Pittsburgh Basketball: Will the Panthers be the worst ACC team in 2018-19?
Pittsburgh Basketball went winless in the ACC last season. With new head coach Jeff Capel coming in, can the Panthers avoid another last-place finish in the league?
Almost a decade ago, Pittsburgh Basketball was at the peak of their program. They were at the top of the Big East Conference, which at the time was arguably the best in the country top to bottom. But things changed after the Panthers moved to the ACC and Jamie Dixon departed for TCU.
This past season was rock bottom for both the program and the fan base. The Panthers finished the season 8-24, including going 0-18 in the conference. With the exception of a few games, they weren’t within striking distance of taking a lead to possibly win a single game.
But things are finally looking up for the team in the Steel City. Former Duke Assistant Jeff Capel has taken over for Kevin Stallings and his recruiting powers already have paid off, with a pair of four-star players committing to the team for next season.
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To be clear, I’m by no means predicting that the Panthers will be part of the NCAA Tournament bubble discussion. From a talent perspective, Pittsburgh still might be the worst in the ACC. It’ll take a few years and Capel recruiting classes to see the positive effects occur and patience will be needed. But some progress can be made for 2018-19.
There are two goals that Pittsburgh should have for next season. The first being to finish with a total record above .500. The next is to not finish last within the ACC. It won’t be easy and many of the other 14 teams have vastly superior talent but there are two teams that the Panthers have a shot at overtaking.
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 13-19 (6-12)
After a surprisingly good year two seasons ago, the Yellow Jackets took a step back after injuries and suspensions derailed themselves. And with the three best players on the team either graduating or going pro, they’ll fall even further next year. Georgia Tech was one of the worst scoring offenses and have just one double-digit scorer returning. Unless they find extra offense elsewhere, it’s hard to see them winning games.
Wake Forest Demon Deacons 11-20 (4-14)
The second-to-last-place team in the ACC will struggle to move upward after losing four of the team’s five top scorers and a couple more contributors. Wake Forest does have a top-25 recruiting class with a five-star player coming in with Jaylen Hoard but the overall talent advantage will be negated by the inexperience.
Next: Breakdown of each 2018 recruiting class in the ACC
If Pittsburgh was to avoid finishing last again in the ACC, they’ll have to do better than Georgia Tech and Wake Forest. There are very low expectations for the Panthers so even going 4-14 in conference play would be satisfactory for the fans. It might not sound much but at least it’ll show progress, something that can’t be said of the last two years.