Who was having this conversation? Us armchair GM’s or coach B? Was he ever tried out there?
Beilein talked about it multiple times in the summer/media day. He played some two in Europe and there was a point where he was going to come off the bench because he could play multiple spots.
Point is that there is some flexibility and you have to see how people actually end up fitting in different roles.
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IIRC, Brazdeikis also spoke of this when he arrived on campus. The thinking, if memory serves, was that they would need to get him on the court, and with Matthews expected to take the lion’s share of minutes at the 3, the best option was for him to split time with both Poole and Livers.
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Given how young Franz is, I wonder if 2020 isn’t an option. He is only 17. I would assume they have things similar to prep school. That would give him one more year with Alba, which may not help us, but would probably help him make the decision as to what’s best for him. If he wants to come now, Great, not gonna say no. I do like Hyland’s skills too.
He will be 18 in August so I don’t think he’s that young at this point.
ALBA will want to sign him to a contract after this season, though.
I read somewhere that his team did not qualify for the Major division next year. If so, then that would help us.
They lost the EuroCup (similar to the Europa League, if you follow soccer) which means that they don’t qualify for Euro League (similar to the Champions League) which is the top tier of international European competition.
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is it just me or the longer this thing plays out the better for UM? Doesn’t wanna disappoint teammates and be awkward by declaring UM early, but also hasn’t written it off and commited to Alba
Could be. The problem is that Michigan needs to at least have an idea sooner than later if they want any chance at landing some of these guys. They can’t just hold open a scholarship for Franz just in case he decides to play college ball next month. Teams will start pushing for Hyland and I’m not sure he would wait on Michigan. Not to mention Pierce is no guarantee either. We don’t want to be left with open roster spots so I’m sure they’d like to know if they need to extend their net to other players.
I look at guys like Johns and Livers and believe they are better suited for the 4 (with Livers having the ability to play the 3). Part of this is on the defensive end. I don’t see some of these guys being able to be as interchangeable on the defensive end as on the offensive end. Just based on what I have seen on video, Wilson and Bajema, I don’t see them being able to cover a 4 defensively (depends on the opposing team). Hyland doesn’t appear to be able to cover a 4 either given his size. Franz is probably the one who could move to that spot given his size. Then you throw Brooks into the mix for the next 2 years. Either way, our biggest need for 2019/2020 appears to be a 2/3 who can play immediately. We could have 3 to choose from soon (Wilson, Franz and Pierce) in addition to Brooks
Agree 100%. Aside from 1s and 5s, Beilein plays lineups to maximize what he has, regardless of position. At WVU, that meant playing three guys all of whom would likely be slotted as 3s; at Michigan, it has meant playing Novak and GR III at the 4, and Zak Irvin all over the place (4, 3 and even, on a number of occasions, 2). I know, I know–you are who you can guard–but let’s not pretend that either Iggy or JP was great at guarding anyone; we had a top of the nation defense because we had 3 all world guys and 2 functional defenders.
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Both Wilson and Wagner are listed at 6’8". Wilson is a few pounds heavier as well. I’d have Wilson defending 4’s before Franz.
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While Alba did lose in the Eurocup final, they could still qualify for the Euroleague as the winner of the German BBL or as a wildcard. They just lost out on their first chance to get a spot.
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Interesting. Thank you for that update.
The argument for Pierce is that you think that just next year he will be one of our two best options with the most chance to succeed. As unexcited as I am about up-transfers in general, I think its hard to argue its not the case he is. I understand some don’t want to sacrifice a potential top 100 prospect to take 1 year of a kid who is just “fine”, but its worth remembering that we have two seniors who are among the two best players in the conference at their positions…its not crazy to take a kid that just maximizes your short-term potential.
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Yup. Beilein’s openly talked about the 3/4 being the same on offense, just different sides of the court. I guess Yaklich would have to weigh in on his views about defensive matchups between the wing spots.
And it seems like some of our eventual 2-guards have started their careers at the 3-wing to reduce the responsabilices and ease the transition into the system. Hardaway, Stauskas, LeVert, I think even Poole played a bunch of 3-wing early his FR season? I guess long way of me saying a perceived glut at the “3” could be reduced down the line if one or two guys evolve into candidates at the 2-guard (Bajema, for example has a HS profile/style not too dissimilar to LeVert and could be a good enough ball handler to learn the “2” spot on offense)
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Teams cross-match all the time, I have a hard time thinking that playing 3 or 4 dictates defensive matchup at all.
I agree. In addition to the flexibility in the line up, talent is talent. We’d be better off taking two elite 3’s than worrying about matching recruits to a certain positions.
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It was spoken about because I remember. Iggy played the two in the line ups… Earlier this season. Iggy can play 3 positions.
Does Franz Wagner have an offer from Michigan or does he need to visit our campus to get an offer?