Men’s basketball adds two recruits to 2017 class

Pitt basketball landed two commits this week as coach Kevin Stallings begins to fill in his roster for next season.

St. John’s transfer Malik Ellison pledged to Pitt Tuesday, according to ESPN’s Jeff Goodman. 6-foot-4 guard Khameron Davis followed suit Wednesday, becoming the seventh member of the 2017 class.

Ellison shot 41.9 percent from the field last year, averaging 7.4 points and 2.5 assists per game. The 6-foot-6 guard has two years of eligibility remaining but will be forced to sit out a year due to NCAA transfer rules.

According to the New York Post, Ellison decided to leave the school because of a concern over playing time. Last year, he started in 26 games as the team stumbled to a lackluster 14-19 record.

Ellison’s father, Pervis, was a No. 1 NBA draft pick in 1989. He played in the league for 11 years, averaging 9.5 points and 6.7 rebounds per game.

On the other hand, Davis was rated as a two-star prospect by ESPN coming out of Sunrise Christian Academy in Kansas in 2016. He decided to enroll in prep school, playing this past year for Forest Trail Academy in North Carolina.

“After a lot of hard work and a lot of support from my friends and family I would like to officially commit to the University of Pittsburgh to continue my basketball career,” Davis said on Twitter. “I’m really blessed that coach Stallings and the coaching staff decided to believe in me and I’m really excited to be in Pittsburgh where the best fans in the nation are.”

Pitt now has three spots remaining in this year’s class. Pitt head coach Kevin Stallings doesn’t have much time complete the group before the May 17 signing deadline.