They cannot talk to him.
SIAP, but when is Bamba announcing? Itās almost Aprilā¦
All his schools are now out of the tourney so weāll start seeing NBA decisions and stuff soon. Iād expect Bambaās recruitment to be on the stretch run right now. That article sure made it sound like Duke is choice #1.
Anybody notice he slipped in a āweāreā when discussing Texas?
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Noticed that. La-la-la-laā¦plug ears.
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Michiganā¦they kind of look liked a team of destiny late in the seasonā¦
Iām glad people saw that like later on in the season because people always asked, āWhy is Michigan on your list?ā but Michigan is on my list because of itās excellence behind the university and behind itās athletics like they have state of the art, like every one of these places is going to have state of the art places, but their strength and conditioning program is so ideal because they really work for like your biomechanics and make sure how your loading and landing is just on point. But theyāre like excellent all the way through as far as like coaching and playing style, I think I can fit into their playing style pretty well. I mean Iāve been watching D.J. and Moe Wagner play a lot and theyāre shooting it, theyāre driving it, theyāre dribbling it, theyāre doing all of that and theyāre impacting the game and thatās something I want to do.
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some interesting comments. it is obvious he is looking at all aspects of Michigan. Dj and Moe are poster kids for how Michigan big men can be modeled. that has been a knock on Coach B through his career is the development or lack there of of big men under him. people started to take notice way back with DeShawn Simms. you want to develop at every point of the game, come play for Beilein.
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This is great to read. In the Bossi interview, he liked the idea of playing the 4 at UK, in part, because he could face the basket on offense. Whether he plays the 4 or 5 (much more likely, in my opinion) at Michigan, heād have plenty of opportunities to shoot, drive, and facilitate, if heās capable.
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He mentioned waiting to see who stays or declares for the draft a few timesā¦without reading too much into it that at the very least seems like it is on his radar.
DJ & Moeās decisions for us
Duke has Giles and Bolden still deciding, Jeter just transferred and Wendell Carter is incoming
Texas Jarrett Allen just declared but didnāt sign with an agent and could be back
Kentucky has Bam and Wenyen Gabriel still deciding, with Nick Richards coming in
I know what people say, but Iāll be surprised if Bamba ends up at Texas. Seems more like he really likes Shaka Smart and doesnāt look forward to breaking the news. But you canāt make life-changing decisions on that basis. And in terms of basketball development and academics, hard to argue that Texas is really the equivalent of Duke or Michigan. Meanwhile, Kentucky is just so lacking in the academics. Duke is an easy choice, but I still think UM has a shot, especially if itās not Duke. Seeing what DJ and Mo did too really could help in that regard.
Do we really think he would pick Michigan if DJ and Moe come back? I know heās a top five recruit but is he really going to start over 3rd and 4th year players who are already established as really good college players.
I was listening to Brendan Quinnās podcast and he says from talking to Michigan people (I assume those inside the program), they think theyāve got a real shot and itās between Texas and Michigan.
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Thatās a fair question. Even if you took the 80 minutes combining the 4 and 5, and split them three ways, thatād only be 26 minutes per guy.
For me, it seems very unlikely that a kid so highly perceived in this next year would find it appealing to come play in a team where DJ and Mo are bringing the team to new heights.
Sure, it proves that Michigan can develop bigs again, but in the end, our current roster doesnāt have an obvious starter position for Mo and itās probably going to make the difference. If Wagner (or even DJ) decide to leave for whatever (stupid) reason, then yes, I believe he would fit perfectly and he would see this. But otherwise, why would he want to pick a team where he would only showcase his overwhelming talent 20-25min per game.
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I donāt know. DJ is flexible in terms of position ā could play some 3, 4 or 5. Wagner and Bamba could be on the floor together. You can look better excelling in 25 minutes than struggling in 35 minutes. And both very likely will be gone after next year if Bamba considers staying more than one year. Itās sort of like coaches ā these days, smart coaches know they look better excelling in a lower tier conference than being average in a power 5 conference. And itās not like heās guaranteed minutes at Duke or Kentucky with what they bring in/have done with various top-rated bigs in the past. Is UM really more appealing for next year if both Wilson and Wagner leave?
I was skeptical all year about DJ having the skill set to play the 3, but by the end he had me sold. If he could consistently guard that position the defense with Bamba would be incredibly scary.
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@jlust22 and @jivan Iām thinking the exact same as you guys. Now the counterargument would be he could have a similar situation with duke/Kentucky where Duke could have Bolden & Carter, Kentucky would have Wenyen & Richards but either way those guys are all unproven penciled-in starters. Texas is the obvious choice if heās genuinely concerned about PT and likes Shaka/the school as much as he says.
But from what Iāve heard, we do genuinely feel we have a shot at landing him. Iām wondering if thereās any chance at all that this situation could affect DJ or Wagnerās decision. I think Wagner is likely to return regardless but if DJ receives a late-first round grade, it would probably weigh on my mind that thereās a chance a stud recruit is coming in and Iām going to lose minutes next year and my stock will fallā¦
I agree DJ could potentially play the 3. I think the real problem is Mo at the 4. He was a disaster guarding fives for pretty much the entire season. I think it would be even worse him chasing perimeter 4s. We would almost have to play zone in that scenario
Bamba could guard 4s and Wagnerās flexibility on offense (playing inside or out) could let them be on the floor together. Mo hasnāt shown great passing skills but I bet after another summer itāll be there. I donāt see a big problem having them on the floor together on either side.
I mean, is any situation really 100% perfect where four spots are filled by guaranteed good players and the fifth spot is open without any competition? No.
McGary is a good example. Michigan had Morgan and Horford and GRIII at the four, but Mitch still played 20 minutes a game and was developed by the JB & co and was the breakout star in the tourney and couldāve been a lottery despite ending up being 28th on the 247 composite. Do we really think he wouldāve been better off after a year at Duke? Jarrett Allen played 32 minutes and averaged 13 and 9 and is getting little buzz because his team sucked.
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True that Bamba could guard 4s much easier than Wagner could. His prowess as a rim protector has me hesitant to bring him anywhere but the paint defensively though. But youāre right, that would be the best route as opposed to wagner at the 4 as I previously suggested.
McGary competing with JMo and Horford feels a lot different to me than Bamba with Wilson/Wagner. As important as JMo was defensively, he was never a potential NBA talent like the 2 we have now and neither was Horford (even if he may have thought he wasā¦remember those quotes on the Florida transfer lol). If anything, McGary should have gotten way more minutes that year before the tournament started.
Regardless, if Bamba comes the staff will figure it out and it will be an incredible problem to have. Really it would just be the most awesome insurance we could have for Wagnerās famous early foul games. If Wagner is hot and off to a good foul-free start, let him go 30+. If not, and heās losing his mind on defense and checking out mentally, enter Bamba and we lose nothing.