Scouts have "cooled" on Moritz Wagner and are "neutral" on DJ Wilson after Oregon game
According to Chad Ford,
On Wagner:
"Wagner was the NBA scout darling of the first weekend of the NCAA tournament after he dropped 26 points on 11-for-14 shooting against Louisville. He had a much harder time against Oregon's Jordan Bell..... It's just one game, but it definitely cooled some scouts who were adamant last weekend that he's a lock for the first round."
On Wilson:
"Scouts continue to question his toughness and his readiness for the NBA. Most think he needs another year of school."
Full write-up Link
March 27th, 2017 at 11:27 PM ^
March 27th, 2017 at 11:36 PM ^
I agree. Too much of the time, he just doesn't want to mix it up in the paint. So, he hovers around the 3 point line instead. Beilein needs to bring a bag of wrenches to practice and start heaving them at him until he gets angry. Maybe that would work.
Sure he can. Evident in his physical growth from last year, when he was a twig, to now, which he is on cusp. Another year and I expect him to fill out and be taught how to throw the weight well.
March 28th, 2017 at 10:35 AM ^
I think you can get "tougher" by playing with more confidence. DJ gained much of that this year but still defers to others often and didn't consistently play with an edge. Having more confidence and being one of the prime offensive options will bring more aggressiveness. Plus he will likely continue to get stronger.
March 28th, 2017 at 10:40 AM ^
into a more mature man who is closer to a full blown adult and has more confidence in who he is as a person?
You do know what college is for right? I swear it's like people have no fucking idea how the college experience works. I was much more mature and self-confident as a junior than I was as a freshman, and then by senior year I felt almost like a real adult. It's been all downhill from there, but ffs, the difference between the strength of your mind and person as a senior and the self-doubt of your younger college self is significant.
Look no further than Derrick Walton! The example is right fucking there. It took him until two months left in his Senior year to be ready to lead this team the way it needed to be led. He wasn't ready to do that as a Junior. Some people appear to have totally lost sight of what the upperclassman experience is all about. It's a pretty essential part of the process of college, and someone should have a damn good reason to pass it up. Even academically, I wasn't ready to produce my one work of lasting value - my thesis - until the latter half of my senior year. College is a process.
His physical transformation has been striking -- and his strength gains will only increase with more time in the program.
This isn't just about Moe and DJ, but about Beilein and development.
Of course, you want every player on the team to develop. However, I could easily envision the following five - six guys all developing, and making this a monster team:
- Moe
- DJ
- Matthews
- X
- Davis/Teske
If that happens, it has two results:
- We go extremely far, further than this year, and could win it all.
- It really turns the tide with recruiting.
Regarding help with recruiting, Mo Bamba already gets the importance of development, given his comments yesterday. This is true regarding Bamba regardless of where he goes. The more that 5 star talent (and their handlers/parents) see the benefit of development, the better recruiting goes at Michigan. If the five guys above, along with Rahkman and Robinson, lead us to the promised land, you would have a team with really only one 5 star (Matthews) going all the way, and with half the team at least getting a crack at the NBA. That, along with Camp Sanderson and the strength and conditioning facilities, make Michigan a very attractive destination. Maybe not with one and dones, but with guys who can live with and see the positives of two and dones.
right now. I think consistency will come with maturity. Both guys need to gain some strength, especially Wagner.
He could conceivably decide to take the next step in his development in a European pro league rather than the NBA. IIRC that was mentioned as a possiblity last year before it was confirmed that he would return to M.