-
It sounds like we stopped recruiting him. In most situations (including guys like Booker and Blackmon), we continue to recruit guys right to the end even if they favor and/or pick another school. Gary Harris would be yet another example. So, who knows what happened here? Maybe he had indeed already decided on MSU. Maybe we had a reason for backing off. Unless someone has inside information, pretending to know what happened or why it happened is just pure speculation.
-
I just don’t understand the consternation over recruiting. For quite some time, this staff has demonstrated the ability to turn the players it recruits into elite players. Who else wanted Tim Hardaway? I believe he had offers from Minnesota and Miami. Glenn Robinson? His dad was the best player in Purdue history and they didn’t even offer - and then he blew up and they wished they had. Caris Levert? John Groce couldn’t be bothered to even call him when he took the job at Illinois. There’s little doubt Caris would be the best player on the Illinois roster if he had followed Groce there. Trey Burke? He played high school ball with Sullinger, giving OSU tons of opportunities to watch him, and they didn’t offer. It was down to Michigan and Cincinnati. Darius Morris? USC wanted him. Most others did not. Spike? Kid was headed to Appalachian State before we offered. All he did was score 17 in one half in the national championship game as a freshman.
-
Sure, in a perfect world, it would be great to only recruit a team full of 5-star guys. Oh wait, we tried that in 1994-1995, and it didn’t work out so well. The Fab Five was a really unique bunch, as they played great team basketball and all really liked each other. It’s rare to recruit a class full of McDonalds All Americans and have that type of chemistry. Moreover, getting the five star kids is often, well, not a level playing field. Anyone who just read the story about Rashad McCants and North Carolina - take a step back and think about that. And that doesn’t even take into account schools, shoe companies and boosters who are willing to take care of players, family members and middlemen in exchange for a commitment.
-
The last thing I do is panic about recruiting. This staff knows what they’re doing, as evidenced by the five NBA draft picks we’ll have over the past two seasons once this draft is over. It sounds like we’ll get a nice recruiting bump in the 2016 class, and in the meantime, we’ll have to “make do” with top 100 talents like Chatman, Walton, Donnal, Wilson, and a future NBA first rounder like Caris.
Well Said LAW…trust in the culture!
JB and staff will get who THEY want…not who WE want!
LA laying the boomstick down on the crybabies.
Solid post LAWolv.
LAW - Thank you!! Your post literally echoes the type of things I say to one of my UM hoops fan friends every time we miss out on a recruit or offer somebody who isn’t all-world and he’s ready for “fire JB” as he says.
Solid post … I’ll add this to it Dawkins is a solid pickup for JB the kid should develop nicely …Michigan is on solid ground here and I’ve always said if you are a star watcher you should root for the likes of Kentucky because that’s not how JB operates …he’s a developer of talent not some guy who rolls a basketball out on the floor and tells the kids to go play
If Dawkins is a legit 6’6 then I think he can help us…if he’s closer to the reported 6’2-6’3 then I have to question why we would even pursue. Good catch and shoot player, good (not great) athelticism, rebounding is key for him in the context of our needs from a team standpoint. Better shooting, less athletic version of Jordan Barnett.
Agree that star rankings don’t mean much, as I personally think Seth Towns is a top 100 type regardless of what any service (Scout excluded) happens to think, whereas I think Brunson is vastly overrated.
Whenever Beilein discusses Aubrey, the first thing he points out is that he’s a ‘legit 6-6’… Not sure why he would be so adamant if that wasn’t the case. I think he was brought in to fill that big wing niche and replace some of GR3’s production.
Agreed, he seems pegged for the PF spot, and rebounding is crucial if that is the case.
Love Towns hope he lands here …As sort of a funky shot much like Trevon Bluiett who had a really good game last night in Columbus IN … Was at the Jr-SR AllStar game didn’t see a lot of talent in the Jr class though and Coleman wasn’t eligible because he’s a prep school kid now
Love Towns hope he lands here ..As sort of a funky shot much like Trevon Bluiett who had a really good game last night in Columbus IN ... Was at the Jr-SR AllStar game didn't see a lot of talent in the Jr class though and Coleman wasn't eligible because he's a prep school kid now
How did Bryant Mcintosh play?
Really good … Saw him a few times this year also …dude is stone cold …just dares you to come out and guard him … Guy I wish we would have taken was Tyler Wildman from GR3’s high school …he’s really filled out could have filled that Jordan Morgan role for UM
I’m going to have to disagree with you on one point, which is when you said Caris LeVert would be the best player on Illinois if he went there. Sure, if he was as good as he is now he would be, but I doubt he would have developed as quickly and drastically as he did under Beilein over there. He probably wouldn’t of had that huge Freshman to Sophomore leap and he’d still be just a role player at most.
Wolverheel - you are probably right. But clearly in hindsight, Groce should have tried to bring him to Illinois.