Pitt Panthers basketball target commits to North Carolina

PITTSBURGH – The Pitt Panthers missed out on one of their top basketball destinations in 2025 as Derek Dixon chose North Carolina.

Dixon, who plays for Gonzaga High School in Washington, D.C., chose UNC over Pitt, Virginia and Vanderbilt and announced his decision on the YouTube channel 247Sports. He previously had a top-six list that also included Syracuse and Arizona.

Pitt had been recruiting Dixon for more than two years, visiting him in the fall of 2022 and 2023, back in January and then on his official visit on April 12.

He received his offer to North Carolina on May 20 and his official visit to Chapel Hill on September 6 played a big role in his decision to commit to one of the top programs in the country.

247Sports had two people place the Crystal Ball, including Colby Giacubeno, who works for InsideMDSports, and had a medium confidence rating of six. Ross Martin, associate editor of 247Sports, had high confidence and an eight rating.

Dixon also recently canceled a visit to Arizona scheduled for Sept. 14 and took official visits to Syracuse, Virginia and Vanderbilt last fall on April 12 and Aug. 30, respectively.

247Sports rates Dixon a four-star, the second-best player in DC, the No. 9 combo guard and the No. 51 overall recruit in his class. On3 has him ranked No. 2 in DC, No. 10 as a point guard and No. 71 in the country, while Rivals ranks him No. 12 as a shooting guard and No. 44 in the United States.

Dixon also held offers from other teams at ACC schools Cal, Miami and Virginia Tech, Big East schools Providence and Xavier, Big Ten schools Iowa, Maryland and Penn State, Big 12 schools Kansas State and West Virginia , A-10 schools Fordham, George Mason, George Washington and Saint Joseph’s as well as East Carolina, Bryant, Mississippi State and Norfolk State.

Pitt has one commitment in the 2025 class: four-star guard Omari Witherspoon, who plays for St. John’s College High School in Washington, DC

Two more Pitt basketball targets have set their future commitment dates. Four-star guard Isaiah Denis from Davidson Day School in Davidson, N.C., has Pitt in his final seven schools and will commit on November 2nd. Four-star winger Amari Evans, who played for Bishop Canevin in Pittsburgh and now plays at Overtime Elite Atlanta, will choose between Pitt, Tennessee and Xavier on Nov. 1.

Pitt is also among the top schools for five-star guard Meleek Thomas (top seven) and four-star forward Niko Bundalo (top eight).

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