2017 - C - Mo Bamba (Offer)

I would be shocked if Bamba is a better option at the 5 than Moe in November 2017 or in March 2018.

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It’s worth noting that McGary didn’t start over JMo until the end of the year. Perhaps Bamba could develop behind Wagner to start and overtake him by the end.

Sorry for any perceived negative tone! I do fully agree with you! I would love Bamba (obviously ha) and I think he’d want to come to play heavy minutes and be one of the focal points. I also think he can be great with Beilein’s development.

I think the biggest difference between Beilein and Coach K/Calipari, is they promise he’ll start or play a ton, but they don’t mean it. They don’t care if he comes in and isn’t ready, therefore lied to him. They’ll just bench him or play limited minutes. This is all just strictly my opinion.

I think with JB, he’s honest and is probably saying you can win the starting job but you have to earn it over Moe/DJ. Either way, you’d play heavy minutes and we’ll find a successful rotation where all of you play and succeed/develop.

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I wouldn’t assume that. Beilein wouldn’t guarantee that, either. There’s more to hoops than jumping through the roof and athleticism. If Bamba is the best PLAYER, he’ll start. If Bamba gets the concepts quickly, he could start. Haven’t seen him do anything but dunk in highlights. McGary didn’t start until JMo got hurt.

i’d agree with that too, and I also agree with everyone saying ā€œJB wouldn’t guarantee anything to anyoneā€ but do think there is a fine line of giving the guy the impression that they will put him in position to succeed and give him enough leash to work with (maybe you’re right that mins are all that matter over starting and would depend on how he views those optics) and develop vs having to fight two third year guys and saying good luck. I think the latter point would lead to him not coming, and the former point would lead to giving him more cushion than we would traditionally give when courting someone or handing out opportunities (starter or otherwise).

I liked how you put everything above, and the ā€œwinning the job over DJ/Moā€ would probably be one route to Bamba starting, but others would require looking at X/CM/MAAR differently than we would presume going into next year and shifting DJ down.

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You must have a very high expectation for how next year is going to go - which would be great if you’re right. Would note that they literally had to remove Mo from the floor against OkSt since he couldn’t handle the quickness of the guards in the PnR. He literally couldn’t score on Oregon’s athletic rim protector unless he got behind the defense on a back cut. We don’t have Mo Bamba now, and we still chose to bench him in the second half of two of our three tourney games.

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Harry Giles entering the draft and signed with an agent :frowning:

LOL. Poor GM’s.

McGary isn’t really the best comparison here since he was fat and out of shape his freshman year. I think it’s safe to assume that Bamba will be in decent shape.

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Take all of Michigan’s defensive concerns and wave Mo Bamba at them and they are basically fixed. It’s obviously not that simple, but he would have a huge effect and would play major minutes however you work it out.

He’s a special rim protector and this is a program that hasn’t had any rim protection in years.

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How desperately have we needed a rim protector these past few years…? Bamba would easily start immediately.

I’d also add… if Isaac Haas and Caleb Swanigan can play any minutes together and be successful. I don’t see why different combinations of Mo, Moe and DJ couldn’t get by on the floor together. It’d be… different, but I think Beilein would love to try to solve that problem.

Like telling someone they need to figure out a way to make a budget after winning the lottery.

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Was that him eliminating Michigan? Lol

Bamba also tells Quinn it doesn’t matter what Wilson and Wagner do:

Other Quinn tweets indicate Bamba has liked Michigan for a long time (was at the Michigan-VCU game), likes the way Michigan uses versatile bigs, including in the pick n pop game, and likes Michigan’s more tempered approach (i.e., not offering until he got on campus).

Of course, I’m sure he says nice things about all his final options.

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What bugs me in Bamba’s recruitment is that Beilein did not get involved earlier, and this becomes awfully like Jaylen Brown’s recruitment. I understand JB’s philosophy of recruiting, but he should at least gauge the interest from the top recruits early on, and should not under sell himself and underestimate the M brand.

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What is the Michigan brand when it comes to basketball? As Dylan said, a Harbaugh tweet buries basketball. And what difference do academics make to a kid whose only interest is the shortest path to the NBA? If anything, in the case of Bamba, Beilein’s approach made a positive impression. It was something different after what you know were years of drooling approaches.

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Glad he saw us wax Shaka then :joy:

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I don’t know much about the recruiting landscape, but I can’t really blame him all that much. Whether it’s really dirty or not, the top players stick with the blue bloods. (I’m of the opinion a lot of it is dirty for the top 25 guys)

If you’re an average joe then there’s no point hitting on the model at the bar. It’s not going to happen.

Bruce Pearl. Auburn (SEC). Two Top 40 kids signed for 2017. Likely going for the academics…Bruce Pearl…Auburn…Bruce Pearl…Auburn…how the heck does the NCAA even let those two hook up? Sheesh.

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