Capel on the rebuilt roster, the outlook for the season and more

Jeff Capel went deep on a lot of topics during his first meeting with the media of the 2022-23 season on Monday.

Here's the full rundown of everything he said.

You rebuilt the team with eight new guys on the team this year.
Capel: Seven.

Seven. How much pressure does that put on you and the team to turn things around?
Capel: Well, you know, from March and the time the season ended until July, I thought we had to have a lot of wins, and I thought we did that. I thought my staff did an unbelievable job of navigating recruiting, the transfer portal and high school recruiting, and we were able to land six guys, and then one just fell in our lap at the end with Dior. But it was a lot of work, a lot of phone calls, a lot of communication on our part, just trying to really make sure we get the right guys that we feel like can help us going forward, help us get better as a program, as a basketball team and to try to take steps forward in building this thing.

How do you know - you probably don’t know until you see them - but how do you know that they’re the right guys?
Capel: You don’t know as you go through recruiting. You think, you hope. One of the things that was great was that we were able to bring them all on campus, we were able to do traditional visits, we were able to go out and see them, we were able to get them here; that’s a lot better than doing it on Zoom and just phone calls, so that helped. But you don’t truly know someone until you’re with them all the time, and we’ve had a chance, for the most part, to be with these guys for a good part - we had some guys that weren’t here in the summer session, so we didn’t see them, as far as getting them here and with them every day, until the start of school at the end of August. But we’ve had a few weeks with them now and feel like they’re the right guys.

It’s just been workouts, but what can you tell about this group’s level of maturity? A lot of new guys coming in, some guys like John sticking around - what can you tell about the maturity level and how they’re preparing?
Capel: Well, we’re older in the backcourt. We have four fifth or sixth-year guys, with Jamarius and Nike back and then adding two new guys with Greg and with Nelly. So you have more experience there and, to be quite frank, you have men. Those guys are men. John has experience; he has a year under his belt now of playing college basketball the whole year. Nate Santos has that, as well as William. So I think - we hope there is some maturity there and some leadership and just the right attitude of trying to be better every day and trying to be about the right things.

To build off that, with bringing in these older players, obviously there’s an expectation for them to produce; but is there an extra expectation for them to be leaders as well, even with them being new to the group?
Capel: Yes, there is. You know, Nelly comes from a situation where he’s won, and he’s won at a high level, so we need that experience. Greg has been a part of teams that have been talented and won, but he’s also been a part of teams that are talented and haven’t won, and so bringing those experiences as well. Obviously, Jamarius has had a year in our program now, and getting Nike back is big for us. So I do expect them to be leaders, both on and off the court.

With Dior, you described it as falling into your lap; what is the background there? Were you aware of him? Did you have much contact with him before?
Capel: I never had contact with him. I knew who he was. I had seen him play. But obviously he was committed before at a young age - I think ninth, tenth grade - and then when he decommitted from the first school, he made another commitment and signed with another school, so there was no communication.

This isn’t the first time that you’ve had to reload your roster and bring in a bunch of new guys. Have you learned anything about bringing together a team like that over the years?
Capel: Well, we’ve had to do it basically every year, so hopefully we’ve gotten better at it than we have in the past. Again, one of the big things that, I think, certainly helped us, is the fact that we were able to do it in person. The last time we were in this situation where we did it, everything was on Zoom, so those guys, the first time I ever saw them was when they walked in my office. So I do think there was a little bit more familiarity, relationship-wise and things like that, with all of these guys, as opposed to the last time.

When you became aware that Dior was a possibility, what was your reaction and how did you approach the situation? Did you have to look into the background a lot?
Capel: Yeah, certainly had to look into the background. You try to do that with everyone, so you ask a lot of questions, you call people that you feel like maybe have touched the kid in some way, as far as coaching him, being around him, whether it’s at a camp, whether it’s at a USA Basketball trial. Obviously he has a very different path from the things that he’s been through, so you do all of that, and obviously conversations with him, a lot of conversations with him on the phone, FaceTime, his family, just trying to get as much information as you possibly can.

What stood out to you when you watched him? When you were evaluating his play on the court, what stood out to you?
Capel: Well, I mean, he’s talented. That’s the first thing with any kid. He’s talented. So I knew that. I didn’t have to really look much at that. I knew the talent. But it was questions about all the other things: you know, why has he been at so many different schools? Why is there so much movement? What’s the real story with that? You know, trying to find out as much about his character as you possibly can. Again, you ask a lot of questions, you call a lot of people, and you do those things.

What were the answers to those questions?
Capel: I’m not going to get into the answers. But the one thing that kept coming from everyone that we talked to - and it was a lot of people - is that he’s really misunderstood. And I think, because of all the moving, you’re labeled. It’s easy to get labeled in what we do, and he was labeled. And everyone talked about, ‘He’s a really good kid; he’s really misunderstood.’

Coming in with all of that, he’s one of the most highly-touted prospects in the ACC. You were, years ago, starting 28 games as a freshman at Duke. What advice can you give to him on adjusting to the speed of the game, the whole feel of being in the ACC as a freshman?
Capel: Well, it’s going to take time. That’s the main thing. He was one of the guys that wasn’t here this summer, so all of his stuff started right when we started school, so there’s a lot to catch up, especially strength-wise, the conditioning part. You know, you’re playing against guys that are older, you’re playing against guys that are more experienced, and because of all the moving, there wasn’t a lot of development as far as his body is concerned. So the main thing is that, you have to be patient, it’s going to take time, you have to work, you have to have the right attitude, you have to understand that you have a reputation, everyone’s going to be watching, they want to look and see, so you have to be mindful and cognizant of that. I didn’t have to deal with that as much when I was that age because there weren’t as many expectations with freshmen as there are now. College basketball was completely different back then.

But he’s a good kid, he’s working, he wants to be really good, he’s not afraid of the work. He’s been a great attitude so far for us, and I expect that to continue.

How has Nike been? He had the transfer issues just getting to play two years ago, last year he gets hurt, what’s been his demeanor as a young man just coming from that injury, building back and now being ready this year?
Capel: Yeah, he’s been great. I think he’s appreciative - I’m not saying he never was appreciative, but I think he’s even more appreciative now of the opportunity to play, having a chance to play, being healthy. Last Monday, a week ago today, was the first time he’s done five-on-five since the injury, so just being able to do that - he was able to put together some days last week of back-to-back five-on-five. It’s going to be a natural buildup for him. I was happy to see him take some hits and get back up and keep going, because I think structurally everything is fine; the last part of it and sometimes the most difficult part is the mental aspect of recovering from an injury like that. But again, he knows to be patient, to work, but I think he’s been really good as far as trying to be a leader with his actions, with his words and how he carries himself.

Will he be limited at all at the beginning of the season?
Capel: There will be some limitation as far as practice is concerned. We want to make sure it’s a buildup for him, so he won’t do 100% of the practice. I think the plan this week is to do 80%. So if we do a segment that’s 15 minutes long, he’ll do eight minutes of it. If we do something that’s 20, he’ll do 18 or 16. We’ll just kind of play it by ear, see how he is this week, we have an off day on Thursday, see how he is, hopefully everything’s fine and then the next week is 90% of everything. There’s nothing physical - there’s nothing that he can’t do; it’s just, we’ll limit some of the things as far as time is concerned.

You mentioned the maturity and attitude and leadership with the group; how is that going to represent itself on the court? What are we going to see different this year?
Capel: Well, we have to see. That’s the big thing: we have to see. We’re getting to know our guys. I’ve known our group together since the first day of school, which I think was August 29th. So again, I’m still trying to figure it out. We had three guys that weren’t here this summer and Nike couldn’t play; he could only do the non-contact stuff. So seeing us collectively together is something we’re still learning and trying to figure out about this group.

With Guillermo playing in the summer with the Spain U20 team and winning a championship, how valuable is that kind of experience for a freshman coming in?
Capel: Well, it’s very valuable. I think anytime a kid gets a chance to represent their country, it’s something that they should really go after. I was really happy for him that he was able to make that team. He was told initially that he probably wouldn’t play that much and he was challenged by that. I remember having the conversation with him, ‘Do you want to do it?’ And he said, ‘Yeah, I want to earn minutes.’ And he did that. And I thought he played really well.

He’s a talented young guy, and he’s only going to get better and better, I think. They - when I say ‘they,’ both G and Jorge - they are unbelievable to be around, because they are happy, they just bring a smile to their face, with their enthusiasm, their joy of playing, their joy of being here, their appreciation of everything. I thought that was a great experience for him.

Are they maybe a little more ready to play than a typical freshman just with the background in Europe?
Capel: I don’t know. We’ll see as we go forward. Again, I’m still learning about everyone on our team, so we’ll see. I know that they’re talented. They are unique from the standpoint - they’re typical European tall guys, they’re versatile, they can shoot, they can pass it, they have a pretty good feel for how to play. Obviously the big thing for them is strength, but they’re not afraid. It’s not like - they’re thin, but there’s nothing soft about them. So I think they’re going to continue to get better and better with the work that they’re putting in. And they love the gym. That’s the other thing: they love the gym. They love to be in here, they love the work, they’re not afraid of it, so it’s exciting.

You talked about moving the program forward; do you have an idea in your mind of what that would look like success-wise this year for you to say you took a step?
Capel: I just think trying to get better every day, learning how to win, trying to win consistently, and just being locked in and all-in about the right stuff, about us winning. Just to be totally engulfed and concerned with us winning.

You talked about last year wanting to increase some depth and some size for your team. It seems like in recruiting you did that. Obviously you haven’t seen these guys a lot, like you said, but do you feel like you will be more equipped under the hoop?
Capel: Well, the one thing we wanted to do was that we wanted to add shooting and we wanted to add quality depth and certainly size. I do think we’ve addressed that. The shooting standpoint, I’m hopeful that we’re better. On paper, we’re better, but we have to make them when the lights are on and someone’s really trying to guard us. Certainly, we’ve gotten more size. The twins did that - seven-foot, six-eleven, but also with Fede and his length. You gain experience in the front court with Blake Hinson, a guy that’s done it on a high-major level and played well when he was at Ole Miss. Now he hasn’t played in two years but…

Greg Elliott can shoot the basketball. Nelly can shoot the basketball. Blake can shoot the basketball. The twins can shoot the basketball. So we’ve really tried to add - that was probably one of the main things we really focused on: being able to make some shots,. And then hopefully our returning guys will be able to do that for us. We anticipate John being a guy that still commands a double and is able to draw fouls, and hopefully this year we can have a little bit better shooting around him.

What has John been like this offseason? His approach, how he took in last season, how he’s focused on being better this year.
Capel: He’s been good. He tried to take on a leadership role at the end of last season with really helping recruiting. He was incredibly active from that aspect. And then on the court, he’s just trying to expand different parts of his game. I think one of the biggest things for him is being in great shape. Not good shape, but great shape.

Last year was his first year of college basketball, of really going through a whole year. For anyone - I think, at least from my experience as a player and coaching guys for a little bit now - normally freshmen - and John was like a freshman, even though he wasn't a freshman - you hit a wall at some point, because you’ve never gone that hard, you’ve never had to practice that hard, the attention to detail never had to be at that point, and John is still growing as far as the discipline part. He’s made tremendous strides, but he still can get even better, so we’re excited about the challenge of helping him do that.

How much of a luxury is it in today’s game to have a guy like John? Nowadays people post players are obsolete in the game, but to have a guy like John that you can throw the ball down there to when you need a tough basket - how much of a luxury is that nowadays?
Capel: Yeah, I don’t think it’s gone in college. It’s completely gone in the pros. It’s completely different. But in college, I still think that that’s a huge thing, so it is a luxury to have that, to have a guy like him that we anticipate commanding a lot of attention. And like I said, hopefully we’ve added some shooting around him that will help us and help him be even better than he was last year.

Is the expectation still that Will can be ready for the start of the regular season?
Capel: We hope so, by the regular season, yeah. I definitely think, knock on wood, that he’ll be ready by the regular season. The goal is, we’re hopeful to have him back by the first exhibition.

Is this your most talented roster at Pitt?
Capel: I think so. If you look at it on paper, I think so. But we have to produce. That’s the thing.
With John on the recruiting side, did it get to a point where you had to tell him to stop bringing you transfers to look at and things like that?
Capel: I never told him to stop, because we were looking also. To be honest with you, man, it was exciting to see him, to see Jamarius, to see Nike - those three guys, really, like right away, really jumped in and they were in communication with a lot of guys. And they were texting me, calling me - ‘Coach, we need to recruit this guy, I talked to him’ or whatever, so it was pretty exciting to see them locked in like that.

Specifically with Nelly, what attitude and leadership does he bring to your team?
Capel: He’s won. He’s won and he’s won at a high level, from the standpoint of winning your league regular season, winning your conference tournament and then having a chance to participate in the NCAA Tournament. And in each of those areas, he’s played well: in the regular season, in their conference tournament and then in the NCAA Tournament. Specifically, if you look at last year, the games they played against high-major teams, he played well. So he’s a guy that has confidence, he’s secure in who he is; even though he’s coming up a level, I think he’s secure in who he is as a basketball player, as a young man. He’s not afraid of work.

He’s a kid that grew up wanting to be here, wanting to come to Pitt. And now he has the opportunity to be here and it’s exciting for him, it’s exciting for us, and we’re excited to see how he can help us get better.

Do you feel like that provides extra value, that you have someone who was around here in this area, when Pitt was at its highest in basketball and he was here to watch it and be inspired by it when he was younger; do you think him being able to have seen that and talk to his teammates about that provides value?
Capel: I hope so. I hope so. I think anytime you can see success and talk about it, where it’s not just coming from coaches, I think that’s really good.