Interesting. Wonder if that 5 could shoot well enough from 3 to run a traditional Beilein style offense? Or if there would be a new tweak to the offense to incorporate that 5’s strengths getting to the rim?
And I’m presuming that lineup also would have given a chance for MAAR-Robinson-Livers to work together on the opposing side…which seems like a trio that could see rotations at the 2-3-4 spots. (granted not likely with Brooks at the PG and not likely w/o one of Wagner/Davis at C)
Only one three point shooter in that group… interesting.
Sounds like an interesting August experiment 
Beilein has definitely hinted at playing around with Wagner at the 4 after he played there some in Germany. He’s hinted about loving Davis. But it just feels like the kind of thing you mess around with during a few short practices in August to get a sense of if it could work and is worth spending significant time on once the preseason starts.
This may be the first time in JB’s tenure that the “best” five players does not constitute a bunch/few shooters. I hope and assume that he will play his best 5 and play a style that suits their strengths. If he can get the most out of a line-up like that (which i expect that he will), I will be impressed.
I have come around on X also and think he is going to have an impressive year. I see know way he does not see a lot of the floor.
Jury still out on X. He finished the B1G Tourney and NCAA Tournament runs by playing 47 minutes in 7 games.
He scored 4 points ( 1FG - 2 FTs ) total.
Would love him on an all out up tempo full court game. But that’s not happening here. Still needs to show he can score in half court sets.
We’ll see.
Like others, I’ll be curious to see whether Wagner plays any significant amount at the 4 and mostly I’ll believe it when I see it. JB did start McGary and Morgan together before Mitch got injured his sophomore year. He does value length. Without having seen any of Davis in a game it’s hard to predict.
That lineup is plausible, but it’d mean JB prefers having X on the court, over MAAR, and there’s no way I’ll believe that until I see it. MAAR was an incredibly efficient scorer, last year, and an average defender (which is pretty. good, by Michigan standards). I’d just be very surprised if MAAR wasn’t starting.
I have zero faith in Wagner’s ability to guard opposing fours. I also I’m extremely skeptical of how much off-season praise is being heaped on Davis right now
I really hope the best for all of our players but I share your skepticism on both counts. I am excited to watch how this all plays out…
It might be nice to have the lineup with Wagner at the 4 in the bag even if it doesn’t see much action in most games.
The thing is players like Mathews, Simpson, and Davis will be much more effective with shooters around them, so I think more crucial than the “best 5” is finding the best mix of shooting, athleticism, passing, rebounding, defense, etc.
Agree with this… lineups without shooting aren’t admirable, they are usually inefficient and lack spacing
Yeah, really the only way to get away with bad shooting and still have a good offense is being great on the offensive boards. We don’t have the players nor the offensive philosophy to make that work.
Every year it seems like people predict that we will go 9-10 deep on the regular rotation, but when it comes down to it, 8 is always the limit for a Beilein team, even his most talented ones. Other guys will play, certainly, but the number who play every game, regardless of how close the game or how tough the opponent, seems to be limited to that. There doesn’t seem to be anything new or special about this year’s roster to change that.
Right now, I would say that Simmons, Simpson, MAAR, Matthews, Robinson, Wagner and one of Teske/Davis are locks for the the regular rotation. That just leaves the questions of whether there will be an 8th, and who it will be. Barring injury, I’d say that Brooks and Watson are the least likely. Which of the remaining three will depend on how quickly Livers and Poole come along, and which one is shooting the three better. Don’t know which I’d prefer at this point.
It sounded like Beilein ended last season liking Davis over Teske, and wishing he had redshirted Teske instead. How good that actually means Davis is…hard to say. He would not have to be great to grab a spot in the regular rotation, though.
And play great defense.
Last year Beilein said that DJ Wilson would play only the 4. In the end, he went with what worked, but DJ had to develop as a defender at the 5 before it happened. X will play regularly unless a freshmen masters Beilein’s offense because there has to be a backup with some experience. Whether he plays substantial minutes against top-flight teams on a regular basis depends on Simmons as much as X. As far as the inside–it all depends on whether Wagner has developed-develops as a defender. If he does and stays out of foul trouble, then Teske and Davis could find themselves with only a few minutes to split. I don’t think either T or D have yet proven they can hold down the 5 against top flight teams nor Wagner yet that he can guard the perimeter. Wagner might score 20+ a game, however, and that will likely be sorely needed, especially (hopefully only) early. Hence Robinson as well will play many minutes if his defense makes it at all possible.
While Simpson has not given the vibe that he’s advanced to the level of starter 1A, it’s hard to imagine that he will not be improved over last year. Beilein has a proven track record of bringing point guards along. I see Simmons and Simpson splitting the point guard minutes around 30/10. Whether we see any lineups with both of them out there at the same time will depend on how good Poole is and whether Matthews can slide down to the 2 occasionally.
Or have a phenomenal aggressive defense, which is also not one of beileins hallmarks.