Assorted Notes

MEDINA, Ohio -- Medina center Jon Teske says he's an Ohio State fan, but that doesn't necessarily mean that he's about to accept the Buckeyes' scholarship offer. Teske, who was offered by Ohio State and Michigan on June 15, has allegiances to both schools.

“My dad grew up in Willoughby, so he’s always been an Ohio State fan, but we also lived in Michigan for a few years so I have a Michigan and Michigan State feeling too,” Teske said.

Teske says that both coaching staffs liked the way he shot the ball for someone who is 6-foot-11. And while, the interest is ramping up for Teske, he doesn’t want to make a decision soon.

“I just want to keep all of my options open right now,” Teske said.

Meanwhile, Teske’s Medina team has undergone a lot of change. Chris Hassinger succeeded Anthony Stacey as head coach, and point guard Craig Randall transferred to a high school in Arizona.

Because of all the new faces, Teske knows his role is even more important.

“I’ve been challenged to be more of a leader and to step up more to help the team win,” Teske said.

I think more bigman targets need to be added to the board.

This was a bit interesting:

Taylor County PG Quentin Goodin (@Goodin_3) and Huntington Prep SF Miles Bridges are talking about a potential package deal in college.

— Harrison Malkin (@HarrisonSports1) June 25, 2014

I REALLY hope UM gets a fall visit from PJ Dozier:

That Max Brown tweet is some sort of re-hashed old tweet from Spiece. Some auto-bot or something.

Thanks for posting the film, was anxious to see more on Dozier. Reminds me of McLemore with better court vision, or a smaller version of Rudy Gay. Definitely worth an offer if he has genuine interest.

Gonna be almost impossible to pull him out of the south, IMO. Gonna be a lot of pressure on him as a South Carolina legacy to follow dad and uncle. Have ALWAYS been a fan of him and if he does indeed visit, who knows? I wouldn’t want to play for Martin over JB. His offer list will continue to explode if healthy.

Once a hidden gem in the Midwest, the 6-foot-10 power forward “blew up” and became the No. 17 player in the class of 2015, according to Rivals.com. He holds 19 offers, and most important, tried to list eight of the schools most involved in his recruitment. [He did not offer a top list.]

“I’ve been hearing from a lot, and I feel bad every time I say the names. I keep messing up,” he said. “But Northwestern, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Marquette, Duke, Michigan, UNC and UCLA.”

STORY: '16 5-star Madison (Ala.) Academy SG Josh Langford to visit #Michigan in August, regularly chatting w/ Beilein http://t.co/NqlQ8ekWTE

— Kyle Bogenschutz (@KyleBogie) June 30, 2014

I remember Bridges saying he had no interest in UM. Funny what 1st round picks can do.

Top 2016 F Miles Bridges (@MilesBridges01) fresh off an unofficial to NC St. Up next is Iowa St followed by Michigan. Unlimited potential.

— Recruiting Roundup (@RecruitRoundup) June 30, 2014

VJ King playing at Findlay with DTJR?

Hearing Findlay Prep for VJ King now. #arizona

— Cleveland Hoop Guru (@Hoops_GM) June 30, 2014

On my earlier V.J. King Tweet, sounds like Findlay Prep may be the actual landing spot. Paul VI had apparently been the original plan.

— Jeff Ermann (@insidemdsports) June 30, 2014

Dennis Smith Jr. becomes elite point guard in 2016

With the 2015 point guard class slightly down, rising junior Dennis Smith Jr. has emerged as the best point guard in the country regardless of class.

And he’s being recruited like it.

Duke has been aggressive recently, Florida is on him, he has offers from Kansas and VCU, he visited North Carolina recently and picked up an offer, he has interest from Arizona and Michigan, while North Carolina State, Wake Forest and Miami are also in the mix.

Smith came up an NC State fan, but Duke has been making an impact lately.

“They have Coach K, he speaks for himself,” Smith said. “It’s one of the most prestigious programs in college basketball, he’s coached pro and college players, so he knows what he’s doing. He said he’s not going to recruit a 2015 point guard, because he wants me to come in 2016 and play.”

http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/eye-on-college-basketball/24601550/nbpa-top-100-camp-emptying-the-notebook

Hopefully Swanigan and Devearl Ramsey can make visits in August since they couldn’t make it

http://instagram.com/p/pwpQh1DfMR/

Good news on Langford. It really is interesting how starting to put players in the league changes prospects’ opinions about you. Not saying this was a factor in Langford’s interest per se, just a general note.

It’s all very well to have a lot of options at G/wing for 2015, but with our roster so thin on the front line, we really need a land a high quality, legitimate big in the upcoming class. How we do that with only one spot open (two at the most if Hatch’s status changes before signing day) is still a little sticky.

I simply don’t understand the people who think there is some huge need for a big… Sure it would be nice to have a dominant big man but it’s not necessary with this system and we literally have two centers with 4 years of eligibility remaining… Not hurting at all for big guys

Well, not quite We have one center and one stretch 4, neither of which has played a minute yet. Even if both end up being quality players (which is by no means a sure thing), if one gets hurt, we have no frontline depth at all for the next two years unless we land a big in 2015.

Yes, Beilien is always going to play a small lineup. He’s not going to recruits bigs like Duke or Kentucky or Kansas. But we’re even thinner up front now than we were last year. Interior defense was one of our biggest weaknesses last season, and we’ve done nothing to address it, now or in the future.

To put this in context, we’re not hurting for bigs in terms of numbers/eligibility, but we are hurting for bigs that are either a) proven b) appear to have a defensive presence in terms of rebounding/blocking shots c) have a high recruiting profile

There is a simple problem with our recruiting of big men…JB’s pre-requisite of outside shooting. Reality is there simply aren’t many recruits that are 6’9 plus that can shoot it from deep. There are only so many Kevon Looneys, Karl Towns, Henry Ellensons in the stratosphere. And if we’re being honest, traditional back to the basket players probably don’t have much interest in UM, because we simply don’t run set plays for post players - whether that is by design, lack of talent, or a combination thereof, we simply don’t run post plays…and hence a back to the basket big is probably not inclined to give us a hard look.

Well, not quite We have one center and one stretch 4, neither of which has played a minute yet. Even if both end up being quality players (which is by no means a sure thing), if one gets hurt, we have no frontline depth at all for the next two years unless we land a big in 2015.

Two guys that will play the five with freshman eligiblity right? Donnal and Doyle? Or am I missing something?

To put this in context, we're not hurting for bigs in terms of numbers/eligibility, but we are hurting for bigs that are either a) proven b) appear to have a defensive presence in terms of rebounding/blocking shots c) have a high recruiting profile

There is a simple problem with our recruiting of big men…JB’s pre-requisite of outside shooting. Reality is there simply aren’t many recruits that are 6’9 plus that can shoot it from deep. There are only so many Kevon Looneys, Karl Towns, Henry Ellensons in the stratosphere. And if we’re being honest, traditional back to the basket players probably don’t have much interest in UM, because we simply don’t run set plays for post players - whether that is by design, lack of talent, or a combination thereof, we simply don’t run post plays…and hence a back to the basket big is probably not inclined to give us a hard look.

It’s funny because it seems like Beilein would obviously want a shooting big man – and he does. But he really hasn’t had a true stretch five since he’s been here. Morgan was really his center for the last four years and while McGary could do a lot of different things… shooting from the perimeter wasn’t really one. Donnal fits the bill, but other than that there hasn’t been much.

The four position is a different story. That’s a wing position in Michigan’s offense and that really isn’t going to change anytime in the future.

But if you have 2.6 scholarships per position… That would only mean two or three bigs on the roster at a given time. The million dollar question is how good are Doyle and Donnal at this level and we really have no idea.

I feel fairly certain Wilson will significant time at the 5 once he adds strength. I guess I am in the minority that thinks 1 of Doyle/Wilson needs to RS.

Well, not quite We have one center and one stretch 4, neither of which has played a minute yet. Even if both end up being quality players (which is by no means a sure thing), if one gets hurt, we have no frontline depth at all for the next two years unless we land a big in 2015.

Yes, Beilien is always going to play a small lineup. He’s not going to recruits bigs like Duke or Kentucky or Kansas. But we’re even thinner up front now than we were last year. Interior defense was one of our biggest weaknesses last season, and we’ve done nothing to address it, now or in the future.

Why do people insist on calling Donnal a stretch 4 when he will play the 5 his entire time at Michigan?

To put this in context, we're not hurting for bigs in terms of numbers/eligibility, but we are hurting for bigs that are either a) proven b) appear to have a defensive presence in terms of rebounding/blocking shots c) have a high recruiting profile

There is a simple problem with our recruiting of big men…JB’s pre-requisite of outside shooting. Reality is there simply aren’t many recruits that are 6’9 plus that can shoot it from deep. There are only so many Kevon Looneys, Karl Towns, Henry Ellensons in the stratosphere. And if we’re being honest, traditional back to the basket players probably don’t have much interest in UM, because we simply don’t run set plays for post players - whether that is by design, lack of talent, or a combination thereof, we simply don’t run post plays…and hence a back to the basket big is probably not inclined to give us a hard look.

It’s funny because it seems like Beilein would obviously want a shooting big man – and he does. But he really hasn’t had a true stretch five since he’s been here. Morgan was really his center for the last four years and while McGary could do a lot of different things… shooting from the perimeter wasn’t really one. Donnal fits the bill, but other than that there hasn’t been much.

The four position is a different story. That’s a wing position in Michigan’s offense and that really isn’t going to change anytime in the future.

But if you have 2.6 scholarships per position… That would only mean two or three bigs on the roster at a given time. The million dollar question is how good are Doyle and Donnal at this level and we really have no idea.

IMO, the season when Horford was injured and we had to play Smotrycz significant minutes at the 5 showed me we should always have three guys on the roster who can play the 5. We can have two PGs, then eight players to cover 2-4.

It's all very well to have a lot of options at G/wing for 2015, but with our roster so thin on the front line, we really need a land a high quality, legitimate big in the upcoming class. How we do that with only one spot open (two at the most if Hatch's status changes before signing day) is still a little sticky.

I agree on also needing a quality big in 2015. Maybe Donnal and Doyle will play well at the 5 but it is a huge unknown. We have more talent at the 4 with Chatman and Wilson but we could still use a stud rebounder/shot blocker.

Having 5 frontcourt players in back to back classes doesn’t seem smart.