Ray Fittipaldo: Welcome to the first Pitt basketball chat of the season. Fire away with your questions.

RichP: When can Gil come back and do you think he will start?

Ray Fittipaldo: Gilbert Brown will rejoin the team Dec. 20. I don't think you'll see him start right away, but he will be a big contributor as soon as he comes back. This is a young team and the Panthers need some veteran leadership. He will help. This is a guy I thought might lead the team in scoring at the beginning of the season. And we all saw how the offense struggled in the opener against Wofford. This will be a much different team once Brown and Jermaine Dixon return. Dixon, by the way, won't play tonight or Thursday night.

menofpaws: Ray, based on what you have seen thus far is this team behind or ahead of your 8th place prediction in the Big East?

Ray Fittipaldo: It's so difficult to say after one game. And as I just wrote, this team changes completely on Dixon and Brown are back in the fold. There are guys in the rotation now who won't play more than a minute or two in Big East games. I was a little disappointed from what I saw in the first game, but look around at other teams. Kentucky almost lost to Miami of Ohio last night. UCLA lost. Other powers have been involved in close games. All that matters is the win and Pitt was able to come back and get on Friday night.

menofpaws: Assuming JJ Moore qualifies, who is left off of next years roster?

Ray Fittipaldo: I'm not convinced Moore qualifies. I'd say his chances are 50-50 at this point, maybe less. If he does qualify, any number of players could leave. But it would be unfair to speculate at this point. Let's see how some of these guys do over the course of a long season.

RichP: Is Talib Zanna taking the redshirt?

Ray Fittipaldo: It appears he probably will, but it's still very early. There could be an injury to Nasir Robinson or Dwight Miller that would force him to play, but it's looking like he needs a year of seasoning before he might be able to contribute. He is a very raw player. Lots of athleticism but I'm not sure if he has the basketball IQ yet.

menofpaws: How big of a surprise was it that the Panthers landed Moore?

Ray Fittipaldo: I don't see it as a big surprise at all. Jamie Dixon has been recruiting quite well for years now. He landed his first McDonald's All-American when Dante Taylor signed last year. He scored 13 points in his first college game on Friday. Even going back five years he signed Sam Young, Levance Fields and Tyrell Biggs. And even though DeJuan Blair was local, he got him to come to Pitt. And when you factor in Rick Pitino's troubles at Louisvillle, it's easy to see why a highly rated player such as Moore would pick Pitt over Louisville. Pitino cannot go into living rooms any longer and speak to parents and project himself as a role model. Those days over over and it's only a matter of time before Dixon and other Big East coaches capitalize on his misfortunes.

RichP: Pitt's recruits for next year are #20, 20, and 30 at thier positions. This years were even worse than that except for Taylor. Why haven't we recruited better?

Ray Fittipaldo: Moore had a very good summer and is expected to move up in the rankings. Isiah Epps is expected to come in and contribute right away. Every recruiting service I read has him as a top 100 player. Cameron Wright is the only player who is not top 100. Even if some of the players don't pan out and become stars, Dixon has proven he is capable of winning without top-rated recruits.

menofpaws: Have you heard how Fields is doing over seas?

Ray Fittipaldo: I haven't seen statistics, but the people at Pitt tell me he is doing well. He is over in Russia for those who don't know. Tyrell Biggs is playing in Greece. And DeJuan Blair and Sam Young are in the NBA with the Spurs and Grizzlies.

menofpaws: For the record, I am thrilled that the new Q and A's have started, just because we don't have to stare at the little "Recapping the last five seconds of the Villanova game" headline. It was torture that you folks kept that up until March.

Ray Fittipaldo: Hey, if you think that's bad, Jermaine Dixon told me the only game from last season that he watched this summer was the Villanova game. Talk about putting yourself through torture ...

Ray Fittipaldo: OK, thanks for joining the chat today. Tell your friends about the basketball chat. I'll be doing it every Tuesday at 12:30 from now until the end of the season. See you next week.

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