Stauskas, Robinson To Enter Draft
[Bryan Fuller]
Michigan just scooped their own press conference with a press release. Snippet:
Robinson III, Stauskas Declare for Early Entry into NBA Draft
April 15, 2014
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- University of Michigan men's basketball head coach John Beilein announced today (Tuesday, April 15) that sophomores Glenn Robinson III (St. John, Ind./Lake Central) and Nik Stauskas (Mississauga, Ontario/St. Mark's School [Mass.]) will forgo their final two years of eligibility and submit the necessary paperwork to declare for early entry into the 2014 National Basketball Association (NBA) Draft.
"In a very short period of time, these two young men have had a very positive impact on the Michigan Basketball program," said Beilein. "From day one, Glenn and Nik have had the right attitude and work ethic that has helped us enjoy so much of our recent success."
That's the way this was going, and now it has gone. Raise your hand if you thought Michigan would have four early NBA draft entries in two years under John Beilein, let alone four in two years. That's nobody. Weird place we're in now. Great place. Weird place.
Anyway, godspeed, gentlemen. May your NBA careers be long and fruitful and draw other players of your ilk to Ann Arbor.
Izzo does a better job of convincing guys to stay.
That said, I would only echo that it likely has to do with their respective coaching styles---Izzo breaking down players to build them back up down the road--and Beilein giving youngsters the opportunity and confidence to do it earlier.
I do think Izzo is good at making mediocre players into good college players, but his style just doesn't seem to make sense for NBA-ready kids. Heck, if you look at NBA rosters his only really "successes" are guys like Randolph and Richardson who bolted really early. It just seems his focus is so heavily on creating these defensive grinders that it strips away some of the potential/ability you see with other top programs and their recruits.
"Izzo does a better job of convincing guys to stay"
This. It's frustrating as hell that we keep losing these on the fence guys. We have also lost a few transfers in there. The massive advantage that Beilien has identifying and developing players is being neutralized by by our inability to get much more than the bare minimum performance that these guys need before they bolt. For once I'd like to have a senior on the team who isn't just a scrappy overachiever.
I've got something to declare for the NBA...it's awful and I never watch it. That said, I bet both of these guys go on to solid NBA careers. Yesterday, Mike Valenti (I know...I know...I never listen but stumbled for a second) was trolling ever so hard, saying that GRIII wouldn't get drafted at all (but that he'd go anyway) and that Mitch needed to go pro because he was "so old" (calling him 25). That hater seems ever so scared. Alas, we might be losing lots of talent, but we've got a great program. No worries at all.
going to guess that the phones were just ringing off the hook over at 97.1 after he said all of that... he'll keep saying it until the draft happens...
The best part is that I'll never know because I changed the station. I'd much rather listen to commercials for windshield chip repair or prepaid legal plans. Twas my own fault for briefly stopping on 97.1. If only 105.1 talked a bit more about sports, it'd be a good alternative.
Best of luck to both, they accomplished a lot in two years.
Question: who has a better Pro career?
I honestly think Nik will stick around longer, but GRIII seems like he has a bigger upside if he can figure out some flaws with his game. I think both will have good careers.
Where the F did this come from?!
I will probably never see Nik and Glen play again, as I don't watch the NBA. I have not seen Tim play this year and only watched Trey play against the Pistons at the Palace.
I really enjoyed watching them the last 2 years and the wild rides they took us on. I am glad that they both chose Michigan, I thank them for all that they accomplished here and I wish them well in their new careers.
You "don't watch the NBA," but you did "watch[] Trey play against the Pistons at the Palace." Pretty much sums up the state of the Detroit franchise . . . .
Not too bad.
Huh? Please share--as the experts, locally and nationally, seem to be split--at best.
I'm just one of thousands--hoping.
and quite another thing to be wrong about something about which you've declared (with no inside sources) has "no doubt." Something about the internet makes people unreasonably confident in opinions without having a rational basis for being so confident.
is a 100-percent accurate description of everyone on the internet.
amirite?
was implied.
April 15th, 2014 at 10:07 PM ^
Best of luck to both of these young men as they live their dreams. Thanks for wearing the block M with pride and representing it so well.
Sad that they won't be wearing the Maize and Blue any longer, and that makes me sad.
What about Irvin or Walton?
If they witness the Sophmore jump like everyone does, it isn't out of the realm of possibility to see them leave too.
Good luck to both. Personally, it sucks because I have no energy for the pro game and my involvement will be limited to seeing the occasional MGoBlog thread highlighting a particular stat-line, highlight, or event for these gentlemen.
But... What a ride! To me, Stauskas embodies the "it ain't braggin' if you can back it up" swagger that a top-tier team needs. Every possession made you wonder if you were about to see the beginning of another run of awesome.
As much as I'd prefer they stayed at Michigan, I never begrudge an athlete deciding to do what is best for them. In the case of GRIII, my opinion on his choice is different than his, but then again, it isn't my choice to make.
Best of luck to both on whatever path they follow. Thanks for the memories!
Let's do some basic math. NBA has 30 teams with 12 roster spots available or 360 players. The NFL is 32 * 53 or 1696 players.
If Nik and GR3 both make NBA rosters next year that'll give Michigan 5-7 active players (Nik, GR3, Burke, Hardaway, Crawford + Manny Harris and Darius Morris)
As of Jan 20, 2014 according to Mgoblue.com there are 30 former wolverines in the NFL.
Michigan players make up 1.67% of the NBA and 1.77% of the NFL. The mgoblue list includes Woodson, Roh, Foote, and other guys who may not be in the NFL much longer. We're only a basketball player or 2 away from there being more NBA Wolverines than NFL by percent.
Sadly soon, very very soon.
Good luck to both of them.
There was really nothing left for Stauskas to prove at the college level. I thought if he came back, he could improve his draft stock mainly because next year's draft pool looks far weaker than this year's pool, but a late lottery pick isn't the worst thing in the world. In fact, if he ends up on a team like Phoenix or Minnesota (just out of the playoffs), he could contribute right away on a decent team.
GRIII...I wish him the best, but man, this one feels like a mistake. He's probably gonna end up in the second round and once you end up there, your chances of making a career of it in the NBA drop significantly. A weaker draft and some improvement next year could have pushed him up to the middle of the first round in 2015.
Anyway, I hope they each have long careers and there its always good to see more Michigan guys in the NBA.
Nik would be almost stupid not to...
but GRob, i just don't get it GRob...
From online mumblings and stuff, my opinion is he wants to play the 3 spot, but Belien keeps putting him at the 4 due to lack of recruiting post players.
He also saw his stock drop by staying an extra year so he is worried with a bad junior year, he won't get drafted.
I wonder if Horford's departure had anything to do with confirming him in the direction he was already leaning. He might have been looking at the possibility of more emergency duty at the 4 had he stayed.
Godspeed to you both, lads. You played a major role in the restoration of Michigan basketball. Thank you, good luck, and please come back to visit every now and then if you can.
That's not why Beilein played him at the 4. Beilein played him at the 4 because:
- Won the B1G by 3 games and a tip-in away from two conference titles in two years
- National championship game appearance
- Elite Eight appearance
- Most efficient offense in the country followed by the most efficient offense in the history of KenPom
April 16th, 2014 at 10:01 AM ^
"he saw his stock drop"
I think that's debateable. Last year, he was probably a late first rounder at the absolute best. His game did improve a little bit and so did his production. I don't think that we truly know what the stock is for a guy like that because we don't know whether a GM is going to take a chance on a freshman with nothing besides terrific measurables.
I read it as four in two nonsequential years as opposed to four in two consecutive years.
I wish they were staying for selfish reasons, but what two seemingly wonderful young men. I could not be happier for two people I don't know, and hope they have a great career.
Comments