I agree with you, but I don’t envision Wagner as Iggy “light.” I think, if Wagner comes, he will stay one, or possibly two years and get drafted. I’m of the opinion that he is VERY skilled and would possibly come in order to acclimate himself to America, have a fun college experience, and then go to the NBA. Other than that slight difference, I agree with everything you’ve said.
3 Likes
What Michigan state had/has was Cassius Winston. He was incredible all year. When you have Winston or Trey Burke or end of senior year D-Walt other things tend to work out. Also I Love Simpson, so don’t take this as a knock on him.
1 Like
ya i meant iggy light as in, won’t average 15-16, but could he average 12? Yes
he’s not as strong as iggy at the rim, but he is a better distributor to team mates. if he can work in the PnR game that would be huge
2 Likes
You know better than me, Silverblue, and he looks like he has great hoop instincts. But I wonder if he might start out a little bit slight and need a year to be a strong contributor.
I strongly agree with your post. Watching the tournament, every team had a stud shooter knock down timely shots. Simply put, this past season we did not.
Why am I reading everywhere that it is a sure thing Iggy is gone? Have I missed something the past few days? Inside info?
1 Like
It has to do with the way he worded his announcement.
“My intent is to be drafted this year as high as I can be and start my journey”
5 Likes
To be fair, Iggy also said this.
“It was an amazing year for me in Ann Arbor,” said Brazdeikis. “There are many things I still want to accomplish, and pursuing a professional career is just one of them. My family and I want to take full advantage of the opportunities to see where I fit in the NBA Draft. It’s an exciting time, and I just cannot wait to get started.”
I think it sounds like he’s leaning pro, but he also wants to see where he fits in the draft before deciding to leave.
1 Like
I agree that Franz Wagner could be a massive X Factor. I love his game, he’s played at an extremely high level of basketball, and as @silverblue mentioned he’s even worked out of the PnR some. If he comes, I wouldn’t be shocked if he was starting by B1G play and became our best secondary creation option. As I type this it sounds kind of crazy but I love his game and believe in his pedigree.
So the question to people, If we can get any 2 of the recruits/grad transfers we’re looking at, who would you take? I’d be inclined to just take the freshman and go with Quinones and Wagner. But I may be jaded by the only grad transfer we’ve had.
1 Like
Yeah I think my top combo would be Quinones/Beverly and Wagner.
Wagner is my #1, but he is also the riskiest because he won’t make a decision on his future until June and by then there will nobody left available if he elects to stay in Europe.
2 Likes
Wagner is my #1 far and away because of the hilarity of a Moe Wagner legacy tormenting our rivals once again. And I think he can ball.
Quinones is my #2 and if he had an older brother that made memes out of Nick Ward he would probably be my #1 too
6 Likes
Wagner, Quinones, and Rayjon Tucker would be my top three.
1 Like
Largely, Beilein has really only “failed” to produce a high quality team twice - 14/15 which was derailed by injury, and 15/16, in which injury also played a significant (but not as large) part. Until proven otherwise, I have the utmost faith that no matter what Brazdeikis and Poole decide, we’re going to have an upper-division Big 10 team, and a tournament seed in the top half of the bracket.
That said, their defection would undoubtedly alter the outlook for the season - with them, I think we’re in the pre-season conversation for National Title aspirant. Without them…we’re not. Simpson is a unique sort of offensive hub, but not someone who is going to get the ball into the basket, and Teske is a complementary offensive player - we lack any kind of established engine, and all due respect to Brooks, Nunez, and Johns, don’t see one coming from that group.
1 Like
I’m not buying the small school thing because Beverly left a Class D school in Michigan last year to join perhaps the largest, most competitive prep school in the US and became arguably their best player right from the opening game. Each kid is different and it’s moreso about each kid’s mental makeup and their ability to acclimate to what is in front of them imo.
2 Likes
ANY two?
Rayjon Tucker and Justin Pierce, easily. Michigan looks a lot like a hybrid of their style with TTU (defensively and with the grad transfers), with a better offense, if they would get these two. This also saves 2020 scholarships and lets Michigan recruit their guys heavily and earlier than this late period.
Another intriguing option is Quinones and Wagner that really just re-tool ahead of 2020-21 with a solid young core of guys where Michigan only graduates Simpson and Teske. I like Beverly too, but I think Quinones fills the biggest need and Wagner takes the four.
In an ideal, realistic, world for Michigan to compete immediately again I think the ideal scenario would be Quinones and Pierce.
If we cant get any of Wagner, quinones, or beverly I hope we punt on the high school route to fill these spots. Just get 2 grad transfers because as you said that gives us time to put a full effort into recruiting legit talents in the 2020 class.
3 Likes
I agree that two grad transfers are an ideal option, and allow for supreme clarity in pursuing elite SGs for 2020 cycle. Wagner and Quinones sound a lot more attractive to me than Beverly does well.
why quinnones over beverly?
Shooting ability, I’d imagine. Beverly is a more ball-dominant player.
That’s my line of thought. Michigan, if they’re losing Poole and Brazdeikis, desperately needs shooting. Wilson coming in won’t be able to fix it entirely, and I don’t think Bajema is fully ready yet.
see i think opposite, i think we need more creators. bajema, wilson, wagner (TBD), livers and even johns all reasonable three point shooters
how many of those guys pure creators?
3 Likes