The Pitt News Sports Desk came together, handed out some superlatives and reached conclusions on important off-season questions the Panthers must address.
The 2024-25 Pitt men’s basketball season took fans on the same path all Pittsburgh sports traveled in the last year. The season started blazing hot — Pitt ranked fifth in the NET rankings and eventually No. 18 in the weekly AP Poll. But injuries to key players and blowout losses derailed the season.
It needs no explanation that the Pitt News Sports Desk unanimously agreed the Panthers underachieved this past season. The Panthers ended their season in the first round of the ACC Tournament with a heartbreaking 55-54 loss to Notre Dame on a disagreeable foul call — a microcosm for Pitt’s season in one moment.
Here is the rest of the desk’s voting.
MVP — Zack Austin
Redshirt senior forward Zack Austin’s heart was in 100% of every game, and it showed up in the stat sheet. He averaged 9.2 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.1 steals and 1.6 blocks in his 32.1 minutes per game.
After losing Blake Hinson to the NBA G League, the Panthers needed someone to step up as the knockdown shooter. Austin shot 29.5% from deep on 2.9 attempts per game in 2023-24. His productivity shot up to 38.1% from 3-point range on 3.6 attempts per game.
Austin’s value and impact led him to run away as the “Player Pitt will miss most,” as determined by The Pitt News Sports Desk. Part of the Panthers’ identity was poor play in the first half of games, a description that applies to everybody but Austin, who got the Panthers mentally, physically and emotionally into every game with a single shot or defensive play.
The season ended in tragedy for Austin as he was called for a game-losing foul he certainly did not commit. But the number of clutch 3-pointers, emphatic blocks and crowd-igniting dunks he produced throughout the season etched his name into the hearts of Pitt fans everywhere. Not only was Austin the MVP of the 2024-25 season, but he knew how to put on a show.
Fell short of potential — Jaland Lowe
Sophomore guard Jaland Lowe is an interesting player. In the 2023-24 season, Lowe was stuck in the shadow of Carlton “Bub” Carrington, who is now a guard for the NBA’s Washington Wizards. But Lowe’s talent stuck out whenever he took advantage of an opportunity.
Before the 2024-25 season, there was much excitement about what Lowe could do with a year of experience and as the on-court leader. The hype around Lowe and his early season play earned him a spot into prominent college basketball analyst John Fanta of Fox Sports’ NBA mock draft. If Lowe kept up his play, he could’ve been the second consecutive Pitt guard taken in the first round.
But Lowe’s efficiency and shot selection were a larger issue than previously thought. Lowe shot 37.6% from the field and 26.6% from deep on five attempts per game. Although he led the Panthers with 16.8 points per game, too many poor shots and turnovers turned a portion of people looking his way away.
Needs more playing time — Brandin Cummings
First-year guard Brandin Cummings appeared in 31 of Pitt’s 32 games with an average of 16.2 minutes per appearance. In large part, The Pitt News Sports Desk agrees that Cummings needs to spend more time on the court next season and should have this past season as well.
Cummings averaged 6.3 points, 1.6 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game. He also shot 82.1% from the free-throw line and 37.7% from deep.
Head coach Jeff Capel credited Cummings on several occasions for his ability to spark the offense and get the Panthers through a rough offensive stretch. Before conference play started, Cummings dropped a career-high 30 points including six 3-pointers against Eastern Kentucky.
After a 76-47 blowout loss at Duke, Cummings did not record more than 10 minutes in each of the next six games. But after graduate student guard Damian Dunn’s season-ending injury, Cummings’ playtime shot back up.
The Panthers were on a four-game losing streak after a 20-point loss at SMU. Then, Cummings recorded 33 minutes in a win over Miami and 30 minutes in a win over Syracuse. He played double-digit minutes in all of Pitt’s remaining games, setting the guard up for a major role in the 2025-26 season.
Needs less playing time — Guillermo Diaz Graham
Although Lowe found his name once on this ballot, junior forward Guillermo Diaz Graham ran away with this “award.”
Standing seven feet tall, almost 70% of Diaz Graham’s shot attempts come from beyond the arc. Until Austin took over as the Panthers’ most reliable spot-up shooter, Diaz Graham was supposed to fill that role. But his 40.5% efficiency from the 2023-24 season did not carry over, and he shot 31.6% from deep on 3.6 attempts per game this past season.
The Panthers ranked 236th in Division I in rebounding margin, giving up more rebounds than they grabbed per game. Although Diaz Graham grabbed five rebounds per game — the third most by any Panther — he was at the center of discussion when it came to Pitt’s rebounding struggles.
Defensively, Diaz Graham really struggled. Although his height would suggest he can protect the rim, the opposing team’s big men would often hunt him due to his propensity to foul and give up lay-ups.
With a likely return to Pitt for his senior year, Pitt fans are hoping Diaz Graham can have a bounce-back season and continue to earn his playing time. Until then, the Panthers might have to experiment with a different mix of minutes in the front court.
Move on from Jeff Capel? — Yes
In a near-split decision, the Pitt News Sports Desk decided that Pitt should move on from head coach Jeff Capel.
Capel won the ACC Coach of the Year award for the 2022-23 season when the Panthers finished with a 24-12 record. In 2023, Pitt was ranked No. 25 in the AP Poll at one point in the season and reached the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the 2015-16 season.
The Panthers followed up that season with a 22-11 record but just missed an invitation to the NCAA Tournament — a disappointing end to the careers of Pitt stars like Hinson and Carrington.
It’s possible these 20-win seasons were aberrations. Maybe the Panthers’ NCAA Tournament invitation was due to exceeding expectations rather than the sign of a program turning it around. Before the 2022-23 season, Pitt had yet to win 20 or more games under Capel. The 2024-25 season fits this trend.
Capel’s Coach of the Year award and the 2022-23 campaign carry a lot of weight, and he had success at previous schools in VCU and Oklahoma. But with a new athletic director in Pitt’s ranks who might want to shake things up, Capel’s time at Pitt may end.