Agreed, and I really really want Cain. I can just see things getting murky with '17 recruits on the wing (especially immediate impact guys like Bowen and hopefully Cain) when our depth chart looks like this:
PG: X (3 years left)
SG: MAAR (1 year left) Poole (4 years left)
SF: Matthews (3 years left) Duncan (1 year left) Ibi (3 years left)
PF: Wilson
C: Wagner, Teske, Davis
The only clear hole is the 4, and it will be interesting to see how JB addresses it with guys that already have offers and others who havenāt received one yet (Livers not getting offered this week for example)
Thereās still a huge void of guys that are 6-6 to 6-8 on the roster. Whether you see Cain, Young, Livers, Jackson, Wilkes as a 3 or a 4 ā they are probably going to fit in that mold.
Michigan has one guy in that size range really (Wilson) so I think thereās a pretty obvious need at that positon.
What are your thoughts on the potential 2017 starting lineup, Dylan? Do you think with or without an instant impact 4 coming in, Duncan or Mathews (or I guess DJ) could take Zakās departing defensive responsibilities? With Poole, Mathews, and all of the big names still on the board, I think everyone is eager to look ahead.
Duncan Robinson will play a lot of minutes. For me the only question is will he check a 3 or a 4, I tend to think he checks a 3, unless he embraces the physicality of defending a 4.
I think Matthews gives you incredible defensive flexibility which means you could get away with playing him and Duncan on the wings. I think Matthews has the athleticism to defend fours in a similar fashion to GR3, at least at times.
I donāt think thatās necessarily a 40 minute per game combination obviously, but no matter what pieces you add along side you have flexibility.
Even with Matthews at the two, I still like him next to Duncan because he helps make up for some of the deficiencies you have defensively with Duncan on the floor (and Duncan creates spacing for Matthews to attack off the bounce).
As far as Duncan taking an Irvin role to consistently defend opposing foursā¦ heād have to get a lot stronger. He wore down this year and didnāt really show the chops to handle those duties as it was. Can his frame support that? How much weight will he add over the next two years? Iām not sure.
Wilson is also a key part of this discussion. Heās practicing exclusively at the four and this year will kind of be a make-or-break year for him Iād figure to see if he can be a contributor. Heāll certainly have every opportunity. If he still struggles this year Iād think that heās somewhat more likely to get passed over by potential signees in 2017.
I do agree that it could work situationally, though. UNC used Theo Pinson to defend some mobile 4s during the tournament, and it worked really well. Pinson is about the same size as Matthews.
Generally, though, Iād prefer for Matthews to guard the oppositionās best slasher.
Functionally, how much different will Matthews be from MAAR? I will bet that Matthews is more athletic and a better defender. If he can dial in a shot (reasonable IF) Matthews might fill the role that MAAR currently occupies. This is assuming that neither plays the 1. I think that there is something to be said about the versatility and shooting that would come from a combo of Cain and Duncan playing the 3 & 4 respectively. That would leave MAAR as the odd man out.
It is kind of an odd situation as he was one of our āgo toā guys at the end of the season and because this would be his senior year. This entire hypothetical situation to sayā¦ I think that there is a realistic scenario that MAAR would come off the bench.
I wouldnāt say never. He has not been a starter so far, until someone got hurt, so I wouldnāt hand him the spot for the next two years. Agree that he will likely be the starter next year, but there will be more competition in 2017 and he wonāt be the only guy on the team who can penetrate.
Something tells me that MAAR would fight tooth and nail to make sure of that. He strikes me as the most strong willed on the team when adversity strikes. He wonāt give up his spot without a serious fight.
Theo Pinson is a solid 15-20 pounds bigger than Matthews. At the same height thatās pretty significant. For comparison, MAAR is listed at 185, the same as Matthews (for our sakeā¦ He fluctuates between 180-189) but is 2 inches shorter. That gives a good idea how skinny Matthews is. I really donāt think Matthews guarding the 4 against the Purdueās, MSUās, and Marylandās of the big ten is a good idea at all.
I think most, if not all, of us agree there. Iād assume our coaching staff would agree as well.
However, there arenāt a lot of teams anymore that roll 2 big men that play in the post consistently. So he could still be effective in some scenarios. Iād assume this is where a āpack-lineā defense might hide some of those deficiencies if heās playing the 4. Iām still not sure if Duncan could guard the 4 in those same scenarios though, despite his height and weight difference with Matthews.
I really like maar. I donāt see him falling back. Iām expecting big things out of him next two years. Iām looking forward to x, maar, Mathews lineup. I think maar is all big ten good.
I counted 9.5 out of the 13 other teams in the Big Ten whose main 4 man last year was at least 6ā7" and 225, with many of them being in the 235-240 range. the ā0.5ā being Rutgers, who has a 45% of available minutes guy like that and then also a wing type. Iād say thatās a pretty good chunk of our schedule.
Iām kind of pumped for that as well. A x MAAR and Matthews attacking the hoops drob shooting. It isnāt the typical JB lineup but I think it will be solid. We will have to wait a season and see
I donāt think anyone is arguing that the combo forward spot isnāt where Michigan needs to add to the roster. Almost everyone on the recruiting board with an offer in 2017 projects to that spot.