Basketball Recruiting Update from Sam Webb
On today's recruiting roundup (podcast), Sam Webb provided a good overview of where Michigan's basketball recruiting stands in regard to late 2014 signings and possible transfers. Here are the highlights:
- Muhammad Ali Abdur-Rahkman and Aubrey Dawkins (both of whom Sam talked to) are scheduled to be on campus this weekend at the same time, setting up an interesting dynamic because Sam believes that Michigan would want just one of them, not both.
- Abdur-Rahkman has Michigan at the top of his list; he has no other visits scheduled and won't decide on taking any other visits until after his Michigan visit.
- Dawkins has Michigan and Dayton at the top of his list; he has a visit to Dayton scheduled for next week.
- Input from Michigan players will play a key role in Michigan's process of vetting the two players for possible offers.
- In terms of ranking Michigan's interest in the various players who have been mentioned as possible late additions, Sam says Abdur-Rahkman and Dawkins are at the top given their pending visits.
- Next in terms of interest from Michigan are two transfers—6-9 power forward Sean Obi (Rice) and 6-9 forward Cole Huff (Nevada)—plus 6-5 wing Tavarius Shine (Fork Union Military Academy). Further down the list are two possible late 2014 signees: 6-5 wing Ryan Taylor (St. John's Northwest Military Academy) and 6-7 wing Marial Shayok (Blair Academy; Marquette decommit).
- Sam believes that 6-5 guard Byron Wesley (USC transfer) might be expressing interest in Michigan, but he hasn't heard that Michigan has any interest in him.
One other note: Sam talked about Huff being a good fit for Michigan as a stretch forward, but as was noted in yesterday's thread on him, apparently a major reason he's transferring is because he wants to play the 3, not the 4, in preparation for the position he'd potentially play in the NBA.
Carlton Bragg is going to Kansas, UK or OSU and is a stretch 4
Ellenson is going to Wisc, Duke or MSU and is a stretch 4. He also mentioned 10+ teams at NY2LA and not 1 was UM.
Stone is a pipedream and Zimmerman eliminated us a long time ago.
April 18th, 2014 at 11:58 AM ^
can he guard smaller quicker wing players? theres only so many 6'9" dudes athletic enough in college to cover elite 3's...if he cant hack it defensively on the perimeter night in and out then hes a 4. unless beilein just loves his scoring so much he offers the stauskas treatment and does not force him to play any D whatsoever
April 18th, 2014 at 12:15 PM ^
How many "elite 3s" does a team face in a year? 5-6 games? In a 30 game season you don't face that many. I am trying to think this year how many "elite 3s" UM faced ... I cannot think of too many.
Of course it could create matchup problems for us on defense for a few games but how many opponents have the size to matchup with our 6'8 3? It goes both ways.
Here's some background on Abdur-Rahkman from an article earlier in the week - (LINK)
"As a senior in 2013-14, Abdur-Rahkman averaged 23.6 points, 6.2 rebounds and 4.1 assists while leading Central Catholic to the PIAA Class AAA quarterfinals. He earned his fourth straight PIAA Class AAA first-team selection, becoming the first ever four-time all-state selection in Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley."
He has scholarship offers from Bucknell, Drexel, Lehigh, Harvard and Rice. Penn State and Boston College have also shown interest.
April 18th, 2014 at 10:05 AM ^
Appreciate the info-I could care less about player input personally as long as the eye of Beilein is watching. If John likes what he sees and offers somehow I am just not worried about it.
April 18th, 2014 at 10:14 AM ^
the background of that picture almost looks as if he's lying down on the floor.
April 18th, 2014 at 11:20 AM ^
That's a badass picture. Also, I want that jacket.
That jacket is sweet!
but obviously Beilein does. And for that matter, so do I. One of the great things about the past few teams has been the great chemistry. Players have commented about how much fun they have had and how well everyone gets along. That can only help you team perform better and Beilein know it.
April 18th, 2014 at 10:14 AM ^
I listened to the recruiting roundup again (now linked in the OP) and corrected one thing: Tavarius Shine was higher in Sam's ranking of Michigan interest than I originally had him. As another wing, and with Michigan presumably wanting to add just one more wing to the class, it would seem he would fall off the board if either Abdur-Rahkman or Dawkins were to commit.
In any case, Rivals has him as a 3-star. This isn't the best-shot video, but for anyone interested:
April 18th, 2014 at 12:59 PM ^
Concise and well-organized. Keep it up.
April 18th, 2014 at 10:38 AM ^
will joust GOT style to see who gets the spot.
April 18th, 2014 at 10:40 AM ^
Surprised Shayock is at bottom of the list - he looks on paper to be a prototypical recruit.
Even if Michigan had greater interest in him, it looks like Michigan isn't at the top of his list:
6'7" Marial Shayok said he heard from Florida yesterday & Michigan has showed interest, but he's serious about #UVA, #Marquette & #Indiana.
— Andrew Slater (@ASlater247) April 18, 2014
April 18th, 2014 at 10:46 AM ^
April 18th, 2014 at 10:58 AM ^
That's why. The team sport concept is slowly losing its appeal.
April 18th, 2014 at 11:10 AM ^
Basketball has become significantly less iso-heavy compared to the 2000s
April 18th, 2014 at 11:03 AM ^
It matters for fringe prospects not lottery picks. If you have a body that projects to a 3 in the NBA but haven't proven you can hit an outside shot because your team ran a two post game and you played the 4 that could drop your draft stock from late first round to second round. Also practicing at your position matters since practice makes you better.
Also does this mean that we are not involved with eron harris from wvu? He looks like a guy that could do big things in a beilein offense.
April 18th, 2014 at 11:08 AM ^
Harris cannot be talked to until he graduates. Unless Mitch leaves, I don't think UM has scholarships.
April 18th, 2014 at 11:12 AM ^
He's only been at WVU for two years.
April 18th, 2014 at 11:16 AM ^
Oops. Read on a Purdue board that WVU will release him at the end of the semester and teams can't contact til then.
April 18th, 2014 at 11:24 AM ^
The thing about Huff is that our 4 is a lot like an NBA 3. Beilein essentially uses PG, SG, SG, SF, PF/C.
April 18th, 2014 at 11:34 AM ^
If that's true, then why was Robinson not happy playing the 4?
April 18th, 2014 at 11:39 AM ^
To be honest with you, I don't know. He had lots of opportunities to shoot outside shots and take it to the hole. It's not like he was being asked to post up on the block or something. When you watched GRIII play, was he down low or on the perimeter more often? PFs don't play out on the perimeter much at all.
April 18th, 2014 at 12:18 PM ^
I think a lot of it had to do with the defensive aspect of being a 4. Playing a dude like Jerrell Stokes is not advantageous for a guy of GR3's build. Or Dawson. Etc. As a 4 you are expected to get down low, fight for rebounds, block out on defense more, etc. As a 3 you are more a hybrid who is going to be playing outside more.
I agree with the general theme that these positions have become more interchangeable but you still need someone to guard a relatively big person as a 4, block him out, go get rebounds, etc. So I dont think it was so much the offense as the defense.
We did not have that many games where GRIII was matched up against a guy all that big. Yes, that three game stretch in the tourney with Texas, Tennessee and Kentucky were all tough match-ups for him, but most of the season was not that way. And the NBA has some pretty big dudes playing the 3 so he better get used to it.
April 18th, 2014 at 12:19 PM ^
Completely agree. GRob had ample opportunity to shoot the ball and drive to the basket. Most of the time he was even matched up against a slower player since he was covering a 4.
His game is still developing, but with his name and athleticism, people (including himself) expected more than he produced. Complaining about not getting to play the 3 is just a weak excuse.
I hope he has a good NBA career, but I'm very suspect. If you have only limited success at the college level, the NBA probably won't be any easier. It's not like he played in a rigid offense at Michigan.
While he was certainly a great contributor to the team, I'm not sure GR3 has the tools to be a 3 in the NBA.
April 18th, 2014 at 11:43 AM ^
Robinson just had a skewed view of his skillset and the modern game.
April 18th, 2014 at 11:52 AM ^
I think that's probably true. The 3 in the NBA is a scoring position - it is the #1 or #2 scoring option on almost all NBA teams, especially the top teams. These guys are typically either great spot up shooters, or are able to create their own offense. I haven't seen GRIII do that much at all in his two years in college.
He was a great stretch 4 in college because he could step out and hit a mid-range jumper with relative frequency and he had great athleticism that made up for his lack of ideal height.
I'm trying to think of an NBA player he compares to favorably, and I just can't think of one.
April 18th, 2014 at 11:19 PM ^
GRIII's offensive problems were 100% on him just not playing well for a large part of this season. I don't think they had anything to do with his "position". He had plenty of outside shots that he bricked, and he had ample chances to drive to the hoop. He started playing well for about the last month of the season and looked really good. If he had put together a whole season of play like that he would be a first rounder for sure I think.
April 18th, 2014 at 12:29 PM ^
April 18th, 2014 at 12:48 PM ^
you come back please?
Michigan may be interested in a 16 year old from the Ukrain. Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk has been persued by UVA for almost a year but recently was invited to the Nike Hoops summit where other schools now have jumped on him. Accademically he is eligible 2014 .
From the UVA blog 247:
"As the title of this section suggests, Ukraine national Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk flew under the radar for so long, that there was hope that this would wrap for UVa before the rest of college basketball knew anything about him.
As we said on Tuesday night, UVa has been on Mykhailiuk for more than a year, led by assistant Ron Sanchez. This was close to being done in time for the fall signing period but the NCAA red tape with international players from an academic perspective can be tough.
While UVa is by no means out of the running, Mykhailiuk’s late edition to the roster at last week’s Nike Hoop Summit wasn’t something that UVa wanted to see. The secret was no longer and the flood gates opened with interest.
Virginia is still in very good standing here, thanks to the time they operated under the radar, including trips to the Ukraine to see Mykhailiuk over the past year, but Michigan, Kansas, and SMU are now in the mix and Oregon is pushing hard to enter the fray.
What’s the buzz and fanfare all about? For one, he’s 6-foot-6, 190-pound combo guard that is a sharp-shooter. Secondly, he’s a 16 year old but academically, he’s a 2014 prospect.
The Ukrainian has been compared to Kobe Bryant, Manu Ginobili, and even UVa’s own Joe Harris, who we hear has a big fan in Mykhailiuk."
That is HUGE!
Here's a highlight video from last August. Stauskas 2.0?
April 18th, 2014 at 11:24 PM ^
His cross-over step-back 3 is very Stauskas-like--dunno how accurate he is given the tape only shows makes. His shot sure looks good. The rest of his tape actually shows more shake-and-bake than Stauskas honestly, as well as an ability to score in the post. He has a pretty impresive array of offensive moves for a 16-year-old. Someone get him a tape of Stauskas and let him know the Beilein offense would be a dream for him--he'd be shooting at will for us!
Not a 4?
Kameron Chatman is listed at 6-foot-8, 213 pounds on Jordan Brand Classic roster.
Practice footage:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXJx0BOrmf8
Almost under the radar
As the title of this section suggests, Ukraine national Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk flew under the radar for so long, that there was hope that this would wrap for UVa before the rest of college basketball knew anything about him.
As we said on Tuesday night, UVa has been on Mykhailiuk for more than a year, led by assistant Ron Sanchez. This was close to being done in time for the fall signing period but the NCAA red tape with international players from an academic perspective can be tough.
While UVa is by no means out of the running, Mykhailiuk’s late edition to the roster at last week’s Nike Hoop Summit wasn’t something that UVa wanted to see. The secret was no longer and the flood gates opened with interest.
Virginia is still in very good standing here, thanks to the time they operated under the radar, including trips to the Ukraine to see Mykhailiuk over the past year, but Michigan, Kansas, and SMU are now in the mix and Oregon is pushing hard to enter the fray.
What’s the buzz and fanfare all about? For one, he’s 6-foot-6, 190-pound combo guard that is a sharp-shooter. Secondly, he’s a 16 year old but academically, he’s a 2014 prospect.
The Ukrainian has been compared to Kobe Bryant, Manu Ginobili, and even UVa’s own Joe Harris, who we hear has a big fan in Mykhailiuk.
Don't believe the hype
If those measurables on Chatman are legit then we should all be very excited. also I have very big expectations for Wilson. His ball handling and passing ability at that size are just rare. Still have to se how he transitions to college but having an amazing coaching staff makes me feel good about this. Im also very curious to see what doyle and donnal can bring to the table next year. God its awesome michgan has a basketball program again. Cheers !! !
lets get this kid