Inside The Panthers

Pitt Legend Active for Zoo Crew Against Best Virginia

Pitt Panthers basketball legend DeJuan Blair is active for the Zoo Crew against Best Virginia in TBT Round 2.

Dominic Campbell

Oct 20, 2014; Baltimore, MD, USA; Washington Wizards center DeJuan Blair (45) dribbles as New Orleans Pelicans center Alexis Ajinca (42) defends during the second half at Baltimore Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 20, 2014; Baltimore, MD, USA; Washington Wizards center DeJuan Blair (45) dribbles as New Orleans Pelicans center Alexis Ajinca (42) defends during the second half at Baltimore Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports / Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

PITTSBURGH -- Pitt Panthers legend DeJuan Blair is active for the next game in The Basketball Tournament (TBT) for the Zoo Crew, the Pitt alumni team, as they face off against Best Virginia, the West Virginia alumni team.

Blair missed the first game for the Zoo Crew against Million Dollaz Worth of Game, that came down to the wire, with the home team pulling off the 98-95 victory.

The only player for the Zoo Crew who will miss against Best Virginia is guard Jared Wilson-Frame (2017-19), as he missed the first game as well.

The two teams face off 8:00 p.m. Monday night at the Petersen Events Center, where the Zoo Crew will expect a big home support against their bitter rival.

Blair starred for the now defunct Schenley High School in North Oakland, where he would score 1,563 career points and accrue a record of 103 wins to 16 losses, including 57-0 in the Pittsburgh City League.

He would earn City League Player of the Year honors three times, and both AP Player of the Year and All-State honors in Pennsylvania his junior and senior seasons. He also led Schenley to the PIAA Class 4A title over Chester, as he scored 18 points, made 23 rebounds and blocked six shots in the victory. 

Despite undergoing two ACL surgerys in high school, Blair would ultimately choose to play for Pitt as a member of the Class of 2007.

He had a stellar freshman season for the Panthers, making the Big East All-Rookie Team and earning Big East Co-Rookie of the Year, Freshman All-American and three-time National Player of the Week honors. 

He started 36 of 37 games in the 2007-08 season, averaging 26.0 minutes, 11.6 points, 9.1 rebounds, 1.7 steals and 1.1 blocks per game, while shooting 53.7% from the floor. 

His efforts also led Pitt to their final Big East Tournament Title as the No. 7 seed and to the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament.

Blair had one of the best campaigns in Pitt history as a sophomore in the 2008-09 season. He started all 35 games, averaged 27.2 minutes, scored 15.7 points, grabbed 12.3 rebounds, made 1.5 steals, blocked 1.0 shots and dished out 1.2 assists per game, respectively.

His efforts earned him numerous accolades, including First Team All-Big East, Big East Player of the Year and Consensus First Team All-American honors. 

Along with other Pitt greats like guard Levance Fields and forward Sam Young, he helped the program to earn their first ever No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and made it to the Elite Eight for the first time in 35 years.

Blair entered the NBA Draft after his sophomore season and the San Antonio Spurs selected him with the No. 37 pick in the Second Round. 

He spent his first four seasons with the San Antonio Spurs, and played in all 82 games as a rookie, while starting 23 of them. He averaged 18.2 minutes, 7.8 points and 6.4 rebounds per game, respectively, while shooting 55.6% from the field en route to NBA All-Rookie Second Team honors.

Blair spent the 2013-14 season with the Dallas Mavericks and then his final two NBA seasons with the Washington Wizards.

He played for the Jiangsu Tongxi Monkey Kings in China in 2016 and for San Lorenzo de Almagro in Brazil in the 2017-18 season, while also playing for G-League teams in the Texas Legends, Los Angeles D-Fenders and the Austin Spurs.

Blair most recently played for VL Pesaro in Italy in 2019, but the club terminated his contract due to a FIBA anti-doping violation, as he took oxymorphone-oxycodone.

Zoo Crew Final Roster

Guards
Nelly Cummings
Greg Elliott
Nike Sibande
Jared Wilson-Frame

Guards/Forwards
Jamel Artis
Lamar Patterson

Forwards 
Ryan Luther
Dustin Sleva
Mike Young

Centers
DeJuan Blair
Drew Cisse

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Dominic Campbell
DOMINIC CAMPBELL

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