-Livers’ potential as a 3andD wing makes him a solid draft option.
-DeJulius transfers for a clearer path to more minutes as a lead PG.
-Howard gets Castleton to stay pointing out he’ll likely be more advanced defensively than Dickinson (Also Sophomore Castleton is better than Sophomore Davis was.)
-Davis grad transfers.
-Bajema sticks it out for another summer of Camp Sanderson. Nunez seeks a clearer path to minutes. (Less sure of this one.)
That feels like more attrition than I would anticipate but all that anyone can do is speculate.
I have a hard time believing DDJ will transfer. He loves Michigan (to the point that when JB offered Brooks, he got a bit emotional because he thought an offer for him wasnt coming anymore).
Does it really feel certain that Hunter Dickinson would start at the five position next year? I’ve seen the clips of him playing H.S. ball, and he doesn’t seem to play very hard.
To me, it feels like a big leap to go from the effort I’ve seen him put out in the H.S. games, to the effort required to compete at the college level in the Big Ten. I remember John Beilein talking about the effort and time it physically took just to get Austin Davis and John Teske to the point where they could run well enough to play at this level.
Am I the only one that thinks it might be more likely for Colin Castleton (or Austin Davis) to be ready to start next year than Hunter Dickinson?
I feel like Hunter’s stamina may not be the greatest, but he’s played a ton of ball against top competition for a few years now. He’s coming in pretty college ready. No clue if he starts game 1, but I expect him to be the starter by B1G season. But I think his minutes are capped at around 20, which means we’ll see plenty of other options at the 5 (AD, BJJ, Todd).
Skilled 7’2 dudes are really nice to have and should translate well! Growing pains are certainly going to occur, though. Probably across the board.
Hunter appears stiff, not very quick and probably won’t have great conditioning next year. he will likely need time to get ready to play starter minutes. He seems like more of a spot player next year 10-15 minutes or so, I don’t think you want him as a starter especially at the pace the team has been playing. I’d be a bit concerned if the only 5s on the roster next year are AD, HD. Defensively it would be a struggle to defend good bigs.
I’m still thinking Colin Castleton might end up being a good option as a starter next season, with AD as his backup. This is Colin’s second season, right? I remember John Teske’s second season. He wasn’t ready against Wisconsin versus Ethan Happ. But then he had a great game against Purdue in the Big Ten tournament. Might we see a similar development cycle with Colin Castleton, with AD backing him up?
How is Livers going pro the best bet? He is rated #81 on Vecenie’s big board, which is still nowhere near close to being drafted and I haven’t seen him in any mock drafts. Also, Livers isn’t remotely healthy enough at this point to put together an NBA-impressive end to the season. I’ll be pretty shocked if he isn’t back next year.
The NBA drafts on potential more than season stats. He’s 6-7 and has proven when he’s healthy he can shoot from deep and defend. He will definitely put his name in the draft and go through the workout process. All it will take is for one team to like him. I’m betting the injuries he’s had this year make him see the risk of returning if he has a shot to get drafted.
Also, this year’s draft is weak on talent. Would not surprise me at all if he cracked the late first round with a strong post-season showing. It’s just too bad he’s still not 100% out there.
Livers is much different than Poole or Iggy last year though. 1. They were healthy, 2. They were actually on numerous draft boards at this point, 3. They were in the 30-50 range on Vecenie’s board, not 81. There are only 60 draft picks. Livers is more like Nick Ward was than those guys. I feel for Livers because if he was healthy this year I think he may have played his way up the board into the top 50ish. Injuries really set him back. If he is actually healthy for draft workouts and the combine, then I could see it, but if he’s 81 will he even be invited to the combine? There are lots of good players who don’t get invites each year