I guess Joey Hauser could be considered a breakout star too. He was good as a freshman at Marquette, but not really a star. If Tillman doesn’t come back I could see him being MSU’s second leading scorer.
He emerged last year in a bench role, but if Micah Potter gets to play more than 17 mins a game, I think he could put up some big numbers. He’s got a lot offensive skill.
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The problem is that Potter and Reuvers only played 206 possessions together last year (and Potter played another 436 with Reuvers on the bench). Can that ratio flip where they play together more often?
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Yeah this was kind of my thought process for CJ Fredrick too. With Garza back, I’m not sure his role changes much so I think the breakout may be delayed another year.
As long as Potter and Reuvers are both there, their individual production won’t be maximized
Obv not under Howard. Under Beilein? I don’t know. I may look back one day and realize I’d just assigned him a degree of potential he may not have had, but I liked the look of him immediately and was certain he was going to be a really nice college PG.
I just never saw much of anything from him on the court at Michigan that felt like a point guard. He couldn’t even really crack the rotation under Beilein other than some late season pressure to get him on the court.
I liked the marketed ability to rise up off the dribble a la Walton. I liked the floater when I saw it, but that three-point shooting never really lifted off like it should have.
Most of all, he just likes those shots you mention (especially those off the dribble jumpers) more than passing. Which makes him hard to peg as a breakout PG.
How about Seth Lundy?
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EJ Liddell was starting to look a lot better at the end of his freshman year. I honestly don’t know if he’ll be starting when the year begins (I’d guess Towns and Young at the 4/5), but I think he could be really good as an undersized 4.
Love that pick.
CJ Frederick for me.
I also want to go on record with my belief that Rocket Watts’ breakout season will be much more “Jordan Poole sophomore year except he’s forced to play point guard the entire time” than Nik Stauskas sophomore year
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Meaning he’s a first-round pick? What part of Poole’s sophomore year?
Do people just not really like Rocket? He was really good after he came back from injury: 10 pts, 1.4 asts, shot 57% on twos and 30% on threes in 22 minutes per game and those numbers trended upward down the stretch.
Dylan, respectfully, that JP was a first round pick does not equate to his having been a breakout player as a sophomore. JP was not on any of the first three All Big Ten teams, and I know of no one without a stake in JP who could, or would, have rationally argued for his inclusion. He had a breakout two months (November and December), followed by a Big Ten season during which he was arguably Michigan’s fifth best player. If Rocket Watts has a “breakout season” like that (and I do not think he will–I think he’ll be better), MSU is going to be very disappointed.
I was just wondering what the reference meant. I don’t think anyone is saying Jordan should have been an All-Big Ten player but his sophomore year is definitely tinged by how the season ended, how he played late in the year, etc.
Jordan Poole went from fringe rotation player as a freshman to 33 minute per game starter for a top-10 team who averaged 13 points, 3 rebs, 2 assists per game. And he was a first-round pick.
He struggled in some really key moments that year, and that’s what everyone remembers, but he would definitely qualify as some kind of a breakout player right? I’d also point out that Rocket is way ahead of where Jordan was as a freshman in terms of impact, production, etc.
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The concern on Rocket would probably be that he will be expected to play PG but has not shown to be one, in HS or college. And of course a possible drop off from not having Winston
Yeah, I can buy that a bit. I think Izzo does really well with score-first PGs though and Aaron Henry and (potentially) Xavier Tillman would both be really good ball movers, secondary creators, etc.
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That reference is that if Jordan Poole had to play point guard 30 minutes a game, I think it would have been an absolute disaster.
Poole is one of my favorite players in the last decade, and I thought he was very good but not great as a sophomore.
Rocket Watts shot 38% from the floor and 28% from three as a freshman playing his natural position off ball with a generational passer at point guard. His assist rates and turnover rates are very similar to Poole’s. My guess is full-time point guard Rocket will become a point of frustration for the MSU fan base, much like Poole sometimes unfairly was a point of frustration for 2019 Michigan fans. I would also bet against Rocket ever being a plus facilitator for others, and I’d anticipate a number of awful shots being chucked (and missed).
Oh, okay that makes more sense. I think Rocket’s ability to create his own shot will definitely be needed without Cassius. I don’t think he is a traditional PG like you say though because other guys on that team will rack up assists as well.
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Also, I think Rocket was “way ahead of Poole” in terms of the role he was allowed to play as a freshman, but not in quality of play. Defense definitely. Poole’s per-40 and advance stat offensive averages as a freshman are all better than Rocket’s across the board.