Rebuilding Pitt's basketball program will require several difficult decisions

Perhaps the two most difficult jobs in the Pitt athletic department belong to Heather Lyke and Jeff Capel.

Lyke must decide what action — if any — she might take to jolt the basketball program back to life.

Does she give Capel, who is signed through 2027, a fifth season? Or does she try to come up with (presumably through donors) more than $10 million to buy him out? But is it good business for Pitt to make such a massive expenditure coming out of a pandemic when there’s no guarantee a new coach would change anything in terms of victories and attendance?

Lyke said Feb. 7 she had “a lot of confidence” in Capel.

Did a 3-6 record since then, with five of the defeats occurring by an average margin of nearly 25 points, change her mind?

Four years ago, she hired Capel because of his impressive pedigree playing and working for Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski and a history of success as head coach at VCU and Oklahoma. A celebrated hire, to be sure.

• In four seasons at VCU, Capel won an average of nearly 20 games.

• At Oklahoma, he recruited Blake Griffin, one of the sport’s best players at the time, won 96 games in five seasons and went to the 2009 NCAA Elite 8.

• At Pitt, he has had four losing seasons (51-69), won only two games in the ACC Tournament and been the victim — just like most college basketball coaches — of players leaving the program for a better opportunity. It’s not breaking news that he needs to be a better recruiter.

Capel gave an honest assessment of his program Tuesday after Pitt’s 66-46 loss to 13th-seeded Boston College in the first round of the ACC Tournament.

“We have to get better players … we have to recruit better,” he said.

That’s pointing the finger of blame directly at himself.

But he added, “Teams can drastically change if you get the right guys.” Capel will continue to search the NCAA transfer portal for answers.

On the current roster, 12 scholarship players have eligibility remaining. Only Mouhamadou Gueye, a big loss, has exhausted his time at Pitt.

“I love the kid. I wish we had him longer,” Capel said. “I think he has a very bright future in the game.”

Expect another offseason of roster upheaval that could affect these players who never established themselves in Capel’s rotation:

• Dan Oladapo, a transfer from Oakland, did not play in the last eight games (17 overall).

• Chris Payton, a transfer from Indian Hills (Iowa) Community College, played in only 13 games and never longer than six minutes.

• Max Amadasun has appeared in only 11 games in two seasons.

Also, Onyebuchi Ezeakudo, a senior in bioengineering, made important contributions at point guard, but he may be ready to concentrate on academics and his future He has made no indication of his plans.

Of course, there is always the chance of other players transferring. Fans can’t help but wonder what schools — or their representatives — are talking in center John Hugley’s ear. He would be an even bigger loss than Gueye.

Nike Sibande is expected to return from his knee injury, and there also should be room for guards Jamarius Burton and Ithiel Horton, who have shown signs of being good playmakers.

Femi Odukale is a talented guard, but his shooting percentage fell from 46.4% last season to 39.7% in 2021-22, when more was asked of him and his attempts rose from 110 to 271. He totaled only 41 points in the last eight games.

Hugley is Pitt’s best player, No. 1 in scoring (14.8) and rebounding (7.9). But in the final game of the season, Boston College showed no respect for Hugley’s teammates.

“We knew he was the motor of their team,” BC guard DeMarr Langford said. “Our gameplan was double him in the post and make somebody else make a play.”

Those plays didn’t happen often enough — not just Tuesday, but all season.