Terrible news!!! I’m crushed. Best of luck to Cole
4 Likes
I wish we could have held onto Bajema.
3 Likes
I’ve yet to see anyone who thinks poorly of Bajema as a player actually address the point that some players are just better in games than in practice. This is true in all sports.
On the other hand, supporters of Bajema are freely admitting that he must have had a lot of limitations during practice. Yet these fans are being treated as if they are delusional.
There appears to be an asymmetry here.
2 Likes
I’d like to have seen bajema stick around for another year but not playing last year when we desperately needed backup minutes at the 2 and 3 is a bad sign for his future. Definitely think it’s more likely he turns out to be a average or worse high major player than a plus one at this point. He was a classic low floor high ceiling prospect.
1 Like
What players in D1 basketball just play better in games? I assure you that is not a common occurrence or an idea a coach would entertain for a tiny freshman. The most common time that comes up is some really good player that may dog it in practice.
We have no evidence he was a gamer anyway. He hit 8 shots.
1 Like
First of all, I don’t believe there was an obvious need for bodies last year. When Zavier Simpson and Eli Brooks are both playing 32 minutes and DDJ is healthy off the bench, I don’t have a major gripe with no minutes for Bajema, or Nunez for that matter. The upcoming season is the problem.
Of course I don’t think he committed coaching malpractice, but I do believe this was a major misstep in roster management by failing to add a shooting guard and losing two of the four options on the roster at the position to transfer. The claim seems to be “neither of these could be avoided - this happens after a coaching change”, to which I would say…That’s probably right. DDJ seemed to have an entirely different idea of what his role should be than the staff. But if these transfers were so obvious, I’d expect the staff to fill that hole via recruit or transfer and apparently all the eggs were in the Josh Christopher basket and that’s it. That’s a major mistake in light of these transfers.
This is now “pray that Eli stays healthy and can give 35 minutes every night at the 2”. The position is as thin as I can remember a Michigan spot being, probably since the Donnal/Doyle center years. Oh and to your question on who had the ability to play and was buried, DJ Wilson and Moe Wagner both played one shift a game max on a team that played Donnal/Doyle at the 5 for entire games. I don’t think Bajema is a future NBA player, but I know he’s a better option off the bench than nothing and that’s about all the team has right now at the 2 spot.
5 Likes
Aside of all the reasons on why Bajema did not see the floor last year, I am sure he knew of his status as a freshman and how he performed in practices. After all, not too many freshmen get to play significant minutes. Having a good shooting stroke is just a small part of making baskets in a wildly contested game (I am sure Nunez can attest to that).
What puzzles me, however, is that this year the situation on paper turned out to be different. When Michigan was pursuing Christopher and all the shooting guards, Bajema must have felt that there was no way he would get any significant minutes. So, if I were him, I would immediately look for a transfer after the regular season.
From the moment Christopher bolted and other roster positions did not pan out for Michigan, there was an opportunity for him to get significant playing time. So, what happened? He decides to transfer. To me it is an indication that he has no confidence on himself and how to compete for a roster spot, or he feels that the coaches do not have confidence in him.
All I can say is 3 guys transferring out per year better not become the new normal at Michigan or I’m out on college hoops…
sadly it seems to already be the case for a lot of programs
That’s difficult to say when I have no access to D1 basketball practice. I didn’t say it was common. It does happen in all sports though. I’ve heard plenty of accounts of this from athletes and former athletes about teammates with whom they’ve played.
There’s that, but there’s also the fact that some people are at their best when the lights shine brightest and others shrink from the spotlight. You might say I was a Nunez in the classroom. Several of my HS teachers and Uni professors remarked that my essays and test scores were excellent, but I was a different student when it came to class discussion and presentations. I was shy, nervous, socially awkward.
It’s less and less about building a program these days and more about building a new team every year. When including early nba attrition, our attrition rates under beilein were high too. It’s just the new reality and will only get worse once the transfer rule is passed.
1 Like
Absolutely there was a need. Do you recall the lineups that UM was forced to play, especially after Livers got hurt?
1 Like
There’s a version of a gamer that exists, but even the gamers in those stories most likely show something outside of games. Whether it’s the occasional practice, pick up games, scrimmages, workouts. If they’re not performing in any of those they’re not going to magically arise and play well in a game
2 Likes
Livers getting hurt had nothing to do with the guard rotation. And regardless, we aren’t here to rehash last year. We are talking about a future in which the roster has virtually no guards/wings on it. Just because a guy doesn’t play much as a freshman doesn’t mean he has no future… especially when that freshman was a bean pole who just went through a huge step up in competition from HS. It was predictable that he may be a player who would need more time. It doesn’t mean he can never be a capable player or would never have been capable of beating out Adrien Nunez.
Wait, what? Adrien Nunez generally played more when Livers was out right? There was clearly more opportunity for a 6-7 wing shooter to play when Livers was out.
I am generally confused by your Bajema takes, Dylan. I always thought you spoke positively about his game and you liked his future. I think a recent mailbag you even liked his upside more than Zeb’s. But now you’re in the boat that he was a “long shot” to ever play and his loss is meaningless.
2 Likes
Just wrote some about it on the front page. I’ve liked his potential (and liked his game out of HS) but the biggest data point we have this year is that he couldn’t beat out Adrien Nunez for a rotation spot. That’s definitely a bit troubling, no?
I don’t think I said him leaving is meaningless? Or that he was a long shot to ever play? But maybe I’m mistaken?
I also don’t think he would be an odds on favorite to be a rotation piece next year though, right?
1 Like
I have no argument with that. I would be very surprised if Colson never showed anything in the occasional practice or scrimmage. It simply may not have been enough (or with enough consistency) to meet some sort of threshold his head coach had in mind which would be a prerequisite for one of his players to see the floor during games.
People act like what kids looked like in high school will automatically translate to college. We see 5 stars not live up to expectations all the time. Bajema came from a small program and committed to a power 5 school. No one is going to give him anything. It must be earned. I had hoped that he would work out. Looking like you have a good handle and a good shot means nothing if you can’t translate it angainst top competition in practice and in games. Two minutes of mop up duty does not turn the needle.
1 Like
I only had access to the games. Bajema performed better than Nunez, imo. So that, in my mind, is a data point that ought to be considered.
2 Likes
Nunez played against other teams best and Bajema playded against what? Mop up players.
3 Likes