Durand Johnson is Pitt's third (and likely final) 2011 commit. (i95ballerz.com)
I love the internet. Here I am, finishing up dinner and checking out what I missed today on Twitter, when Eric Bossi of Rivals tweets that he has confirmed that 2011 wing Durand Johnson has committed to Pitt. In the old days, I guess I’d have to wait for the morning paper or some other sort of prehistoric communication. I hope this is what Al Gore had in mind.
Johnson is a 6’6″ wingman from the Baltimore area who transferred to prep school in New Hampshire for his senior season. Rivals.com lists him as a 3-star, while ESPN grades him out as a 91. Not too shabby. He chose Pitt over offers from Georgetown, Louisville, Seton Hall, Maryland, Xavier and many others. He publically announced that Pitt was his first choice a few weeks ago, but so did center Malcolm Gilbert. Pitt will have three open scholarships for 2011 (Wannamaker, McGhee and Brown), so I’ll be interested to see if they go one over again and take Gilbert – assuming he still has Pitt on top.
NBE Basketball Report breaks down his game:
The 6-foot-7 small forward is considered an excellent defender and long-range shooter. His impressive performance this summer at the Hoop Group Elite Camp in Reading (PA) and the Hoop Group’s West Virginia Jam Fest showed his competitive nature and the improvement in his all-around game.
Alex Kline of TheRecruitScoop.com spoke to Johnson today:
Durand is Big East bound and will play close to home. “I just committed to Pittsburgh,” Johnson stated. “It was a great fit for me and the coaching staff is great.” Johnson, who is an aggressive scorer as a wing, joins a Pitt class that is already stacked for 2011. He will be accompanied by Jaylen Bond and John Johnson, both of Pennsylvania.
“I had been favoring them for a while but I informed the coaching staff recently,” he said. “I’m looking forward to being a Pitt Panther.” While Johnson embarks on a new lifestyle at Brewster, he will be watching plenty of college hoops on television this year as he anticipates his arrival into Pittsburgh basketball.
I’ll update this post tonight as more articles and information becomes available.
Welcome, Durand!
UPDATE 1: I’m assuming you’re dying for a video of a Rivals 150 recruit beating up on scrubs. Ask and you shall receive:
UPDATE 2: The Post-Gazette and the Tribune-Review are up with a blurb about the commit. Looking over the 2011 freshmen is getting me excited: you have the versatile guard in John Johnson, an athletic scorer in Durand Johnson and a high-motor power forward in Jaylen Bond.
