the court. Pitt’s had some recent misses but the incoming class seems to be legit and highly ranked.

For all of Taylor’s shortcomings, he has represented the University well. He doesn’t complain or badmouth the coaching or take to twitter (ala Birch and more recently JJ Johnson). He accepts his role and moves on…he just peaked in HS and he is what he is. Had he developed like Robinson at Kansas (similar type of recruit who took 3 years before he played significant minutes), this season would have been different.

Next year, Pitt will be more experienced and have more depth at guard and better ball handlers. Moore, Patterson and Zanna have set themselves up for breakout seasons plus Pitt will have an influx of talent with the new recruiting class.

It was a bad season but it may have been necessary for Pitt to take the next step. I’m sure Dixon and the staff learned a lot from this season and will use it to his advantage in the future.

Say what you want about the season but this team did not quit and they easily could have after the Rutgers debacle. Yes, there were recruiting mistakes and glaring weaknesses on this year’s team but I’m confident they will be addressed in the offseason.

Comment by Tossing Thabeets 04.04.12 @ 9:07 am

@MariettaMike, Orlando Antigua wasn’t an awseome good recruiter at Pitt. But he became a good recruiter at Kentucky. I think some of his recruiting is due to Calipari. That’s not to say he isn’t a good coach. He is actually rumored to be in the running for a few head coaching jobs including at Duquesne.

Epps is probably gone. When a walk on, Nick Rivers, plays ahead of you it isn’t a good sign.

@EMel I don’t get your hate of Cam Wright. The dude just finished up his freshman year. His offense will get better. I really doubt he is going anywhere seeing that he started the last two games in the CBI.

Comment by Wardapalooza 04.04.12 @ 9:16 am

on trey zeigers rivals page, it said he was a shooting guard and was 6’4″. he might have grown since then but it sounds like hes capable of being a 2, so if he is then i think hes worth getting. id like any of trency jackson, trey zeiger, or savon goodman. i dont know if keane is a good option because it seems like he is more of a project and pitt needs as much immediate help as it can get.

Comment by pk 04.04.12 @ 9:47 am

Epps is probably gone but my guess is that Rivers played the other night because he was a senior

Comment by wbb 04.04.12 @ 10:11 am

@Wardaplooza,: Thanks for your input. I hope Orlando gets the Duquesne job. He’s a Pitt Panther and I like seeing Panther’s succeed in life.

Now the the basketball goes in mothballs for a while it’s Pitt football that now becomes the center of my attention. Let’s hope Pitt wins the Big East in their final season before going to the ACC. HTP!

Comment by MariettaMike 04.04.12 @ 10:17 am

Antigua’s reputation at Pitt was that he was not a particularly skilled recruiter or strategic coach, which is one of the reasons why Pitt didn’t make much of an effort to keep him. There was even talk at the time that Pitt was ready to let him go when Calipari came calling. It’s likely that he has become better in the role, but we also shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that, like it or not, it is a lot easier to recruit at Kentucky (and with Calipari) than at Pitt.

BTW, I’ve been extremely busy and so missed out on some stuff. What did J. Johnson tweet?

Comment by Pantherman13 04.04.12 @ 11:11 am

If you like seeing Panthers succeed in life, I’m not sure you should wish the Duquesne job on Antigua. It’s a coaching graveyard.

Comment by JW 04.04.12 @ 12:19 pm

This just posted on PG Epps is transferring

link to post-gazette.com

Comment by giveitarest 04.04.12 @ 4:45 pm

Just a note on Antigua’s recruting. He was the coach responsible for Blair coming to Pitt.

Comment by letterman 04.04.12 @ 6:41 pm

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