Brandon Johns - center or forward?

Yup. I think he’s a 4, and I think Michigan should tell him he will be featured there...next year. 

If Davis wasn't hurt, he wouldn't be playing much center, if any.  He's a 4.

Congrats on your title restraint!  He is a versatile player, but I agree that his build is best utilized as a stretch 4. I love his willingness to fill the role that helps this team, though. I hope his positive attitude and hard works pays off big time for him. He is a gifted athlete. 

He is a freak athlete who can play really well at center or power forward, but in order for him to be a star at either of those positions he needs to take better care of the ball and not frequently cause turnovers.

I definitely see him more as a 4, but he seems to be becoming more comfortable at the 5. He's hit 3/5 3-pointers this year and I think his ability to stretch the floor needs to be taken advantage of more often

I'm just happy the team is in a spot where we have guys like Johns, and Chaundee Brown who need more minutes vs. the last few years when we didn't know who would get minutes.

Howard's recruiting and usage of the transfer portal makes me feel better about potential turnover from year to year. He's gonna figure it out and get 7-8 guys out there to compete and succeed.

How much of a difference does it make, really?  He's both.

Austin Davis is a center who's listed by the program as a forward.  So is Jaron Faulds.

In the Northwestern game, Wagner guarded Northwestern's center, so can we call him a 5 and Dickinson a 4?

Johns is a talented big man who can play multiple positions.  He'd be just fine as a 3 if he were needed there.

I think he is a natural 4...DJ Wilson is the closest recent M comp in my mind.  But I do think he can play an effective 5-spot, depending upon the matchup.  He's not going to matchup well with the Garza/Dickinson/Traditional Big types...but not a lot of teams employ those. 

Who takes his minutes at the 5? Who loses minutes at the 4? Juwan is doing it right.

I am glad he’s such a quality dude who does what the team needs and has the talent to do it.

You should have called this the Brandon Johns Appreciation Thread.

I agree he is more of a forward than a center.  I disagree with the characterization that he has struggled.  While he doesn't pack the box score, he seems to make a positive influence every time he gets on the court.  I'd argue he should play more minutes as well as Brown, but there isn't anyone I really want to play less.

I felt a little bad for NW and Minnesota when we put Brown and Johns in as it is becoming a blowout and the teams are about ready to give up.  Johns and Brown then hustle all over the court and break the teams will.  

If he was a star we would've seen some hints of it by now. He's a role player and as such should play whatever position is needed at the time. Championship teams need role players.

He's filling in for Davis right now.  Hopefully Davis is back soon and Johns is back to his natural 4.  Kudos to him for filling in - total team player

Johns is an extremely versatile and valuable player.  I agree with the sentiment that he's probably a more natural stretch 4, but he's a perfect component of a positionless lineup. He'll need to play spot minutes at the 5 while Davis is out, but a traditional center role (at least defensively) is somewhat irrelevant against teams without a Garza or Cockburn.    If Dickinson ever has foul trouble or needs a break, a Johns, Livers, and Wagner lineup is extremely intriguing.  Plenty of length, athleticism, and rebounding ability against many teams.  

Johns and Brown really amplify this roster's versatility.   I love the roster makeup.

I like his game better at the 4 but he is going to need to be versatile, especially if HD stays for another year.  Diabate will start at the 4 next year if HD stays.  Johns likely to get substantial minutes but probably some at each position.

I think he's a forter.

Nobody wants to be a cenward.

He's a 4, but against a number of teams on the schedule you can probably play him at the 5 if you want to get another shooter out there.  The big issue I see is that Michigan's offense functions best right now with the center being the focal point of the offense and Johns just don't have the vision and passing process that Dickinson possesses.

His build best as a 4 but he doesn't not have the skills to match. Inconsistent shot, not a great ball handler, gets beats off the dribble. Think about his skillset compared to Livers, the best 4 on our team.

In today's climate, he's plenty suitable for C if he can figure it out. He hasn't played all that much better when he's been at the 4. In fact last game, he was really bad when he moved from 5 to 4.

He likely won't start at the 4 next year unless Dickinson is gone and Diabate starts at C. Even then, he still might not start if we pick up a transfer C or someone like Efton Reid to replace Dickinson. Plus Terrence could always make an improvement. It's very possible Johns looks to transfer after this season.

Yes.  Center or forward. Or, center and forward.

Am I missing something or are we not getting two 5-star recruits at forward next year to compliment a top 5 KPOY center that many think doesn’t have an NBA profile and will thus return?

Brandon Johns shows flashes and has potential. He also plays as a Beilein-style big on a team that is suddenly getting swamped with top-end Juwan bigs.

If anything, his minutes at the 4 and 5 go down next year, not up. I think his best chance to contribute next year at Michigan is to develop the defensive mobility to play the 3, where Franz will probably vacate good minutes. Someone who has watched him more closely than I have can tell me whether that’s realistic or not.

If it’s not realistic, he may choose to find a spot elsewhere. I wouldn’t hold it against him if he did. 

I have always seen him as a natural 4 whose development was probably hindered when Beilein asked him to play the 5 as a freshman. He has always had the problem of being behind someone better than him.

Prior to the start of the season. I thought that John’s having a break out season would be the key to us being very good and reaching our ceiling. I assumed that Wagner would have a breakout year, that Livers and Brooks would continue to be be solid and that Davis/Dickinson would manage the 5. Turns out that we are pretty damn good without a John’s breakout year (although I am pleased with his elevated level of play the past few games).

Him Franz and Dickinson on the floor at the same time?  Moar please!