If Bamba came to UM, he wouldn’t have to worry about 2 bigs playing at once. He’d be the guy. Now he might be the guy at Kentucky or Duke also, but its not always a guarantee when they’ve got 3 or 4 stud options in the front court. Skal, Dakari Johnson, Chase Jeter are all good examples from the past few years that didn’t make an immediate impact despite being highly ranked coming in.
It will be fun watching this recruitment pan out, especially since he’s waiting to sign late. Hopefully a couple bigs go with Duke before then too and make this more interesting
Wendall Carter has said in the past that he is a packaged with Gary Trent who committed to Duke yesterday. He actually hasn’t committed anywhere yet but something to hedge on.
Duke has a pretty deep front court and if add Carter to a remaining player or two from this year, that probably won’t scream great opportunity for Bamba. Obviously this is all speculation but fun to play “what ifs”
From my perspective, Coach Beilein has had one big guy with NBA talent (McGary), and he helped position McGary into being a possible NBA Lottery pick after his freshman season, all while dealing with McGary’s various aches and pains.
I think with Bamba deciding late that it would definitely help to see how Wagner plays. Might not be NBA ready but he was an unknown 6’11" kid that came in and could be getting NBA attention soon. That would help as much as anything IMO
Both McGary and Wagner had versatility. Bamba likes to step away from the bucket and shoot so I think that could be a good fit. He can show he can pick and pop which would be huge for NBA scouts to see.
And he likes Texas, which is a school very much like Michigan–basketball is second by far to football for the fan base, strong academics, etc. Exposure may be an element in his decision, but unless he and his family are playing a game here, it’s not the only one.
Doesn’t mean that academics will ultimately end up mattering. For a one and done player, it really makes no sense to be a factor. And I think prospects who talk about academics end up seeing that as they get closer to committing.
Texas has a 5 star in Jarrett Allen who I’m sure Bamba might watch this year to see how he’s utilized. Texas also has 2 top 100 bigs committed for 2017.
Why do academics make no sense to be a factor for Bamba? While he won’t be getting a degree from the institution he chooses–at least immediately–he might want to spend his one academic year taking challenging courses with high-intellect peers at a prestigious university. That might not be the goal of most one-and-done candidates, but Bamba might be different. His serious interest in Harvard certainly supports that.
Yeah I didn’t say they were Smart’s guys…he’s only been there 1 year. But there were some pretty good players that survived the “football school” atmosphere.
The way he can run and shoot, I think Wagner could play the four next to an elite big like Bamba, kinda like a Dekker/Kaminsky combo (although Bamba is obviously better than Kaminsky).
I think it would actually be a mistake to keep those guys off the floor together for the sake of “positional depth” or to spread the floor. They would likely be our two best players and you gotta play your best players. If they’re both giants, even better.
off topic, but speaking of giants, Teske looks huge. He looked like he had 3 inches on Wagner in a photo I saw from yesterday’s game. I think he might secretly be 7 foot 2.