Jeff Capel Discusses Pitt's Class of 2024 Signees
PITTSBURGH -- The Pitt Panthers officially brought two high school recruits from their Class of 2024 into the fold late last week as part of the early signing period.
Brandin Cummings and Amdy Ndiaye, the lone members of Pitt's class, both inked their national level of intent and cemented their status as part of the Panthers' future.
Cummings is a 6'3" guard at Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School in Midland, PA. Cummings committed to Pitt in January of 2023 after his junior campaign commenced, following in the footsteps of his brother Nelly.
A composite three-star recruit, Cummings earned positive marks for his play on the EYBL circuit with All-Ohio Red this summer. Alongside Pitt, Cummings also received offers from Creighton, South Carolina and Duquesne among others.
Jeff Capel has a long-standing relationship with Cummings stemming from his proximity to campus as well as the connection and familiarity he's fostered with his family, which ultimately played a major role in his recruitment.
Capel was quite bullish about Cummings' potential during his press conference on Wednesday, noting that he is a natural scorer and impacts the game in a variety of different ways while also making it clear that he is a culture fit for the program.
"We’ve known (Brandin) for a while, obviously with Nelly, and even before we started recruiting Nelly we were recruiting Brandin," Capel said. "It’s been really cool to watch him improve, to watch how much better he’s gotten, the time that he’s put in, you know, in the weight room and working on his game. He’s quiet, but he has this competitive fire that I love. He really, really played well last spring and summer on the EYBL circuit. He’s wired to score, I think he has a chance to be a heck of a defender, and I think he’s going to continue to get better and better. He’s an unbelievable kid, which we know a lot about him and his family. We were really excited when he committed, couldn’t talk about it, but when he signed to have him and his family, not just him, but his whole family to continue to be a part of our program."
Ndiaye is a 6'10" forward who is spending a prep year at Putnam Science Academy in Putnam, CT after playing three seasons at Long Island Lutheran in Glen Head, NY. Ndiaye's stock has steadily risen over the past year as he possesses a tantalizing combination of size and athleticism in addition to a high motor and positional versatility.
Ndiaye is a composite three-star recruit who committed to Pitt earlier this month after receiving an offer in September. Rutgers, St. Bonaventure and Rhode Island are among the other programs that showed interest in Ndiaye.
"Amdy is a guy that, you know, kind of burst on our radar a little bit this summer but more so in the fall," Capel said. "He was someone that we followed but we just saw how much better and better that he’s gotten. One of the things we try to look at when we recruit, obviously talent, but we really try to look at upside and how much better can they get because I think as long as a kid is willing to work, I think we’ve shown that we can help you get better."
"When we looked at him, he’s this 6’10” guy that can defend multiple positions, he has a high motor. If I remember right, I think two years, maybe three, but two or three years ago he was a 6’1” guard and then he hit this growth spurt so he’s ball-friendly, he can shoot, he’s a good athlete, he’s got a high motor and he’s a really, really good kid. That’s one of the things we were able to see when we brought him in for an official visit. It’s important for me, especially now, to have recruits around our team and I want to get what they think, what they feel. All of them, to a tee, said he fits us. He fits who we are, so we were really, really fortunate to get him and think he’s a guy, like Brandin, that both of those guys have high upsides.”
Capel noted that he had a chance to see Ndiaye play in-person this fall after one of his assistants came away impressed with his skill set, opening the door for Pitt to get in and develop a relationship that has paid dividends thus far.
"We heard about word-of-mouth, you know people up north told us about him and how much better he’s gotten," Capel said. "We started going up there this fall to see him, just as we were out. One of my assistants kind of makes the trek up there and goes and sees a bunch of schools, saw him, really was impressed by him, went back and watched him and really was impressed even more. I got a chance to go see him and watch some film and, you know, just the upside, and started developing a relationship with him and got him.”
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