Wants to be closer to home in Las Vegas. Probably goes to a Pac-12 school.
So, not only is Duke king of the 1-and-done, but also the two-and-screw-you.
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Iām not sure that having a former 5-star big leave after scoring 100 points in two years is the best advertising. Also, Iām sure theyāll tell Bamba that theyāll play him next to Carter next year, but Dukeās history doesnāt really support that claim.
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They have one spot left currently. That will ultimately be for Bamba, Duval, or Knox. The decisions of Kennard, Allen, and Giles still need to be made plus a few transfers are possible (Obi, Bolden, White, DeLaureier) The transfer of Jeter should not speculate anything IMO
I personally think that if I were Bamba here is what I see. Dukeās recent highly ranked bigs have had little success (Jeter, Bolden, Giles, DeLaurier) and Kentucky has not been to hot either (Labissiere, Humphries, Killeya-Jones, Wynyard, Gabriel). Texas is trending downward and has played poorly. Michigan has had its bigs in Wilson and Wagner break out recently. I hope he uses his logic.
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I would see:
Duke
Positives- great academic fit, Duke brand / NBA connections, friends with Wendell Carter
Negatives- high competition for playing time on the roster + Coach Kās 6-man rotation, recent 5* big struggles, Coach Kās health questions
Kentucky
Positives- Kentucky brand / NBA connections, would likely start unless Bam Adebayo returns, but will definitely get significant PT regardless
Negatives- poor academic fit
Texas
Positives- Likely steps into Jarrett Allenās role from day 1 and is team centerpiece
Negatives- quality of team in question + could they miss the tournament again?
Unknowns- Texas brand / NBA connections, and academics are somewhere in the middle compared to other schools remaining
Michigan
Positives- Michigan brand / NBA connections, great academic fit, skill development
Negatives- may not start from day 1, how does he fit in with Wagner/Wilson for PT?
I think recency bias is pretty strong here. Take a look at Dukeās or U.K.'s bigs in the NBA vs ours (hint: we have 0) and itās pretty hard to say that weāre better at developing NBA big men than either of those schools.
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It depends on how you look at things. Weāve had one top 50 big man recruit, McGary, who wouldāve been a lottery pick after freshman year and who was selected in the first round despite being injured his entire sophomore year. We now have two bigs rocketing up draft boards with eligibility left. We also have a bunch of guards and wings in the league.
Duke and Kentucky have had numerous top 10 or top 20 big man recruits. Some have made the league, many have not. Is the success of Duke and Kentucky placing bigs in the league development or securing the best high school recruits? If you look at expected yield of NBA players with recruit level, are they really better than UM?
Of course, thatās always an issue when any institution gets to select its members. Michigan produces successful alumni in part because it selects capable students in the first place. I think we have enough players in the NBA and enough of a rep as a place that develops players that we have at least a good pitch on that front.
The Bamba thing is simple. With that talent youāll get to the league one way or another. So what cultural fit works for you? Figure that out Mo. If itās U of M, great. If not, best of luck to you wherever you go young man.
For me, I think you canāt beat the family that this team has become. Iād want to be part of that and play for the coach who seems to cultivate that year in and year out.
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We donāt need my airplane luck for Bamba or tonightās game! We got this! Go Blue!
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shit you were on the ground werenāt you?
Damn it. Sorry.
Hope he was watching. If he doesnāt see what can be done next year with him on board then screw it. If he wants to improve and win it all then were the choice.
I donāt think itās accurate to say Texas is trending downward. They had a terrible year, which does raise questions about Smartās coaching; however, the main problem was the lack of a PG and they bring in a top 50 kid next year. That should turn things around quickly for them. There are still questions about their shooting, which should concern Bamba, but if heās looking at his future PG teammate, Texas would have a leg up on UM right now.
Not to mention a top 50 power forward and a top 100 PF and SG.
Itās hard to know what Bambaās specifically looking for in his search. His current coach makes it sound as if heās only going to college because he canāt go straight to the NBA. Bamba himself has seemed to highlight academics has a key element. I donāt think Texas fits as a program known as a one-and-done showcase destination but the academics are good and he has a relationship with Smart. Duke fits both criteria coming out of the Bamba camp, Kentucky would appear perfect if his coach was making the decision (he didnāt even pretend to care about academics). Where I think Michigan has an advantage is in Beileinās offensive versatility. Bamba seems to believe he is more than a traditional big and Beilein has shown he isnāt bound by tradition.
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I suspect Bamba wants to be a player in the sports business, or maybe some other. Heās looking to set up both sides. Weāve got Pelinka, Dukeās got Ferry. I donāt know who Kentucky and Texas got.
Pelinka would be a great guy to talk to Bamba, but as a local alternative maybe Josh Bartelstein could be a good guy to sit down with Mo and talk about the sports administration and sports agent industries along with the benefits of basketball and academic opportunities at Michigan.
Alums are not supposed to talk to potential recruits. Schools do it, but itās a NCAA violation. And Beilein isnāt in the violation business.
Beilein is the ONLY coach of his remaining schools that can legitimately talk about player development with Bamba. All others donāt develop their bigs. They stay the same, which for many of them isnāt a bad thing considering how good they were coming out of high school.
X was a top fifty kid too. Iād bet heās pretty sick next year. Showed glimpses of being good.