No. 5 – Pittsburgh

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Tragedy struck the Pittsburgh basketball program this offseason with the death of coach Jamie Dixon’s younger sister, Maggie. An outpouring of support carried the Panthers coach through the rough times, and he has vowed to forge on with the same spirit Maggie exuded during her magical run as the Army women’s coach last season.

“She touched so many people,” Jamie Dixon says.

Dixon enters the upcoming season with a recently signed contract extension through 2012-13, a future NBA first-round draft pick in center Aaron Gray (who pulled his name from the ’06 draft despite first-round overtures) and the return of three starters and nine letterwinners from a team that finished 25–8 (10–6 in the Big East) and reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Despite the loss of mercurial point guard Carl Krauser, Pittsburgh is a legitimate top 10 team, if not top five. “We have a solid group, but we’re going to need some guys who we didn’t ask a lot of last season to step up,” says Dixon. “This is no different than any other year. It will be a challenge.”

FRONTCOURT – The Panthers got their best offseason news on June 18. That’s when Gray, a 7'0" senior who averaged a double-double last season (13.9 points, 10.5 rebounds), announced he would return for his final year. That decision catapulted the Panthers into the nation’s elite. “This is something that will energize us as a team,” fellow senior Levon Kendall says. “I think we’re going to be real dangerous. We should be pushing for the Final Four.”

Gray continues to sculpt his 270-pound body — he’s dropped 30 pounds since arriving in Pittsburgh as a relative unknown — and his time spent with NBA coaches and scouts this offseason enabled him to get unbiased feedback. Although he proved last season that he can be a dominant force, Gray must improve his stamina. He struggled late in the Panthers’ loss to Syracuse in the Big East Tournament final. Ditto for their 72–66 setback to Bradley in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Given his work ethic, Gray likely will upgrade in this area.

Pairing with him in the low post is the rangy Kendall, 6'9", who can step back and shoot the long ball or swoop through the lane for easy buckets. Kendall is also a masterful weak-side defender with a knack for being around the basketball, evidenced by his 5.4 rebounds per game.

Two young players to watch are sophomores Sam Young, a magician in the air, and the powerful Tyrell Biggs. Young, a Big East All-Rookie team pick, will be a breakout player in the league this season. His athleticism is staggering.

The Panthers also will get a boost from East Carolina transfer Mike Cook, a 6'4" swingman who sat out last season. Cook averaged 15.0 points for East Carolina in 2004-05 and posted 41 double-figure scoring games in his two seasons there.

BACKCOURT – The Panthers will miss the big-play capabilities and overall toughness provided by Krauser, but they won’t miss his penchant for trying to do too much. That’s where junior point guard Ronald Ramon and sophomore combo guard Levance Fields come in. This New York City twosome could become the best in the Big East when they realize that life goes on without Krauser. Ramon is a leader who rarely turns the ball over and is dangerous from long range. Fields is a brash, two-way attacker who gets better when the lights get brighter. He had moments of greatness in the Big East Tournament.

Complementing that duo is a plethora of talented players, led by junior Keith Benjamin, a defensive whiz who scores in spurts, former starter Antonio Graves, Cook and incoming freshman Gilbert Brown, a legit all-rookie team candidate.

With so much depth, Dixon’s challenge will be getting these players enough playing time.

FINAL ANALYSIS – Unlike most of the Big East heavyweights, the Panthers return nearly intact. That’s why expectations are so high. The question is: Can they handle the hype?

In years past, they had security in knowing that Krauser was available for guidance and big-game heroics. But the loss of Krauser could be addition by subtraction, because players such as Gray, Fields, Young and Ramon no longer have to stand in the background. This is their team now, and their chance to give it a new identity.

And with so much talent, that identity could feature two compelling words: Final Four.