Fully understandable but would Mark rather play 10 minutes at Michigan or 10 minutes at Clemson? If he was moving to a MAC school to be a starter then I’m all for making sure he doesn’t limit his options. And I’m just much lower on my faith of Teske/Davis than others. I really think DJ leaving + Mark leaving will be an impact felt throughout the season when Moe gets in foul trouble or has his mindless halves
Didn’t Donnal not being brought back for a 5th year enable us to get Simmons? Beilein was aggressive going after Simmons because he knew he had a scholarship to offer. If Donnal came back, Beilein would have had to wait and see what DJ and Moe ended up doing and by then, it would have been too late to land Simmons. Sure, now we have an extra scholarship but there’s no way Donnal was going to sit in limbo until after the draft deadline to see if there was a spot for him at Michigan.
It looks like it will end up that we have 1 scholarship left over but that’s not unusual or the end of the world. Beilein only goes 8 or 9 deep anyway. I think it worked out well in getting Simmons. I think once DJ decided to leave, it was really too late to expect any other additions.
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Keeping Donnal would have required Beilein to know that Wilson was leaving and Bamba wasn’t coming. That decision was made a long time ago. I think Beilein determined he needed a PG more than he needed a Center who never developed as a consistent contributor. I agree, now knowing how the cookie crumbled, having a known like MD would feel better than relying on two unknowns but I can’t blame Beilein for creating room for Bamba and/or prioritizing a PG.
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Boy, I set myself up to get straw-manned here. By a '17, I really meant Ignas or bust. The last thing I want is someone clogging a schollie spot. I’ll respond to the rest later.
I’m not sure he would have played 10 minutes at Michigan. Teske or Davis would be getting those minutes if they prove to be relatively equal. Mark Donnal has basically just been a body with random good moment or game in his career. I don’t think it’s a stretch to think that Soph Teske/RS Davis can be that next season.
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This seems ridiculous to me. You couldn’t get pantsed harder than Beilein did with Tyus Battle. MAAR and Dawkins were panic signings (I think MAAR is his only good closing time signing). Colton was a reach. Max was a reach. Even Beilein has said he wasn’t prepared with a contingency plan for the Stauskas/GRIII departures. Even Ibi was probably situationally a reach. I love Coach Beilein - I’ve been accused of being one of his sons, I’m so partial to his cerebral, fundamentally decent style of coaching - but he’s got to be one of the worst poker players on Earth. I just think even his staunchest defenders would admit that he’s not very good at playing his cards. But that’s how it always is with UM bkb. When we do well, people won’t accept there is anything Coach B isn’t good at. When we’re down, I get accused of being a Beilein apologist.
I think Donnal’s eeyore routine was a bit of a drag on the team. I could be completely wrong, as this is a comment from a far, but I got the sense he wasn’t great for team chemistry. He continued to make the same mistakes in yr3 that he made in yr1. He had his moments, but he didn’t generally play hungry and we need hungry at every position.
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C’mon now. There’s a couple of guys by the name of Spike Albrecht and Caris LeVert that would like a word with you.
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Nah. Decommitments are part of college basketball. They happen a lot less to JB than many. Should JB have recruited as if Nik was going pro? I don’t get that criticism. He doesn’t do the oversigning thing. It’s frustrating because it can cost the team but he’s just honorable that way. If that’s getting pantsed, then whatever. MAAR and Dawkins were pretty good late pickups. Not as good as LeVert. Duke just took a guy about to commit to Eastern Kentucky. I mean, I think JB could be a little less risk averse, but it’s not like he’s not prepared or considering all sorts of possibilities.
And I’m not even going to try to remember the situation regarding Colton Christian’s recruitment. But that’s a fun blast from the past.
That is a good point. He got pretty lucky with those - Mitch told him to take Spike, and Caris fell into our laps when Groce got bumped up to the Big Ten, but still, good point. I don’t think it makes him any better of a poker player or a man with a plan for all contingencies, but I certainly love those two guys.
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I just sense that there are coaches out there who prioritize always have a contingency plan for any scenario. College BKB has become a game of musical chairs with your schollie situation, so you’re either always making sure you have an eye on the seat you want or you’re in potential danger… People say there are no attractive grad transfer options, well, fact is, Simmons proves that there are guys who might be happy enough playing their 5th year at their own school, but are also looking about to step up to a better spot. So knowing DJ might go, which he’s known for a while (people were already shitting bricks about it after the first weekend of the NCAA’s), you might be a little more active on the whisper wire that should someone choose to look around, UM might end up having a spot. Maybe it’s McIntosh or bust, but maybe we could have been developing a possibility sooner in the game. I just don’t think it’s a priority for JB, and I think it’s hurt us in the past. This year is probably Mo’s last, we’ve got some other talent, it just makes me sick to think this year could blow up on us for want of any rim protection. I love most things about Coach B, I’m not sure this is one of the things that I’m good with.
I’m confident Davis is going to be a major and pleasant surprise.
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At the time Nik was starting his sophomore year, guys like Booker and Blackmon were making their decisions. Booker assumed he would walk into a starting role because everyone assumed the Harrison twins were one and done players. Similarly, Blackmon had a starting role locked down once he set foot on the IU campus. At Michigan, on the other hand, we had Nik, Irvin and Levert in the backcourt - all of whom were good, none of whom were perceived as threats to turn pro. JB did fully anticipate Glenn leaving, and that’s how we got Chatman.
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Of course if Ignas wants to classify as a 17, he would be foolish to not take him on board. That is really the only viable option. You can’t force a kid to do that though.
Why wouldn’t the coaches put a full court press on MiKyle McIntosh? And why wouldn’t he be interested?
- from our perspective, it’d give us an athletic stretch 4 that can defend and would keep our season’s expectations high. Plus it’s only for 1 year - not affecting any 2018 recruits.
- from his perspective, he’d get immediate PT on a Top 25 team, play next to probable NBA player in Wagner with seniors in the backcourt and get to play in the Big 10 and only a 4 hr drive from home.
Seems like Oregon losing Brooks, Bell, Dorsey, and Ennis could struggle, and Oklahoma won 11 games last year and lose their leading scorer and don’t really need a 4 man.
This just seems like a no-brainer to me. Maybe I’m missing soemthing.
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I understand your premise and don’t necessarily disagree…but this year especially, I think JB was kind of stuck. I just don’t think he could have predicted that Moe/DJ were thinking NBA before March came, so I’m not sure what kind of contingencies he could have had before then (other than Bamba).
Once it became a real possibility that we’d lose one or both, I find it hard to believe that JB wasn’t looking for replacement options. But the interest has to be mutual (something we as fans take for granted). Even then, it’s hard to go all in on recruiting grad transfers when you honestly don’t know if DJ is leaving until late May. We have to remember - to use your analogy - its a game of musical chairs for the grad transfers too…so the ones worth having aren’t necessarily going to wait and see what happens at Michigan.
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Im not really sure how JB could be criticized for this offseason. DJ and Mo weren’t on the NBA radar (at least nowhere near probable/possible 1st round picks) before the B1G tournament; so he had maybe 1-2 months to try to compensate for unexpected attrition that only became possible very late in the process. Then, he managed to convince the MAC MVP, who happens to play the most important position in our offense, to grad transfer here, while also keeping a spot open for Bamba. Regardless of how unlikely it was that Bamba chose Michigan, JB kept a spot open for that lottery ticket AND landed a huge grad transfer.
I can see the argument for keeping Mark, since Teske and Davis are totally unproven. But, if we lose Mo next year, then Davis and Teske would be our only options at the 5, and they’d have no experience. And I’m guessing Mark may just wanted to leave, since his ceiling here was very evident.
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I questioned JB for not trying harder to keep Spike and Max around, but I frankly don’t see much value in keeping Donnal. Donnal doesn’t do enough of the things this team needs and if Teske and Davis can’t produce enough to play 5-10 quality minutes between them at the 5, then they should not be on the roster.
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It seems odd to cite JB getting a great grad transfer PG in a position of uncertainty as evidence that JB got caught with his pants down this offseason. In my view, JB does things his way and he’s not really going to bend much, which might cost the team a few wins sometimes, but he’s not failing to consider various scenarios or make plans. And having one open scholarship isn’t really unusual or necessarily bad. Lots of big time players aren’t picking schools until very late and JB isn’t going to sign any old grad transfer just to fill a spot. But you may see things differently.
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