Pittsburgh Basketball: 5 key storylines heading into 2022 offseason

Players who have left Pittsburgh Basketball this offseason

There was one player who had no more eligibility left for the Panthers that was definitely gone in Mo Gueye, a fan-favorite forward that averaged 9.8 ppg, 6.3 rpg, and over a couple of blocks at the four-spot. Another key senior who left was former walk-on turned scholarship player Onyebuchi Ezeakudo, who started 12 games this past season but entered the portal for a better opportunity on the court.

Of course, there were expected to be multiple departures to the transfer portal and that there was. Here’s who won’t be back for the team.

SO Femi Odukale – 10.8 ppg and 3.4 apg

The 6’5 guard had “breakout” expectations but fell short of that. He had his moments, including 48 points in two games against Wake Forest and Virginia Tech, but then averaged around 5.0 ppg in the final eight games of the season. He’s not a true point guard and doesn’t shoot the ball much and is heavily reliant on slashing to the basket. He’s a loss for the team with his potential but he was never able to fit into the offense.

JR Ithiel Horton – 9.8 ppg on 38% three-point shooting on 6 attempts a game

He was limited to just 13 games played this season due to the suspension but was easily the best shooter on the team and provided much-needed spacing when he was on the court. Horton probably needed a new start and Pittsburgh will definitely miss his shooting.

Forwards Chris Payton and Dan Oladapo

The former Oakland and JUCO transfer never were able to get consistent minutes on the court, mainly due to being undersized forwards that can’t space the floor. That was just a bad fit with John Hugley in the frontcourt, also did not being helped that Gueye took the power forward spot without question. These are talented players that likely shouldn’t have been in the ACC.

Centers Noah Collier and Max Amadasun

Amadasun played very little this past season as the team’s third center off the bench so him leaving opens up a roster spot. Losing Collier was a big loss in that he was a solid backup big man to Hugley at the five-spot. However, he was playing out of position (has the size of a forward instead of a center) and probably wanted a bigger role somewhere else.