you thought a move from Pitt to UCLA to become the 10th highest paid basketball coach was shady? gotcha
Dixon left because he's tired of Pitt and we're tired of him. The program has been in retreat since Nova's last second winner and without Antigua and Rohrssen recruiting has been awful.
Right now Steven Adams would be looked at as the best player in the NBA that Dixon put out. Blair would be 2nd. neither start. aside from them only NBA guys were Sam young and lamar patterson...neither exactly full of talent.
he was never a recruiter but he did a great job grabbing the baton from Howland and continuing what Ben started.
He went back to his alma mater after being with a team for 13 seasons....Nothing wrong with that.
i think he'll do well...good guy, good coach but went as far as he could at Pitt. Doesn't hurt to leave a conference with multiple "basketball schools" (cuse, unc, wake, duke, uva) to join B12 with just one basketball school (kansas). He better surround himself with good recruiting assistants because after the main Pitt recruiters left the new talent was so poor that he started hinging each season on mid-major Graduate transfers....
bigger pay, lower expectations, alma mater where you are in their athletic HOF, conference with 1 true powerhouse. pretty simple really
Makes a lot of sense.....13 seasons is a long time at 1 school.....He had a nice career at Pitt 328-123...Time to move on.
And it makes even more sense that its his Alma Mater.
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pittsburgh Panthers (Big East Conference) <small>(2003–2013)</small> | |||||
| 2003–04 | Pittsburgh | 31–5 | 13–3 | 1st | NCAA Sweet Sixteen |
| 2004–05 | Pittsburgh | 20–9 | 10–6 | 5th | NCAA First Round |
| 2005–06 | Pittsburgh | 25–8 | 10–6 | T–4th | NCAA Second Round |
| 2006–07 | Pittsburgh | 29–8 | 12–4 | T–2nd | NCAA Sweet Sixteen |
| 2007–08 | Pittsburgh | 27–10 | 10–8 | 7th | NCAA Second Round |
| 2008–09 | Pittsburgh | 31–5 | 15–3 | T–2nd | NCAA Elite Eight |
| 2009–10 | Pittsburgh | 25–9 | 13–5 | T–2nd | NCAA Second Round |
| 2010–11 | Pittsburgh | 28–6 | 15–3 | 1st | NCAA Third Round |
| 2011–12 | Pittsburgh | 22–17 | 5–13 | T–13th | CBI Champions |
| 2012–13 | Pittsburgh | 24–9 | 12–6 | 4th | NCAA Second Round |
| Pittsburgh Panthers (Atlantic Coast Conference) <small>(2013–2016)</small> | |||||
| 2013–14 | Pittsburgh | 26–10 | 11–7 | 5th | NCAA Third Round |
| 2014–15 | Pittsburgh | 19–15 | 8–10 | T–9th | NIT First Round |
| 2015–16 | Pittsburgh | 21–12 | 9–9 | T–9th | NCAA First Round |
| Pittsburgh: | 328–123 (.727) | 143–81 (.638) |
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You look at those seasons in the Big East against Syracuse,Georgetown,Uconn,etc,etc.
Those are good seasons....He had double digit losses in only 2 of those seasons.
Those are good seasons....He had double digit losses in only 2 of those seasons.
I forgot about that....He`s a good guy.....I was watching a college hoops show the other day....Guys were talking him up as 1 of the good guys in the game.
I think he can put TCU on the map....Might take a few years.....But he can do it.
It's similar to the Buzz Williams move (Marquette to Virginia Tech). Williams left a solid (but maxed-out) program, and went to a lesser program with lesser expectations (and upside potential).
As others have said, Pitt basketball is tough fit for ACC basketball. How do you generate interest with fans/media/recruits, when you're not in ACC country? For the worst-case scenario, look at BC football/basketball. They were consistently competitive in Big East (and early days of ACC), but Boston is a black-hole for college sports (other than hockey).
So Dixon goes to TCU, where he probably receives more money, and he definitely receives a grace-period from fans/media.
Meanwhile, TCU is dumping $$$ into facilities & upgrades:
* $164M for football stadium
* $63M for basketball
Wow, that's a big investment for a "mid major nothing"........
