Besides the B1G title, what other banners do we have a realistic chance of winning?
Maybe if we tank we could go for the NIT title? Lol.
This team is not making a Final Four.
While I do think there is a general thread of āglass half emptyā and similarly for others who always see it half full, it comes down to what you call ārealisticā @gobluemd16_.
On the Big Ten regular seasonā¦ this is going to basically come down to holding serve at home and not losing a surprise game on the road. Caris or no Caris, I think this is still in play given we are 1 game out through 8 (soon to be 9) having played 7 (soon to be 8) w/o him. We are likely to lose at MD. Other than that, I canāt see anything that should be written off.
To your question of āwhat bannersā¦?ā, the Big 10 tournament is very much in play if we have everyone back. Our teams have a tendency to need time to form due to injuries or roles, and last year I honestly think we could have run that group short of Wisconsin (who we took to the final 3-4m tied if I recall). We have played solid on neutral courts with this core. So thereās that.
On the tourneyā¦ experience (check) and guard-play (check) make me think that we have a ceiling that can include F4 if matchups work out well (and maybe we lose first game if they donāt, but ceiling is important). Regardless of our D, I think people write off a run too quickly if we have a full team.
I get people being downers after we lose by 20+ to SMU, but at (soon to be) 7-2 w/o our best player, i donāt get why the default position is that no one should have expectations. Maybe ārealisticā means 50%+, to which Iād say no one has that assurance, esp this year. Iād take our odds over a number of teams youād say have a great shot if they have no shooting, guard-play, or experience. We are looking at 18Ws heading into Feb. People have their own self preservation tendencies, but I hope everyone can enjoy this and allow themselves to see how it could play out if all pieces are working well. Unintended diatribe overā¦
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Good post. But final 4 would really mean catching fireāand with a very narrow margin of error personnel and further injury-wise. Love to see it/hard to see it.
Realistically,
I could see this team winning the big ten tournament. I could just as easy see them losing in the first round of it.
I could see this team making it to the sweet 16 if given the right match up. NCAA tournament is all about match ups.
I could also see this team losing in āround oneā.
I could see this team winning the NIT.
I could see them not making the final 4 of the NIT.
We donāt do the little things good enough to be confident in any of the above positive scenarios. With that being said, none of the above positive scenarios are out of the question given how many 3ās we shoot. Catch fire at the right time is all I ask.
@Mattman definitely hard to see, and any high expectations predicated FULLY on complete health, but getting Caris out of his mystery status and onto the court will hopefully go a long way to showing what this can be, now with a few new parts to work with (Donnal, Duncan inside the arc, etc).
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JB is starting to work my nerves with this same bs answer . Donāt say day to day when you miss more than a month. Lloyd Carr & Hoke did this same "Michigan " crap when it came to injuries.
I mean, who really cares? Weāre not entitled to know the answer. Heāll get back when he gets back. As long as the coaches and team have a good idea of whatās going on, it doesnāt matter.
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Us fans do not deserve to know. Itās that simple.
Actually they donāt, but, hey, when you get to be the coach you can give out all the information you want to give out. Having said that, it is frustrating seeing Caris sit game after game. I, too, would love to see him back much sooner than later but Caris is an NBA talent and JB simply refuses to do anything that would jeopardize that. Again, I was hoping to see him in there today if for no other reason than to get him back in the flow and to start getting him into game shape so that heās ready to contribute vs IU and certainly against the Sparties, but Iām not the coach. In the meantime Iāll trust the coaching and medical staff.
ā¦Soā¦yeah. Going to miss the next two games.
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Iād say thereās a chance. I guess weāll know when we see him in warm ups. One thing we do know is that when he comes back heāll be 100%. As for me, I eagerly look forward to that day. I love the way the team is playing right now, but when Caris becomes assimilated back into the lineupā¦watch out!
So Beilein is channeling his inner Lloyd Christmas.
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Presented without comment.
Unfortunately, the duration of this injury has led to many valid questions about why and how this all came about. There must be a lot of respect between insider-types and Coach Beilein/Caris because theyāve been astoundingly radio silent on all of this.
All I can do is wish Caris a full recovery, and say that I truly hope we get to see him on the floor in a Michigan uniform again before long.
I think I know why Mike Wilson would find Izzoās statement witty. I doubt Mike Wilson has any idea why many of us find this statement hilarious. Also, and this is the funniest part, I would be willing to bet my life Mike Wilson has no idea why the darker part of Izzoās soul was rofl after making that statement. Dark comedy.
I seriously canāt figure out if Beilein is being coy and theyāve always had a plan to get him back for one of these games this week, or if we take him at his word that he really didnāt know. Itās probably somewhere in between, but thereās so many opportunities for gamesmanship in this (i.e. IU and MSU coaches are having to create separate gameplans with or without Caris).
Agree on something in between. Handled oddly for sure, but it sounds like it was on a āplanā. I think we see him Saturday