Yeah, me too. The announcers kept comparing him to Stauskas but I just don’t get that. Stauskas always had really good ball handling skills but didn’t need to be that guy until his sophomore season. His sophomore year he was very good at creating his own shot. I don’t see Duncan being that guy at this level.
Don’t get me wrong, I like what Duncan showed. His shot is every bit as perfect as I was hoping. I just don’t see him as someone that can handle the ball or create shots the way Nik could.
Yeah, me too. The announcers kept comparing him to Stauskas but I just don't get that. Stauskas always had really good ball handling skills but didn't need to be that guy until his sophomore season. His sophomore year he was very good at creating his own shot. I don't see Duncan being that guy at this level.
Ok fair enough. You are actually talking to the biggest Stauskas fan ever, and nothing he could do could ever be wrong. So I’m not saying that he overpasses Stauskas. I’m just saying that he showed different characteristics. Didn’t see Stauskas running to the basket, and get a gorgeous pass, and have the physicality to do it before. Of course, he did it on his own, we saw it more than 100 times, but it’s nice to see a different play action.
Anyway, Duncan was just a small part of this game, want to hear more about the rest of it. DJ, Dawkins, Chatman, etc…
Did you at least agree that Dwalt and Levert looked good?
Stauskas was very very good off the bounce as a freshman, but it was seen only a few times because he was playing with Trey, Tim, etc. He was also usually guarded by weaker defenders, but the kid showed more than enough that his sophomore breakout wasn’t a huge surprise. As a sophomore, he was ridiculously impressive with the ball.
Duncan has a long ways to go with the ball and athletically to match Nik IMO, but he can flat out shoot it. Caris said today that he’s at the top of his list in terms of confidence to throw a kick out pass to, ‘right up there with Nik’.
Overall the defense at the three really worries me. Aubrey and Duncan were both bad in their own ways.
The thing about Duncan though is that he’s a natural moving without the ball. He can cut to the rim, read defenses and shoot on the move. I can’t really think of a Michigan player recently that was great off the ball (Glenn was at times in different ways in his ability to drift along the baseline) and that could be a real weapon.
The thing about Duncan though is that he's a natural moving without the ball. He can cut to the rim, read defenses and shoot on the move. I can't really think of a Michigan player recently that was great off the ball (Glenn was at times in different ways in his ability to drift along the baseline) and that could be a real weapon.
He actually reminded me a lot of Vogrich in the way he played, besides the fact that Vogrich couldn’t hit the shots come gametime.
Yeah, me too. The announcers kept comparing him to Stauskas but I just don't get that. Stauskas always had really good ball handling skills but didn't need to be that guy until his sophomore season. His sophomore year he was very good at creating his own shot. I don't see Duncan being that guy at this level.Ok fair enough. You are actually talking to the biggest Stauskas fan ever, and nothing he could do could ever be wrong. So I’m not saying that he overpasses Stauskas. I’m just saying that he showed different characteristics. Didn’t see Stauskas running to the basket, and get a gorgeous pass, and have the physicality to do it before. Of course, he did it on his own, we saw it more than 100 times, but it’s nice to see a different play action.
Anyway, Duncan was just a small part of this game, want to hear more about the rest of it. DJ, Dawkins, Chatman, etc…
Did you at least agree that Dwalt and Levert looked good?
-LeVert is LeVert. He looked every bit as good as you’d expect him to and he is quite easily the best player on this team.
-Walton is Walton. He looked good and it was great to see these two healthy again.
-Spike is Spike. We know what we are getting with him almost night in and night out. Nothing special but will continue to be a key player off the bench.
-Duncan’s shot is pure butter. He’s got that Stauskas quality of almost wanting someone else to pass up an easy layup to let Duncan shoot an open 3.
-Donnal and Doyle were both unimpressive. I think Wagner will end up being the best center of the 3 and hopefully that happens sooner than later.
-Kam Chatman and D.J. Wilson rotated at the 4 and both showed some nice things despite their shots not falling. Neither of them had what I would call a good game, but they have both made obvious improvements from last year.
-Dawkins played pretty poorly, but I guess that what happens when someone who is primarily a shooter goes cold. I would have really liked to seem his use his athleticism on the glass or around the rim, but I didn’t. He also re-hurt is ankle again after hurting it in practice earlier this week.
-MAAR was pretty quite and appears to be the odd man out of the rotation. Even with Irvin out, he and Wagner were regularly the last two to be subbed in. Considering Beilein usually only goes 8-9 deep in his rotation, I just don’t know where his minutes are going to come from when Irvin returns.
I didn’t get to see it so I’d love to hear done more comments on the game/ in depth analysis. If you got it please fill free to ramble on as I am at work at 3 in the morning and would love to hear more.
I am surprised Donall over Doyle, even after seeing him so in the open practice. I thought it was more flexing by beilein to get Doyle motivated. Donall was so weak last year that I saw no chance he overtook Doyle again.
Donall showed promise in like one game. Late in the year against Wisconsin maybe? He has the ability to have a good face up game/ pick and pop. He needs confidence. Hit shots and made nice moves when games were over one way or the other. Games were tight and he would wet him self/ total melt down.
I agree Wagner is the future here. Sooner rather then later. How did Wagner look on the boards? Is he already better than Doyle or Donal off of sheer size,motor, and athleticism? If so I’d start him right away. By the time the tourney was here he would have a lot of kinks in his game ironed out alla Mitch mcgary and could be the spark downlow for a deep run. Just need some competent big man minutes and we could go deep.
Let me preface this by saying I loved watching Stauskas play and he deserved BIG POY, but… He was one of the worst defensive players I’ve ever seen. No feel for defense whatsoever. If he was isolated on D he was going to be exposed. I say this to defend (no pun intended), Robinson and Dawkins, their offensive potential over shadows their defensive shortcoming. Coach Beilein will have minutes for them if they play D with effort, smartness, box out, and help out on the boards.
Robinson is not only a shooter, but he’s a scorer, and a passer. Playmaker, as in creator for others? I’m not so sure. Jury is still out. The turnaround he hit in the lane was impressive; he made it look easy. Offensively the game comes natural for him; very instinctive. I don’t see how he doesn’t score at least 10 a game. His added strength will really help him.
Dawkins, he can shoot the ball, yesterday’s game non withstanding, and he can score, but he’s not instinctive, he needs instruction, he’s still learning. Vertically, around the rim he’s elite.
Going to enjoy watching these two.
Wagner, how do you redshirt that kid? To keep it short, he’s not an NBA player right now, but my god, all the ingredients are there. He has to play.
I was dumbfounded when Coach Beilein announced his intention to RS Caris LeVert, you can’t hide talent like that under a rock. Thankfully he rescinded the decision, and Caris was a integral part of a team that played for the NC. Similarly, I don’t see how you keep Wagner off the floor all season. He’s simply too good. He’s not going to be at M 5 years; he will be playing pro ball somewhere. His enthusiasm is infectious and his “want to” is noticeable. Literally, McGary lite.
Agree on Wagner. Sure he made mistakes (honestly who didn’t) but his motor is absolutely exceptional. He runs the floor really well and brings mega swag. I get the McGary comparison – obviously not the handful that Mitch was, or as skilled, but just so active. I could see him as a bigger Aaron White type with more defensive upside. It would be insanity to RS him. Especially when the other bigs aren’t showing much improvement, and looking a bit slow-footed.
Wagner was fun to watch. I agree guys-- Red shirting him would be insanity. I suspect in a couple of months he will overtake Donnal and Doyle. He is unfortunately kind of skinny but he seems wirey strong. Long term I have no worries about him. He will develop into a good player. Can he pull it together for this year? On another thread I asked what people thought about his screens. He seems to screen a lot better than Doyle and Donnal, no?
Let me preface this by saying I loved watching Stauskas play and he deserved BIG POY, but... He was one of the worst defensive players I've ever seen. No feel for defense whatsoever. If he was isolated on D he was going to be exposed. I say this to defend (no pun intended), Robinson and Dawkins, their offensive potential over shadows their defensive shortcoming. Coach Beilein will have minutes for them if they play D with effort, smartness, box out, and help out on the boards. Robinson is not only a shooter, but he's a scorer, and a passer. Playmaker, as in creator for others? I'm not so sure. Jury is still out. The turnaround he hit in the lane was impressive; he made it look easy. Offensively the game comes natural for him; very instinctive. I don't see how he doesn't score at least 10 a game. His added strength will really help him. Dawkins, he can shoot the ball, yesterday's game non withstanding, and he can score, but he's not instinctive, he needs instruction, he's still learning. Vertically, around the rim he's elite. Going to enjoy watching these two.
Oh boy.
You are too sold to even both discussing this with, but I’m just going to say that I would take the under on 10ppg from Duncan, barring re-injury from one of the big three (Walton-LeVert-Irvin).
There is just too many mouths to feed to expect 4 guys to average double digit scoring.
Also, don’t get me wrong, I love what Duncan offers in terms of elite shooting.
I just hope people keep their expectations in check. Let’s keep in mind that his biggest weaknesses aren’t really at risk of being exposed against Division II players (Le Moyne, Northern Michigan). He is every bit as athletic as those players with more size than the majority of them. The biggest concern on Duncan has always been his ability to defend the speed/size/athleticism he will face playing Division I players and the jury is still out on that.
I do think Stauskas and Robinson are equally bad defenders. However, Stauskas was an offensive virtuoso-juggernaut (!) whereas Robinson appears to maybe have a nice shot that may or may not translate against division 1 opponents. Maybe there is more in store but I have not seen anything on display, besides his shot, that reminds me of Stauskas.
Sort of OT but Iowa lost their exhibition last night to a good D2 squad – but still a D2 squad! And despite the close final score, Iowa got dominated for much of the game. And they still have Uthoff, Gesell, Jok, and Woodbury.
This makes me a feel a bit better about Michigan’s early struggles last night. Also, pencil in two wins vs Iowa.
Didn’t watch the game, but I have to imagine that the D2 team was on fire, and sometimes that just happens. Can’t imagine any reason Iowa would become horrible after returning 4 starters.
That team went 30-2 in DII last year. Not that it’s any excuse for losing to them, but it could be worse.
They are definitely elite by D2 standards. At the same time, they are D2 and not a high-major D1 team. For comparison, Duke just played an equally elite D2 team – defending D2 national champion Florida Southern – and won 112-68.
The thing about Duncan though is that he's a natural moving without the ball. mHe can cut to the rim, read defenses and shoot on the move. I can't really think of a Michigan player recently that was great off the ball (Glenn was at times in different ways in his ability to drift along the baseline) and that could be a real weapon.He actually reminded me a lot of Vogrich in the way he played, besides the fact that Vogrich couldn’t hit the shots come gametime.
it is a mystery that Vogrich was a top 100 recruit and Duncan went to DIII.