Be Like Tike

Jump to Comments

There has been some speculation in and around the Pittsburgh media over the past few weeks that Jamie Dixon may leave the University of Pittsburgh’s head basketball coaching position. This would normally be cause for panic, but Dixon has gone out of his way to reassure everyone that he is staying at the school that he has helped put back on the national map.

So far this season, Dixon has rejected the University of California, his alma mater, which went after him immediately after firing its coach. Dixon constantly receives interest from West coast teams because, well, ESPN says it better than I can:

There is a perception that Dixon wants to move back to the West Coast because he is from Santa Barbara and his wife is from Hawaii. In truth, he is not looking to get back there as his family thoroughly enjoys living in Pittsburgh.

If Dixon were to leave at some point, however, there is a very natural successor currently residing in the Queen City, Cincinnati, where Sean Miller has helped guide Xavier to the Elite Eight this season. Miller was the runner-up to the Pitt job when Ben Howland left and played for the Panthers. He has, however, risen significantly on the national scene and could be in line for other major coaching jobs. (Then there is also the fact that Dixon turned down his alma mater and that there is nothing preventing Miller from doing the same.)

It is vital to the success of the program as well as those two important c words, continuity and consistency, that Dixon stays on board and, as of right now, it looks like there is a good chance that he will remain in charge at the Pete for a long time to come.

Related Posts

• How losing Levance Fields affects Pitt
• It Seemed Liked Yesterday
• Our high school team might be better than Buffalo