More of this, please. [Patrick Barron]

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Before the possibility emerged of John Beilein leaving to coach the Detroit Pistons, everything was falling into place. In Luke Yaklich, Beilein had found the defensive coordinator he long needed to consistently compete not just for Big Ten championships, but national championships. After a most unlikely Final Four run, the Wolverines reloaded with one of the most talented incoming recruiting classes in program history. Charles Matthews announced his return and 2019 blue chip prospect Jalen Wilson committed in rapid succession. More five-star talent looked to be on the horizon.

And then, for the better part of a week, it was up in the air. Sure, Beilein could leave Ann Arbor today as the greatest coach in program history, but—like with so many of his rapidly developed players—his work at Michigan would feel unfinished, not for lack of accomplishment but the distinct possibility of even greater heights.

If fans of any program know that periods of great prosperity must be appreciated in their time, it's Michigan basketball fans. (At least those of a certain age.) In choosing between a great new challenge or conquering an old one, Beilein seemed to take the same perspective. Well, either that or he met Tom Gores. Regardless, he told the Freep's Nick Baumgardner that he chose to pull out of the search when he realized where he wanted to finish his career:

“It became very clear to me where I was meant to finish coaching,” Beilein told the Free Press on Thursday after a speaking engagement in Ann Arbor. “If you followed my career, it was ‘you’ve built this up, you’ve got it right and you leave the program in better shape than you found it.’ And then go and do it again somewhere else.

“I wasn’t offered the (Pistons) job. I was a finalist, but I wasn’t offered the job. And I decided rather than to go through it more, I knew where I needed to be.”

Beilein's contract extension, which The Athletic's Brendan Quinn reports is near completion, should pay him around $4 million per year (up from $3.37M) through the 2022-23 season, which would put him among college basketball's highest-paid coaches. One would expect the assistants will get nice raises, too. Warde Manuel appears to recognize what needs to be done to maintain an elite program.

[Hit THE JUMP for a quick Big Ten outlook, a recruiting update, and more.]

​[Marc-Gregor Campredon]

So, now what? While the early polls don't reflect this, I'd call Michigan the early favorite in the Big Ten. Moe Wagner's early departure hurts, as does the loss of senior starters Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman and Duncan Robinson, but every contender in the Big Ten suffered major losses. Michigan State, which went 0-2 against their chief rival last year, is down a pair of lottery picks in Jaren Jackson Jr. and Miles Bridges. Purdue turns over their whole starting lineup save Carsen Edwards. Keita Bates-Diop stayed in the draft, which may keep Ohio State from repeating last year's unexpected success.

Maryland went 8-10 in the conference last season and have to replace Kevin Huerter. Indiana is in a similar spot. Any Penn State hopes were dashed when Tony Carr chose to pursue the NBA. Wisconsin went careening in the wrong direction last year; ditto Northwestern and Minnesota. Iowa is a promising young team coming off a 4-14 Big Ten record. There doesn't seem to be a dark horse. This transfer news broke as I was writing this post:

The tallest returning player on Illinois’ roster is 6'6 https://t.co/ensw1ZnmI6

— Tom Fornelli (@TomFornelli) June 7, 2018

Yes, the Terrapins and Hoosiers have exceptional incoming classes; so does Michigan, and they'll be able to bring along those freshmen at a less frantic pace—unless Iggy Brazdeikis or Brandon Johns prove a dynamic enough scorer to turn Isaiah Livers into a glue guy off the bench, the starting lineup should feature all returning players.

Then you take a step back from the respective rosters and look at who's squeezed the most out of their available talent of late, who's got the best player development going in the conference, who's the most likely to get stronger as the season goes along—to me, it's Michigan, even if some questions linger about shooting. If the big question is about Beilein finding a way to make the offense work, the team is in great shape.

​[Campredon]

About that recruiting. It continues. The #27 overall player in the country, IA PG DJ Carton, will visit Ann Arbor on the 28th of this month, per TMI's Josh Henschke. That visit could be the one that sews up this recruitment for Michigan, which holds 10/12 picks on Carton's crystal ball. Carton told 247's Jerry Meyer he plans a mid-August decision after seeing each of his six finalists. Unless, and perhaps even if, another big-time program jumps into the mix, Michigan is sitting in a great spot.

maybe don't watch this

That may not be the end of it, even though Carton would technically take Michigan one over the scholarship limit for now. The coaches are turning up the heat on four-star WA PF Jaden McDaniels, who's recently shot up to #28 overall on the composite, and he told Rivals he has a connection to the program:

CE: The last time we talked, Arizona, Texas and Oklahoma were the three that stood out. Anyone else becoming more involved?

JM: San Diego State, Oregon and Michigan.

...

CE: Michigan hasn’t offered yet, but with its recent string of success, what are your feelings with the Wolverines?

JM: It is just exciting because my cousin (Juwan Howard) used to player there and they just say that you had family they had come through here and teasing me, so they are definitely an option.

More heavy hitters will surely become involved. If a visit materializes, maybe you can feel safe hitting play on that highlight video. Maybe.

Meanwhile, four-star in-state target Rocket Watts (and five-star pipe dream target Cole Anthony) made the loaded USA U-18 roster, surviving a final cut that several heralded prospects—including McDaniels and five-star target Keion Brooks—did not.

Looking ahead to the 2020 class, Michigan's success is begetting success; top-50 PF Lance Ware talked to Rivals about what seems to be a cursory top four of Louisville, Michigan, Oregon, and Villanova, and he chose an interesting spot to watch the national title game:

Michigan: “I was at the national title game, sitting in the Michigan fan section. There was so much intensity in the game, it was ridiculous.

“I like how he (John Beilein) runs his program and his players and he is just a class act.”

If anything, Beilein's flirtation with the NBA should help recruiting. He's been recognized as a coach good enough to be at that level, made it relatively deep into the search process, and then made it clear he'll be at Michigan for a while. While it took some figuring out, the bump we expected after the 2013 Final Four is happening now.

#1 plz. Well played, Stu.

I earned mine wth a text message. https://t.co/vwGKDSjIQd

— Stuart Douglass (@SWD_317) June 7, 2018

Etc. Sam Webb on the program finding its "wolf" in Jalen Wilson. UMHoops appears to be down, but whenever it gets back up there's a very interesting multi-part feature on the improvement of M's defense over there.