Would like to see what a lineup of Walton at the 1, MAAR at the 2 and Lavert at the 3 would look like. Perimeter defense would be better and dribble drive offense would certainly look different.
The idea that Michigan wouldnât be a much better team with a healthy LeVert is comical really. And even just 1 or 2 more wins would make this a completely different season.
Overall I think itâs a pretty fair assessment that his injury kind of killed any ceiling this team had because as we will all agree, you usually need pros to win big.
What you are left with is a good, not great Michigan team that itâs hard to get excited about going forward because Iâm just not sure they have that next level without him.
2 Likes
Having LeVert wouldnât have made a difference in those sick scoring droughts that doomed us against Iowa and Purdue?
Give me a break.
1 Like
In my opinion, Levert and MAARâs style of play would have clashed on the offensive side of the ball unless JB would be willing to adjust his offense to more sets.
Isnât the arguement the record?? Not scoring droughts.
A big part of Michiganâs losses has obviously been the offense going stagnant too often. Having a guy that scores 17ppg and is the best creator on the team helps mitigate that weakness and mitigating that weakness could have definitely led to another win or two.
This isnât rocket science.
So letâs say we ended up with 2 more wins overall. What seed do you think we would be in the tourney?
Agreed. I donât know how anyone can argue we are the same with Caris. That allows either MAAR or Duncan to move to the bench where they are better suited. A guy who can create for himself, pass the rock, rebound. Makes us a deeper team easily.
SKnight
1 Like
This is fair.
This team was going to have weaknesses that capped the ceiling with or without a healthy LeVert. I think 1 or maybe 2 more wins with LeVert would have been possible.
Would depend on who handled what roles on offense. If Walton was used as the penetrating guard then not much different on offense. But, if MAAR and Lavert were used to penetrate and Walton was spotting up, that could make a difference. Plus the perimeter D would certainly be better.
The arguement is winning? Would the team be a better version then they are now Im sure they would be but would that better version lead to more wins??
Are they better, which leads to wins, then the teams they lost to with Caris??
With LeVert, and Michigan going 12-6 in conference, Michigan would probably have been around a 5-7 seed I would think.
I agree, one or two more wins would be possible. Itâs not for certain though like many are arguing.
Remember, MAAR had 16 9 and 3 steals against Maryland. Thereâs a strong possibility heâs not having close to that kind of game with Levert in the lineup. Would Levert match those stats? Maybe, but itâs not for certain.
The argument for âstopping droughtsâ ends for me after looking at Levertâs games against Uconn and Xavier. He stopped many droughts in those games, it did not matter. We were athletically over matched.
It would be nice if you could just insert player âxâ into a game and add his averages to the stats from said game. It doesnât work like that though.
I know it was just Illinois, but the PNR with LeVert and Donnal was absolutely gorgeous. I was looking forward to seeing how that would translate to the rest of conference season.
The next question is what happens IF the record was the exact same as it is now? It is possible. What is everyoneâs outlook on the program??
Why did you just ask me what their seed would have been and then abandon that possibility?
You made your point. I was wondering where you thought they would be.
Okay, so if the record is the same (though I donât think it would be), then we are in the same spot we are now hoping for some luck in March and improvement next season.
Would you be disappointed in the program and the point is at?
It probably comes down to roles. What would MAARs role be? What would Waltons role be? There is definitely a possibility with MAARs improvement that they could be much better, if he would have made the same improvements with lavert in the lineup. If MAAR, Lavert & Walton are all playing 30 minutes each it would be interesting, again depending on roles.