I have to think that the FBI investigation has leveled the playing ground for Beilein. The Battle de-commitment would’ve never happened now.
In retrospect, maybe it’s fair to say now that the 2014 class was pretty successful but just took awhile to develop. Robinson, Rahk, and DJ Wilson all had good careers. I think the 2013 class felt like a missed opportunity for their middle years, but they bookended things quite well.
Obviously, if Michigan landed more instant superstars in 2014 they probably would have won more games. At this point, I tend to think that early entry roster attrition and injuries lowered winning percentage more than anything else. Beilein’s had a decent amount of roster attrition with every class since his first, so even when you consider its transfers 2014 looks just fine to me.
I mean, if Walton hadn’t become a NPOY out of nowhere in the middle of the season, what is the general feeling around the program in April 2017? I can say it would be very meh. Even the homer writers at mgoblog had started to become resigned to the general ceiling with Beilein being meh around the middle of that season.
But then JB made fairly dramatic changes to his recruiting and coaching approaches and we’re rolling now. So it really doesn’t “prove the haters wrong” it just means that Beilein was willing to make the changes that had to be made. Which is great.
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I wasn’t impressed by Brooks this year but let’s see if he can make a jump as a sophomore like others before have done so especially at PG. I think the sample size is too small to say he can’t shoot. He only took 41 3’s and while he made a paltry 10, that’s not enough volume to say he’s a bad shooter. I think he will get a chance to show if he can be solid backup and if DeJulius proves better, then I would say it’s likely he will move on after the season especially with another guard presumably coming in the following year as well.
Back to DJ Carton, love his game. He would be a great get. Supreme talent. I assume Indiana and OSU are going to sell him on stepping in right away while Michigan will have Simpson back as a senior and 2 PG’s in the classes ahead of him. Would be awesome if we can find away to add him to Wilson.
Beilein did not make any dramatic changes after the middle of the 2017 season. I know the results shifted fairly dramatically at that point, but this is a false narrative. Yaklich was a great hire, but was building upon “changes” he had already made hiring and empowering Donlon. Saddi seems like a great recruiter, but was it a mistake to have hired a different assistant like Bacari or LaVall the first time around? That would be a stretch.
Has Beilein made some changes? Of course…just like he went from his 1-3-1 to a man-to-man defense, or restructured his offense around the pick-and-roll. Point being, he’s always been one to evolve. Glad he’s getting credit for it now.
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Yeah, and of course the success of the last two years has nothing to do with any dramatic changes to recruiting in 2017. Everyone on those teams except for Simmons was on board by then. JB is constantly evolving, but his track record was pretty clear, as was the dramatic effect of injuries and NBA departures on the 14-15 and 15-16 years.
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Exactly right. This is the level of recruiting I was expecting after the prior NC run. JB and his staff are on a roll.
Correct. People who have been paying attention will have noticed that Beilein has been adapting, adjusting and evolving every since he has been here, and probably before. In fact, I think that has been one of his strengths and he is better at it than most.
He has been successful at Michigan all along, despite injuries and early departures. Many fans have unrealistic expectations.
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I don’t know if his recruiting approach changed so much as he got better recruiters. Saddi and Yak have been cleaning up. Also, it seems like the chemistry among the assistants is really good. I listened to their podcast with Sam Webb and they were having so much fun together. I think that really helps sell the culture.
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Gonna guess that Carton ends up with a Kansas offer. 
Carton only measured at 6’0. Girard 6’1, Watts 6’1.5, Keion Brooks 6’6.5 & Jaden McDaniels 6’11.
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Very good standing reach for Carton though. 4 inches greater than the taller Cole Anthony
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Wowwww 6’11 with that skillset. No wonder he is 5 star and soon to be in contention for top overall player.
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I didn’t realize Carton was under 6’0 without shoes but he does have a 6’6 wingspan which is very good for a PG. A 39 inch max vertical is quite impressive too.
McDaniels is super skinny. He’s almost a foot taller than Carton but weighs 7 lbs less. I’m sure pro scouts would like to see him have a longer wingspan too. Will be fun to watch him develop though with that skill level and athleticism.
Weren’t we recruiting Talen Horton-Tucker at one point? He’s interesting in that he’s 6’3, 239 lbs with a 7’1 wingspan.
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should pull all the strings to get this McDaniels onboard.
Little blurb about Carton and Watts