Well the Pitt Basketball campaign has ended yet again in disappointing fashion. Actually there are over 300 teams every season that are disappointed with how their season ends up. And like every season local sports writers, Pitt haters, and Pitt fans alike like to condemn this Basketball program of Pitt. A particular favorite of mine was an ESPN anchor, not analyst said Jamie Dixon was outcoached by Brad Stevens. Really Dixon was outcoached because one of his seniors was able to ice the game by making one foul shot, and missed it. Hardly. Hell even known Pitt hater,Doug Gottleib called the guy out. And some "Pitt fans" like to call out Dixon and question this guy. Hell the dude wins, and wins, and wins. He gets the most of his players and they buy into exactly what he sells. One "Pitt fan" on the Fan went so far as to say, "When is Pitt going to get serious about Basketball and hire Sean Miller?" Hire Sean Miller? Sure great coach, Pitt alum. But we have one of the finest coaches in America. And THE most productive coach through the first 8 years of his career, period. Yes meaning he is on pace with wins with the likes of Calhoun,Knight, Wooden, Kryzewski ect...Sure we lost in the 2nd round again. But you know what? That team made 12 3's, and only committed 6 turnovers the whole game. The Panthers outrebounded, out shot, and had more assists then Butler did. They played well in that second half and battled back from a deficit at the half. Those are the type of games where you say good game, shake the other team's hand, and say well....they beat us. Pitt was in position to win the game, and a missed foul shot cost us.It is what it is. A thing that troubled me greatly,A friend said to me Pitt doesn't have a team built to win the tournament. Pitt doesn't have enough scoring to win the tournament. Kevin Starkey, a writer for the Tribune-Review, states we don't have enough talent to win tournaments. He disagrees with Coach Dixon and states a team that is good enough to win the Big East is not necessarily good enough to win it all. And the one thing I say to all of those statements, That is Bullshit. Seriously. Pitt doesn't have enough talent? Please, and VCU and Butler do have that talent. Thats laughable. The tournament is not about talent, its about winning in a one game situation. It is about getting hot at the right time. Butler and VCU do not have players that can play in the league. They have guys that buy into a system just the same way Pitt does. This only proves my point that you do not need NBA players to make it to the Final 4. You need to get hot at the right time. Pitt has the talent to advance. They started 2 "4 Star" players and 3 "3 star" players by recruiting services. Look there are many great coaches without a Championship. There are many others that had a long wait before they even had a Final Four Appearance themselves. All I'm saying is people that are critical of Pitt and Dixon have to get their thinking caps on and remember the 1990's. We were where Penn State is now, if not worse. Where a NIT bid and maybe an upset over a ranked team during the regular season would have been a successful year. Are people's memories so short? All I'm saying is Jamie Dixon is one of the best coaches in the entire NCAA. He is respected among Basketball people all over the country, and few have the success he does. He has 2 regular season championships in the best league in the country. He has a Big East Tournament Championship. He has never won fewer than 25 games, and never lost more than 10 in a season. He has 2 sweet 16's, and 1 Elite 8 appearance. He is a great coach. This program is among the top 10 in the country year in and year out. We are ranked every season, They play on National TV 15 times a season, they have a chance to win the Big East/NCAA's every year.I just hate Pittsburgh fans and media members being critical of this program. Pitt has not been to the Final 4, I understand that. But they haven't exactly been losing either, It hasn't been embarrassed like other programs, including the Pitt football programs. I just feel as though is I am very pleased with where the Pitt Basketball program sits right now. Any program that is upset about 28 win seasons, may be a little spoiled, or idiotic not sure which. Be Happy with where it is, but do not be content. It can get better, It will get better.
We have Gibbs(maybe), Robinson, Woodall and a few other key players coming back, plus the Highest rated player to ever come to Pitt coming in. We should begin the year ranked in the top 20 range, and slowly work our way into the top 10, and remain there for the majority of the season. Ashton Gibbs will be All Big East first time, and maybe even Player of the Year. We will have 25-26 regular season wins, and only 5-6 losses. We will be around 14-4 within the Big East, and be no lower than a 4 seed entering the tournament....and again we can see if this program can get to the "promised land." And If not, I'll be sure to write a similar article to remind everyone.
No comments:
Post a Comment