cole swider
Michigan's 2017 roster is set give or take an NBA declaration and/or Mo Bamba arriving on a cloud—with one exception discussed later in this post—so basketball recruiting efforts are now focused entirely on 2018. That figures to be a large class. They'll have at least three spots with the departures of Duncan Robinson, MAAR, and Jaaron Simmons. They're also likely to lose both DJ Wilson and Mo Wagner to the 2018 NBA draft. (Taking Austin Davis last year now looks like an extremely canny move by Beilein. IMO Michigan should be redshirting a center almost every year.)
They've got a commitment from instate PG David DeJulius; they can probably take a guy at every other position on the floor.
Posts
The only one on the board now may not even be a post. PF Pete Nance, who describes himself as a "point forward" at 6'10", is a candidate to be either a four or a five. He's the son of longtime NBA player Larry Nance, and you may remember that Michigan was almost his older brother's choice:
For a while, Nance Jr. thought he'd be playing for Michigan. "They seemed very interested," he said, but a formal offer never came.
Passing on the elder Nance brother turned out to be a mistake—he was a late first round pick in 2015 after a productive four-year career at Wyoming—and it looks like Michigan is not going to repeat that with the younger brother. Nance says he's "kind of sort of" down to Michigan, Ohio State, and Northwestern. You'd think Michigan should be the favorite for a 6'10" guy who wants to demonstrate his mad skillz. I mean:
Pete Nance has the height of his father and siblings, but is his own player. His ball-handling is that of a guard and is as comfortable on the perimeter as he is with his back to the basket. He sees the floor and has an improving jump shot.
At 6'8, Nance possesses a skillset that is unmatched by his counterparts at the four spot. He is able to stretch the floor offensively with a smooth stroke and is a gifted passer out of the high post or with his back to the basket. Nance is fundamentally sound, capable of using either hand to make cross court passes or finish with a soft touch around the rim. His ability to handle the basketball and shoot it off the bounce or pick and pop situations makes the rising senior an intriguing prospect.
You'd think Michigan would be Mecca for these dudes by now.
Michigan does not have another offer out to a guy taller than 6'8" at the moment, and the majority of those guys are definitively wing sorts. Michigan did not take a post last year. If Nance doesn't come they'd be wise to find a guy they can sit on for a while and play as an upperclassman.
Wings
Michigan is also battling Ohio State (and others) for SF Jerome Hunter:
"We have a real good relationship," Hunter said. "I talk to (Beilein) the most. He texts me every day, he texts me after every game he watches me play and tells me what I did best and critiques me, basically."
Hunter said he's taken those messages to heart. Beilein's assessments are straightforward.
"He'll tell you the truth," Hunter said. "I like that."
Hunter is from Pickerington, the Columbus suburb that's sent Jake Butt, Taco Charlton, and Caris Levert to Ann Arbor in recent years. Hunter's been on campus three times and says his mom watches "basically every" Michigan game to get a read on their player development. Scout's Brian Snow has a recruiting update that makes it sound like M, OSU, Xavier, and Pitt are a tentative top four, and believes it's "neck-and-neck" between Michigan and Xavier.
Hunter may be in the process of blowing up after some impressive recent AAU performances:
Hunter was absolutely dominant all weekend long at Spiece. On the perimeter, he displayed an elite shot with range out to 26 feet and a very quick release. He was stellar knocking down threes off pick and pop action and off the dribble. Hunter had multiple games where he knocked down 4+ triples. Jerome played large portions of the weekend on the wing as a playmaker as well, and his vision was a real asset. He broke defenders down off the dribble and found teammates for easy lay-ups and dunks on several occasions.
Endless Motor thinks he's a top 50 player. Snow also asserted that he had a "TREMENDOUS" weekend at Spiece.
IN SG/SF Cole Swider recently named a top eight that included Michigan despite not having an offer yet—this is one of those things where he knows he'll have one as soon as he visits:
“Coach Beilein saw me play in Virginia, and he thought that I fit their system perfectly,” Swider said to UM Hoops Wednesday. “He called my dad and he called me, and he said, ‘We’d love to have you at Michigan,’ and all those things. He wants me to come up and visit campus.
“He said they specialize in guys like me — guys who can shoot the ball, know how to play the game and love to work. He said I’m a perfect fit for them, and they can have spots for me to play at with some guys leaving for the draft and some guys graduating.”
Swider appears to be Zak Irvin 2.0, a shooter who can pull up from the elbow and occasionally get to the basket:
His jumper doesn't look as goofy.
6'8" Canadian SF Ignas Brazdeikis does have an offer after an unofficial visit. Yes, a Lithuanian dude from Ontario. That's a model Michigan has used to excellent effect in the recent past. Brazdeikis appears to be a burlier gent than Stauskas:
He has the option of coming in as a 17 or an 18 and is leaning towards the latter. Michigan could have an open spot for him in 17—and if they do they would probably want him to come in, because he can be a four for them.
MI SF Brandon Johns is still from East Lansing, so yeah man.
Guards
NY SG Cormac Ryan remains a priority; with a dad who played at Yale and is currently in finance this is an unusual recruitment. To wit:
Northwestern Basketball Recruiting Update: Wildcats in the lead for four-star shooting guard Cormac Ryan?
That's based off an assertion in a Teddy Greenstein article ("Now the sense is that Northwestern and Stanford are the leaders") that appears to be an attribution-free lift from Corey Evans at Rivals. His article notes that he's taken the following visits...
“I have visited Michigan twice. I have also visited Notre Dame, Yale, Villanova and Penn,” Ryan said.
...and then only quotes him talking about Northwestern and Stanford. FWIW, Ryan just gave an interview to 247 in which he produced a top list...
I haven't made any decisions, but the list is Stanford, Northwestern, Michigan, Notre Dame, Villanova, and Yale are among the ones that have been recruiting me the hardest off of that package I'm looking for. There are some others, but I would say those are the core ones.
...and was then capable of rattling off a factoid about each of these schools in a subsequent question.
The other offered guard is PA SG Robby Carmody, who has set up a fourth visit to Michigan for June. Maryland just offered, joining Michigan, Indiana, Purdue, and several other regional powers.
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