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I realize that the title is a little bit cruel considering the fact that the man is now living an ordinary existence. (and a respectable one at that, helping those less fortunate than himself) Still, the NY Times ran an interesting article describing Pittsnogle's life a couple years out of WVU. I remember that he had a brief stint in the CBA. Now, however, he is back to a regular guys' lifestyle, teaching and bowling in his spare time. I don't see anything wrong with that. However, now that he is overweight at 300 pounds, he may want to make a comeback.

What are your thoughts on this interesting tale?

Less than three years ago, Pittsnogle was an all-American senior averaging 19.3 points who led West Virginia to the 2006 regional semifinals. He expected to be chosen in the N.B.A draft. He was not.

Now, at 24, he is a middle school teacher in his hometown. He is also an unpaid assistant coach for a high school basketball team. He bowls in leagues three nights a week and occasionally plays bingo at Big Bucks Bingo. His wife, Heather, is a bank teller. They have two children and live in a double-wide trailer, and together they wonder how much appetite they have for uprooting their lives again so Pittsnogle can have one more chance at a basketball career.

His more immediate concern is to graduate special education students into regular classes.

You are who you choose to be.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/16/sport ... .html?_r=2


My thoughts- good for him. I do not really feel that the overwhelming pressure to succeed in the pros is necessarily something that he should be forced into. If he wants to enjoy his family life etc, he is entirely within his rights and no one should tell him otherwise. If it was me and I had that sort of talent, I would probably work at it. (but that's because I love the game)

He used to be such a good shooter. I was really surprised that he never really caught on with an NBA team. If players like Brian Cardinal can make it in the league you'd think he'd atleast get a look.

I was surprised too. Maybe it is that Brian Cardinal fights hard on defense and goes after loose balls. Pittsnogle might be a couple steps too slow on defense.

That's hardly mediocrity at all! I think it's a great example of how most NCAA athletes don't become pros. He sounds like he's doing great, and he'll always have great memories of playing basketball - and attending school - at WVU. Nice human interest story, thanks for posting it.