Jamie Dixon earned his first national coach of the year honor yesterday, but the director of Pitt men's basketball spent most of his time at an afternoon news conference discussing the future of sophomore All-American DeJuan Blair.

Dixon was named the Naismith national coach of the year by the Atlanta Tipoff Club, capping a season in which he led the Panthers to the Elite Eight in the NCAA tournament for the first time in 35 years and tied a school record for victories in a season with 31.

It was the second time in seven years that a Pitt coach received the Naismith honor. Ben Howland won the award in 2002.

"That's a reflection of those seniors and DeJuan and having great players," Dixon said of the award. "It's good for our program. It means a lot to our program and our players."

The coach spent most of the rest of his time at the podium inside the Petersen Events Center talking about the draft prospects of his seniors and the decision that Blair has looming. Dixon said he had numerous meetings with Blair and his family the past few days discussing Blair's intentions of declaring for the NBA draft, but he said Blair was not yet ready to announce his decision.

It does appear, however, that a decision is close. Blair said as much when he told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette yesterday morning that he likely will make his intentions known today or tomorrow. Blair said he has not yet hired an agent, an important decision that will determine whether he will be eligible to return to Pitt for his junior season.

"No, no, no," Blair said, when asked if he had an agent. "I still have to speak to some people. There are still some things in the process that I have to go through."

Dixon would not reveal much about his conversations with Blair but did say that he is comfortable with the information he has provided Blair from NBA general managers.

Underclassmen have until April 26 to declare for the draft. If Blair does declare, he is allowed to go through the NBA predraft process where general managers can evaluate players in person and give them feedback about their potential draft status.

If an underclassman does not hear positive news from the general managers, he is allowed to pull his name out of the draft and return to school as long as he does not hire an agent. The draft is set for June 25. The last day to withdraw from consideration is June 15.

"It's more when he felt comfortable doing it," Dixon said of the timing of Blair's decision. "Maybe he has a decision and wants to sleep on it. We had a very lengthy discussion [Monday]. He has plenty of information. I think the feelings that will come into play more -- and what he bases [his decision] on -- are things outside of basketball."

When asked if it was his understanding that Blair would go through the process without an agent, Dixon said: "Those are things we've been talking about. Those are things still to be decided. With every kid, you're never sure how it's going to play out. That's getting into our conversations, and [Blair] wouldn't wish we talk about it. That decision hasn't been made."

Blair has been projected as a mid- to late first-round pick by many NBA scouts, but Dixon said it's way too early to place a number on any player because it is still unknown how many players will declare. And it's impossible to determine which players will perform well in workouts with NBA teams.

After the 2004-05 season, Chris Taft, then a Pitt sophomore, declared for the draft and signed with an agent. In April, he was considered a lottery pick, but by draft day Taft had slipped to a second-round pick. He is now out of professional basketball.

Dixon believes Blair can play in the NBA but did not give any hints as to whether he told Blair, who is undersized at 6 feet 7 and 265 pounds, if he was ready to turn professional this year.

"I think he's an NBA player," Dixon said. "I told him that from the time we recruited him. I've always had a higher opinion of him than most scouting services and coaches and media observers. I always thought of him an NBA player."