The gritty points, post ups and put backs, from DJ and Mo really set the tone. Its great not having to totally rely on Zak and Derrick to keep the offense moving
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Really love the toughness points
Would you swap X/Ibi/Davis/Teske for another player of Moeās level? I would.
Iām willing to bet that if Simpson and MAAR canāt play at a solid level, Brooks and Poole can. I donāt know if theyāll start, but I see both as solid rotation players, way more ready to contribute than Watson.
Ibi will either have to significantly develop his ball skills or become a knockdown shooter or thatās a roster spot not being used
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Moeās position specifically, or his offensive impact in general?
Guess it depends on what you define as solid. I mean its hard to not to exceed Xās current level of play, as weāre talking about a guy that is literally shooting 25% from the floor. I think just about anyone would be more ready in relation to Watson, so your standards are a bit low for my (or just about anyoneās) taste if the baseline is X and Watson this year.
So youāve said. 
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Are you a āstaunchā Beilein supporter?
Iām worried about next year as well, although I really like the recent tape of Brooks and Iāve been very high on Poole from the start. I think our frontcourt being so reliable going forward makes it easier to slide the other proven pieces around and hide positional weak spots. Even in a worst case scenario where X, Brooks and Poole all arenāt ready to contribute next year, we could still trot out: MAAR, Matthews, Duncan, DJ and Mo.
Where did that energy come from last night? The offense seemed to feed off it. Even though we werenāt the best on defense, we still played with a chip. We locked down Blackmon and did a good job containing Bryant. How did we generate that? You could tell the ENERGY eased the pressureā¦the eased pressure got the offense goingā¦the offense going motivated the defensive intensityā¦the defensive intensity turned into transition opportunities.
I hope that was JBās inspiring because thatās exactly what you need. And we were the more athletic team on the floor by far without OG. Amazing what energy and athleticism can do.
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I think a solid grad transfer PG is something Michigan should go hard after in the offseason.
Grad PG/X/Brooks
MAAR/Poole
Matthews/Duncan
Wilson/Livers
Wagner/Teske
Thatās a preseason top 15 team in my opinion and a top 3 big ten team.
Lack of creators stick out like a sore thumb on that roster
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Yes. I think itās essential if bamba passes
How have peopleās outlook changed after the last three games? Still wait and see or more optimistic than you thought?
For me, Iām a bit more optimistic because I was waiting to see that Indiana outcome. However, it didnāt change my outlook of 9-9 or 10-8 in the Big Ten. (Sunday would absolutely change that though - obviously)
I think they win 2 of the next 4, but better chance of going 3/4 than 1/4. Thatās going to make the Wisconsin game another big swing game, putting them at 6-6 heading into it. Lose that, and thereās going to be some big time pressure to win 2 or 3 of those last four road games.
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They need a quality road winā¦that will help the outlook.
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Split with Sparty with the loss being close and beat OSU and Iāll readjust my expectations.
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I hear you, but those neutral court Ws are going to carry the road win weight if SMU and Marquette stay close to where they are.
Most experts, or āexpertsā had Michigan on fringe at 3-4 in the B1G. After the win last night theyāre in everywhere. 9-9 with a W at Rutgers would most likely do it, but youāre right in that this would be the justification to leave them out come Selection Sunday.
Right you areā¦its encouraging that Mo and Dj played like actually ābigsā last night. It seemed to lift everyone up.
ā¦and bodes well for Sunday and the future.