Former Pitt players support one of their own
The Pitt administration is working to find a new basketball coach, but some former players think there's a good candidate in one of their own.
Brandin Knight has his jersey in the rafters of the Petersen Events Center and had as much to do with Pitt's turnaround as any other individual player. His attitude, confidence and competitiveness set the tone for the Pitt program and its resurgence.
A couple of knee injuries derailed his chances at a professional career, so the natural move was coaching. Even as a player, due to his intangibles and style, everyone knew that he would go into coaching, and he did so at his alma mater, where he started out as video coordinator and worked his way through the Director of Basketball operations position into the top assistant role.
After Jamie Dixon moved on to TCU, Kevin Stallings offered Knight an assistant position on the staff but Knight declined, opting to move to Rutgers to work under Steve Pikiell. Rutgers is one of the most difficult jobs in the country, and the Scarlet Knights have shown a little bit of life under the new staff.
As the Pitt search moves through Week Three, Knight's lack of experience prevents him from being a legitimate candidate, but the longer the search goes, maybe things will change. If it were up to some of the former players, Knight would get his chance to make the same impact on this program as a coach as he did a player.
A few of those former players shared their thoughts on the search with Panther-Lair.com.
Gary McGhee (center, 2007-11): "I like B-Knight of course. He deserves a shot at this. He is one of the main reasons that Pitt became so relevant. Brandin helped build that program from the bottom up. I wouldn't mind Sean Miller either. Since he played at Pitt and is a good coach. Hurley would have been a decent choice too but I don't care for the other names. It should be Knight or Miller."
Brad Wanamaker (guard, 2007-11): "Honestly, I don't even know what is going on. I just wish them the best. Hopefully they can get back to their winning ways. I have been out of the loop a little."
Mike Cook (guard, 2006-08): "I really want B-Knight to get the job. I think he is the perfect person to turn this around. He has always been a natural leader and would be the ideal candidate for this."
Levance Fields (guard, 2005-09): "BK deserves to coach this program, man. They need him right now. He can definitely get things rolling in the right direction again. Brandin understands Pitt pride and would end this terrible stretch."
Ronald Ramon (guard, 2004-08): "I'd love to see Brandin Knight become the head coach. Right now, we are in a very difficult place with our program and we need a guy that can relate and understand to take over. That is Brandin."
Gilbert Brown (forward, 2006-11)-:"I honestly believe that we need someone who genuinely cares about the university and has ties to the program. Of course my choice would be Knight. He has what it takes to get Pitt back to what it once was and sooner than people think. The same fire, compassion, and drive that Dixon had is the same way Brandin is every single day. From my experience as a player, you tend to take not he mindset and attitude of your coach.
"They can't afford to go after someone that might flop again. It's either get a big name or someone with ties to the university. Brandin has been coaching for more than 10 years and that is about when Dixon got his first chance. I doubt they do it though."