Beilein gave Nunez a scholly based on potential, that doesn’t mean that he’s reached that potential and he’s probably not going to get closer to his potential by getting cooked night in and night out because he’s in over his head. I’m not saying can the kid, but if players from these mid to low major schools are consistently getting past him, it’s not going to be pretty when we get into the B1G season and we’re trotting him out there for 15+ minutes a game.
Also, DJ had that knee valgus issue that made it so he couldn’t jump much. He got way better because Sanderson diagnosed the problem and corrected it.
as i recall duncan was a train wreck at first on defense but could shoot the rock
if nunez can blossom into a 40% three point shooter and imrpove his defense i’d say next year and beyond we will be changing our tune on him
in mean time, start the kid, keep the rotations tight and bring Franz along as conditioning and health dictate (obvi franz starts and takes most the mins inevitably)
never give up on kids, because why the hell not? (aka im basicaly agreeing with you)
We live in a microwave culture. Even though there are literally countless examples of athletes making significant improvements over time, most fans assume that if a player does not perform immediately he never will. It defies logic.
Believe it or not Nunez starting is one of the reasons I have confidence Juwan knows what he’s doing. He’s either going to make it he’s not, but if he wasn’t starting he wouldn’t get any minutes. If he turns into something it will be because of the time he’s getting now.
Agreed with Wagner already on the pine with injury… if you start Bajema over Nunez, the latter likely already has a foot in the transfer portal. Starting Nunez over Bajema doesn’t damage Bajema’s psyche at all
Not really. X and Brooks showed much more at this point in their careers than Nunez has and Nunez is older and was a much lower rated recruit. There are a lot of reasons to doubt that Nunez will ever play well enough to make a significant contribution here beyond fan fickleness.
That’s a bold statement. Let’s see how it plays out. I say never give up on a Beilein recruit and root for them always, because they’re playing for my school and I want them to succeed–plus, I tend to be constructed optimistically. (I also have a hunch Juwan isn’t playing him if he’s looking like nothing but a liability in practice.) But–thoughtful analysis, whether negative or positive–I have no beef with. Catch you on the other side!
There is a spot for Nuñez’ skillet offensively beyond Franz’s return. He’s obviously a defensive liability right now, but his shot has looked capable (a far cry from some of the garbage time shots we saw last season).
His role will diminish when Franz returns, and there will likely be many DNPs or very limited minutes…but the tone against his play is a bit extreme by many right now. He’s still a project with a very decent upside because the young man can shoot the basketball.
I remember reading an article that quoted Kobe, when he was asked last season if Zion Williamson was ready for the pros. He said it didn’t matter if Zion was ready…
Kobe said that if someone IS ready, it’s still about the work they put in once they become a pro. If someone is NOT ready, it’s about the work they put in once they become a pro. Either way, whether they make it or succeed, it comes down to the work they put in once they become a pro.
If that’s true at the pro level, it has to be even more true at the college level. I have a feeling that whether Adrian Nunez ‘makes it’ will be determined by the continued effort he puts in. He certainly looks better than last year. I for one am looking forward to see how he progresses over the next three years!
That’s a very Kobe thing to imply that all the best players work harder than all the less good players. Ultimately he could put in a ton of work and still not work out at Michigan for many different reasons.
Saw 14 new messages in the Franz injury thread and I thought for sure I missed an update on his return date, but alas it was just some Nunez discussion.
Did I say that? No. Yes, I don’t give up on players before graduation but did say I am the only one. I was just pointing it out. You always have a negative comment after each one of my post. I prefer for you not to read my post since you have a issue. I have no time for dramatics. I’m entitled to make my post without your vs. Please don’t read or reply to comments and I will do the same to you because you only reply with negativity. Carry on.
Bingo. Fans are so invested and get so emotional that they don’t see the big picture. People don’t look for the little things / nuances that can show potential/ growth. It’s easy to say a guy stinks when he hasn’t played well and it’s a safer bet to bet against the guy as opposed to going out on the limb and predicting big things from say an eli when he hasn’t looked good for two years.
I mean just last week I think I saw someone say dejulius was not good at anything in a Game thread or maybe it was post Game after the first or second game. I was baffled by the suggestion. It just shows the lack of patience or forsite some fans have. I hope it’s just frustration but maybe some fans can’t project out?
Guys hitting the floor running are the exception not the norm.
I’m terms of Nunez , I’m still on the side that believes he will work out in some fashion. I’m assuming Franz is the superior player currently and should take the job but I still think Nunez could provide a scoring/ shooting spark off the bench this year in a 7-10 min a Game role.
Right now he’s struggling to keep guys in front of him but I saw him working really hard on that end last game and saw slight improvement.
The kid has a serious stroke and if he can drain threes at a high rate he could still be a net positive overall with below avg d. Give the kid some time folks.
I’m not giving up on Nunez. But 3 games in 3 days is less than ideal for any player…and tends to have an even more adverse impact on jump shooters. In the NBA it would be called “load management.” In this case, I would say the ideal option, if he’s healthy enough to contribute, would be to play Wagner the middle game of the 3-in-3 and allow Nunez the “load management” day to get fresher legs from him on Day 3.
(And don’t risk Wagner playing back-to-back days coming off an injury rehab)
Plus, from a practical standpoint, Simpson, Brooks, Livers, Teske are all at 30+ mpg, so the coaches are going to play them all 3 games. Wagner isn’t a fit for Castelton’s role, so that leaves Nunez, Johns, DeJulius…Nunez at 13mpg is the low man on that list, so
I guess I should clarify I don’t disagree with the quote attributed to Kobe. I disagree with the conclusion that that means Nunez’s success here will come down to how hard he works. I just don’t think that’s fair to him, as I’m sure he is a hard worker. If he doesn’t work out here their could be other issues not necessarily at his control.
