Former Rhode Island guard Ishmael Leggett will join rebuilt backcourt at Pitt
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Pitt coach Jeff Capel made his biggest move of the offseason official Thursday morning when he said former Rhode Island combo guard Ishmael Leggett has signed and submitted the paperwork necessary to enroll this year.
Leggett announced Monday on his Twitter account that he had verbally committed to the Panthers.
The signing of Leggett and the recruitment of 6-foot-7 forward Zack Austin, formerly of High Point (N.C.), are the first steps in filling holes left by Jamarius Burton, Nelly Cummings, Greg Elliott and Nike Sibande, who exhausted their eligibility, and Nate Santos, who has entered the transfer portal.
By all appearances, Leggett might fill a role occupied the past two seasons by Burton. He’s a guard who can penetrate, get open for mid-range shots and occasionally shoot from beyond the 3-point arc. Leggett’s experience — he played in 87 games at Rhode Island — was also a big selling point for Capel. Plus, Leggett has two seasons of eligibility remaining.
“Ishmael is a strong veteran guard with a balanced skill set,” Capel said in a statement. “He uses his strength and craftiness to get in the lane to create for himself and his teammates and has also shown the ability to be a weapon behind the 3-point arc.
“His leadership and competitive spirit mirror the culture we are creating in this program, and we are looking forward to his arrival in Oakland.”
Leggett averaged 16.4 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.4 steals during the 2022-23 season. He made 48 3-point field goals, while also shooting 84.5% (147 of 174) from the foul line. Some of those statistics come close to what Burton contributed last season — 15.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 0.9 steals, 59 made 3s and an 83.6% percentage from the free-throw line.
Leggett, a native of Prince George’s County, Md., scored in double-figures 28 times, including nine with 20-plus points and two with 30-plus. He scored 34 points, with seven 3s, against Tulane in the Cayman Islands Classic.
He’ll have a chance to reach 1,000 career points with the Panthers after scoring 932 with Rhode Island.
Pitt’s backcourt will be totally rebuilt next season, with Leggett joining incoming freshmen and Top 100 prospects Carlton Carrington and Jaland Lowe, 2022 Top 50 recruit Dior Johnson and former starter William Jeffress, who is returning from a season-long foot injury.
Returning scholarship frontcourt players will be second-team All-ACC selection Blake Hinson (15.3 points per game), 6.0 rpg., 97 3FG) and 6-11/7-footers Federiko Federiko and Guillermo and Jorge Diaz Graham.
After adding Leggett, Austin, Carrington, Lowe and incoming freshman forward Marlon Barnes, Capel has two available scholarships. Of the 11 scholarship players on the roster, all but Federiko (two) and Hinson (one) have three or four years of eligibility remaining.