Pitt’s Starting Five Preview

The starting five for this year’s Pitt basketball team will have a lot of familiar faces as it did a year ago. The four starters who return are James Robinson, Chris Jones, Michael Young, and Jamel Artis. Even though last season Young was forced into the center role that should not be expected this season. Three new faces are on campus and they will duke it out for the final spot. Here is a preview of what lineup I believe would work best for the 2015-16 Panthers.

 

Point Guard- James Robinson2014-15 Per Game Stats- 8.9 PTS, 5.1 AST, 3.6 REBS, 36.7 FG%, 29.8 3P%, and 83.3 FT%

Robinson has been a big name on campus since he arrived in 2012 and so far he has yet to live up to the hype. That is not to say he been awful or a complete disappointment. The problem is he was supposed to be the next star for Pitt coming out of the highly regarded DeMatha High School and as of now he just has not lived up to the billing. His assist and point totals have improved each year, but he still has yet to average over 10 points a game for an entire season and has shown to be an inefficient scorer. Going into his final year hopefully Robinson can turn the corner and become the point guard Dixon had hoped he would get when recruiting him.

Shooting Guard- Chris Jones

2014-15 Per Game Stats- 8.5 PTS, 2.0 AST, 3.1 REBS, 43.1 FG%, 35.7 3P%, and 54.5 FT%

Another Panther who struggles at the charity stripe, only this is even worse since Jones is supposed to be the best perimeter scorer on the team. He did lead the team in made threes a year ago and had a respectable percentage from deep, but that free throw percentage is unacceptable. He had a large enough sample size to prove it too, attempting 55 total in the season. Those are free points that Pitt cannot waste like they have in the past. The only other competition at this spot is Sterling Smith or Damon Wilson. But since both of them are new to the program it is a safe bet Jones will be the starter. However, he had better be a drastically better free throw shooter this or he could see his time reduced.

Small Forward- Jamel Artis

2014-15 Per Game Stats- 13.6 PTS, 6.0 REBS, 2.3 AST, 46.9 FG%, 39.4 3P%, and 79.5 FT%

Simply put he is the best player on the team. Artis as only a sophomore showed is a devastatingly good scorer. Not only did he lead the team in points, but also he did in an efficient manner. He was second on the team in threes by only two to Chris Jones, however he shot four percent better. Artis came into his own last season and at this point he is the reason why Pitt fans can hope for a return to the NCAA Tournament. His All-ACC caliber talent is rare and the sky is limit as he is only going to improve and learn from last year. Just a little reminder Sam Young did not come into his own until his Junior year, if Artis is like that imagine how good he can be.

Power Forward- Michael Young

2014-15 Per Game Stats- 13.4 PTS, 7.3 REBS, 1.3 AST, 53.0 FG%, 29.4 3P%, and 69.3 FT%

The other half of the dynamic duo for Jamie Dixon this year is Michael Young. Just like Artis he is also going into his junior season, which is exciting because of how much talent he showed last season. Also like Artis, Young has the ability to score extremely efficiently by picking his shots well. It seems like when he does shoot more often than not it is a good look at the basket. That is rare for a guy who was only a sophomore last season. As well, he will be playing a more comfortable power forward, instead of center. Having Young at center hurt Pitt’s rebounding efforts, as they were undersized. He is a more than capable rebounder it just fits him better at power forward. Finally, Young said at Pitt’s media day he has been working on his outside shot. If he is able to knock down open threes the offense will have floor spacing like never seen before by a Dixon team.

Alonzo Nelson-Ododa

2014-15 Per Game Stats- 6.6 PTS, 5.1 REBS, 1.7 BLKS, 45.2 FG%, and 80.9 FT%

It has been widely speculated that another graduate transfer, Rafael Maia, has the edge to start. But at this point it is anybody’s guess, so little is known about which one of these players can transition to power conference play it could be any one of them. I believe Ododa makes the most sense for Dixon’s system. He brings good size and athleticism to the table, which could really be valuable to the Panther defense. Most importantly he has shown to be an excellent shot blocker. His ability to protect the rim will give this year’s squad something last year’s never had. It is true he is not an effective low post scorer and his rebounding needs work. However, Gary McGhee never was a low post scoring threat and if any coach can get Alonzo rebounding it will be Dixon. All that being said Ododa just provides what Pitt needs more than the other graduate transfers fighting for the job.