Men’s basketball: Rivers makes the jump from manager to player

Nick Rivers made a name for himself last season as the student manager of the Pitt men’s… Nick Rivers made a name for himself last season as the student manager of the Pitt men’s basketball team who famously danced in the team huddle before every game.

This season, he’s making a name for himself in a different way.

He’s replacing his game-day suit and tie for a jersey, shorts and sneakers. He got the news early in September that he had made the team as a walk-on.

While he’s always had basketball talent, he never realized just how good he could be until he found himself filling in at one of the team’s practices last year.

“One time we were short on players and coach needed someone to fill in for a drill, and I thought, ‘Wow, I can actually do these drills and compete with these guys,’” Rivers said.

Now a 6-foot-tall, 180-pound junior, Rivers was a standout basketball player at his high school, Brophy College Preparatory in Phoenix, Ariz., and in AAU games when he played against stars such as Portland Trailblazers’ guard Jerryd Bayless and Villanova’s Taylor King. He averaged 15.1 points per game during his senior year.

But, he was not recruited or able to continue his career at the collegiate level. So, he came to Pitt last year looking for a way to stay involved with basketball.

“I decided to be a manager to stay around the game, and I wanted to be a part of something,” Rivers said.

Last season, Rivers would still play pickup games with the players before and after practice. They noticed his talent right away.

“By being an athlete, you can tell if other players have the type of ability to play at your level,” sophomore guard Ashton Gibbs said. “And he had that.”

Gibbs described Rivers as an excellent shooter who brings a hard-working attitude to the game while always pushing the other players to be better.

Rivers agreed and said that he is “always the first one down on offense and the first one back on defense.”

He is also a quick player who is good in transition and will spend time at both guard positions this season.

With former walk-on Ryan Tiesi’s departure from the team, the Panthers had an open walk-on spot heading into this season.

After last season, Rivers talked to the coaches — Brandin Knight and Rasheen Davis in particular — and they encouraged him to work hard over the summer and try to walk on this season.

He did just that.

“We lifted every day, participated in all the conditioning, and I played in the summer league in Greentree,” Rivers said. “It was a blast playing with these guys [in summer league], and I really felt like this is what I want to do. I want to walk-on and make this team better.”

His hard work paid off, as he had consistently strong performances in the summer league, which was comprised of players from local schools like Pitt, Penn State, West Virginia, Duquesne and Robert Morris.

Rivers said that being able to play so well in a league with that many good players really boosted his confidence going into this season. He had several impressive games, scoring 10 points in one game and 11 in another.

But there’s one question on fans’ minds: Will Rivers still perform his pre-game dance now that he’s not one of the managers?.

“We’ll have to see,” Rivers said. “If we can win with it, then we’ll have to keep it going, but I won’t do it if we’re losing.”

And hopefully the Panthers maintain their winning ways, because although he wouldn’t give any details, Rivers simply said, “I’ve got something special planned for the dances this season.”