Pitt Searching For New Starting PG

The Pitt Panthers will use the preseason to look for a new starting point guard.

PITTSBURGH -- With Nelly Cummings' college eligibility having expired, the line of succession for the Pitt Panthers at point guard was clear entering the offseason. Former five-star freshman Dior Johnson would return to the lineup and that would provide the necessary buffer between the next generation. 

But Johnson's expulsion from Pitt late this past summer has sped up the timeline and will force a pair of true freshmen - Carlton "Bub" Carrington and Jaland Lowe - into action right away at college basketball's most demanding position. The Panthers are looking for their next starting point guard and one of those very young players will have to take on that very big job.

“Well they have to grow up fast," head coach Jeff Capel said. "And I’ve been very honest with them about that because they’re going to play."

Capel and his staff have about five weeks between now and the beginning of the regular season to figure out who will be the primary ball-handler for his group this year. Lowe and Carrington are both former four-star recruits and former top-100 players in the class of 2023. They each have talent but this is a tall order for anyone their age. 

There's a long way to go, but these two have a solid foundation. Senior forward Blake Hinson believes they are way ahead of where most freshmen guards are at that age and it shows up on the court.

“Both of them, their talent level, I think, picks up a lot for their inexperience and it shows a lot," he said. "One of the hardest things for young guards is just seeing the floor. Although I don’t think they all the way see it yet, just instinctively, they make the right plays.”

The good news for Lowe and Carrington is that Capel has tried to foster an environment around them full of veteran teammates and coaches who can help them through whatever hurdles will inevitably arrive. 

"There will be a learning curve," Capel said. "But fortunate for them, No. 1 they’re talented, No. 2 they’re gym rats and No. 3 - maybe as big as any of them - they have some really good older guys in the program to help them, some guys that have had success, some guys that have been here that have been really impactful on their development so far.”

That group of "older guys" extends from their teammates up to assistant coaches like Milan Brown, a former four-year starter at Howard during his playing days, and beyond to alumni like Jamarius Burton, Greg Elliott and Cummings, all of whom were around the Petersen Events Center this summer to work with the two true freshmen. 

Another key part of that support group will be Rhode Island transfer Ishmael Leggett, a graduate transfer guard who arrived just this year as well. He's another candidate the handle the ball quite a bit for the Panthers this season and will hopefully take some of the pressure off those two as a third option. 

Capel plans to mix and match lineups, especially during the preseason, to find what his best backcourt options are. Both players will take turns leading the offense, then they'll play together, then Leggett will step in and eventually all three will be on the floor together. 

But for all the ways Capel and company will try and make this process easier on Carrington and Lowe, there is no replacing experience and like all freshmen, they will make mistakes. Pitt will have to live with those as they search for its point guard of the future. 

“You have to be patient. You have to understand that they’re going to make mistakes and you’re going to have to live with some of those mistakes," Capel said. "There’s a learning curve. There’s a lot that’s going to be thrown at them. We’re trying to throw some things at them in practice to get them prepared for that. But the biggest thing for them is to not be defeated, to have a great attitude every day, understand it’s a learning process."

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