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Report: Rutgers lands former Pittsburgh forward J.J. Moore

Syracuse-Pittsburgh 2/2/2013

Pittsburgh’s J.J. Moore celebrates their 65-55 win over Syracuse in an NCAA basketball game in Pittsburgh, Saturday, Feb. 02, 2013. (AP Photo/Joe Raymond)

AP

Rutgers has landed a third transfer since the hiring of Eddie Jordan as head coach, with former Pittsburgh small forward J.J. Moore committing to attend the school according to a report from Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com.

Earlier this month Rutgers received a commitment from former Iowa State guard/forward Nkereuwem Okoro, and earlier this week it was reported that onetime Miami guard Bishop Daniels will also attend the school.

According to Jerry Carino of Gannett New Jersey, Moore will apply for a hardship waiver that would make him eligible to play immediately. If a waiver isn’t granted Moore wouldn’t be eligible to play until the 2014-15 season.

If that’s the case the Scarlet Knights would have two players with extensive playing experience at the small forward position for their debut season in the Big Ten, with holdover Malick Kone being the other (Okoro played in just nine games at Iowa State last season).

In 33 games at Pittsburgh last season Moore, a native of Brentwood, N.Y., averaged 8.0 points and 3.0 rebounds per game in just under 19 minutes of action per contest.

Those numbers were a slight improvement over Moore’s averages as a sophomore (7.5 ppg, 2.9 rpg), and in three seasons at Pittsburgh Moore averaged 6.8 points and 2.5 rebounds per game.

Moore’s a very good athlete, and the year off (if it came to that) should serve him well when it comes to refining his offensive skill set.

According to Gary Charles, Moore’s former AAU coach (New York Panthers), assistant coach Van Macon played a pivotal role in the process.

“Van Macon was extremely critical in J.J. deciding to go to Rutgers. His ability to address the family concerns and make J.J. feel important tipped the scale in Rutgers’ favor.”

Moore’s best offensive performance as a Panther came in an 81-66 victory over DePaul on March 9, as he scored 21 points in 19 minutes of action on 8-for-8 shooting from the field.

Raphielle can be followed on Twitter at @raphiellej.