Thanks for the inside info MattD. Always appreciated!
That was the best picture he could pick to represent the visit? Haha.
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But yeah, Iād be interested in what heās posted about other visits to compare. āMagicalā is about as high of praise as you can get.
The real question is: āDid Beilein actually offer him?ā
On his Instagram I didnāt see any other posts on visits. Granted he only has 11 posts.
Are recruits allowed to visit with guest celebrities? I didnāt think they could.
I donāt think they are allowed to unless they have signed an NLI or something like that. Although, Iām pretty sure I saw a snapchat video of our recruits shaking hands with Jordan anyway.
Someone on the national board is insisting that the only reason Bamba visited Michigan was to meet Michael Jordan. That seems like something youād read on RCMB.
You do make a valid point, with him being away at prep.
While having a good season doesnāt hurt I think we have seen recently that on court results donāt seem to Move the meter much either way in our recruiting.
Iām pretty sure they can be introduced to them but there canāt be anything formal in the conversation.
For example, Harrison Barnes met MJ when he took his official visit to UNC but there wasnāt much of a conversation. Iām pretty sure the compliance office is all over that kind of stuff.
Everything I read about Bamba makes me think Michigan has a legit shot. Belein is one of the best offensive minds in the game and Bamba favors a position-less system.
He is also interested in academics and more specifically alumni network. Michigan should knock that out of the park.
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The Nike Jumpman collaboration may help level the playing field ---- or more specifically reduce the handicap Michigan had with its past basketball merchandising set
Haha, I wouldnāt get hopes up about alumni network of all things being a decider for a 5 star recruit. I think itās just gonna come down to whether Mo falls in love with Michigan or not. I feel like he just needs to absolutely love the campus experience/Beilein. Thatās really the only thing that could make you pass up a blue blood like UNC/Duke.
Isnāt it weird that he visited Harvard then? Why? Theyāre not even close to offering the same level of basketball as NC/Duke/KY. The only thing they have to offer would be academics/alumni network.
Also isnāt it weird then that heād waste an official on us? Why? Just for a football experience? Just to meet MJ? I donāt knowā¦it seems highly unlikely but curious
I donāt understand why you would so easily dismiss the idea that alumni network should be an important consideration and might be a consideration with Mo. He sounds like a very smart kid who is very aware that a basketball career can end at any time and in the best scenarios basketball lasts until your mid 30ās.
Based upon what I have read, I also get the feeling that we have a legit shot with Bambaā¦
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This is kind of a silly question. How many recruits have taken an official visit to Michigan and left without an offer? Baruti is the only one I can think of and he had some obvious potential eligibility issues.
Michigan isnāt going to bring the No. 3 kid in the country in for an OV and not offer him.
The catch is that Bamba essentially doesnāt talk to reportersā¦ How many interviews has he done away from any public event interview in person?
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Iām thinking Poole was our biggest recruiter with Mamba over the weekend.
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A LOT of recruits say that academics matter to them and then make decisions antithetical to that (Iāll never forget Dashawn Hand saying that he picked Alabama over Michigan because of their Engineering program). Iām sure he and his family do actually care about that and want to make a decision with that in mind. But from an objective stand point, academics just arenāt that important to Bambaās future, and people tend to come to that realization as they get deeper into the process.
Not saying we donāt have a chance or that he isnāt seriously considering us, but I donāt think academics is gonna be enough to turn down NBA factories like Kentucky and Duke. Heās gonna have to have a serious love for Michigan to turn down everything they can offer him.
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I guess I just donāt see that much distinguishing an official from an unofficial (besides that prospects outside the Midwest need to use officials if they are gonna feasibly visit UM) from Michiganās end, and itās very much within Beileinās MO to bring in prospects and not offer them no matter how highly ranked they are. Didnāt 5 star PG Paul Scruggs take the full academic tour just a few months ago and leave without an offer?
I feel like I could very easily seeing him say, āWeād love to offer you, but we just donāt have the spots on the depth chart to do it right now.ā
Really my suspicion has arisen just because absolute nothing has come out about him being offered. Sam Webb has been doing digging on it and heās gotten no information on it. And he has sources inside the coaching staff as well as with prospectsā¦