Pittsburgh Basketball: Panthers finally has clarity in Dior Johnson situation

The cloud of Dior Johnson has been hanging over Pittsburgh Basketball all season. Now that he’s set to redshirt, the Panthers can move forward.

When Pittsburgh Basketball landed Dior Johnson late last offseason, there was rightfully a lot of hype. He was one time a five-star prospect in the 2022 recruiting class and the type of talent that the program desperately needs in order to get out of the bottom of the ACC. But there were also off-the-court concerns with him and made many power conference teams stay away after he de-committed from Oregon.

Those concerns rose up again when Johnson was arrested in October for an assault on a woman. He was suspended indefinitely from both the team and school until the charges were addressed. In December, he pleaded guilty to multiple misdemeanors and was sentenced to probation, clearing his eventual reinstatement.

There were questions as to what his role would be if he were to return to the Panthers for the rest of ACC play, with the backcourt rotation already defined. On Wednesday afternoon, we got our answer.

If nothing else, Johnson becoming an extra body at practice will be helpful since he’s a power conference talent. And more importantly, the program doesn’t have to have this hanging over their heads for the rest of the season. A season that currently has potential, as Pittsburgh Basketball is 9-4 and 2-0 in ACC play. While they’re out of the NCAA Tournament conversation, the NIT is certainly a possibility barring a collapse.

It also creates a future roster that would benefit all sides. Nelly Cummings, Jaramius Burton, and Greg Elliott are all in their last years of eligibility and the Panthers would need to find guards next offseason. This creates an opportunity for Johnson to potentially be a lead guard and run the offense next year. The team has incoming freshmen, Jaland Lowe and Carlton Carrington coming in and with Johnson, would be a nice core of guards for the Panthers. He gets to learn the system for the next couple of months and have an offseason without uncertainty.

As for Johnson himself, he very well could either leave for either the transfer portal or even go pro, despite not having a draft stock. Even when he committed to Pittsburgh Basketball, there were some that either joked or genuinely believed that the guard wouldn’t suit up for the team. And they were proven right for at least this season.

November of 2023 is 10 months away and obviously, anything can and could happen with Dior Johnson and Pittsburgh. But honestly, there’s no point in worrying about it. If nothing else, all the attention can rightfully be focused on the players on the court, who has the potential to make some noise for the rest of this season.