MGlobules

April 20th, 2015 at 9:15 PM ^

a soft-spoken guy like Caris just puts word out that he's returning and doesn't make a big deal if he's staying in school.

Also (FWIW) I think he's got first-round promise, and the latest rumor was that he was just inside the first round. . .

Joined: 11/17/2008

MGoPoints: 47815

Big Blaze

April 20th, 2015 at 9:16 PM ^

IMO

The right move is to stay, put a full season together and prove to scouts that despite being a senior (still young tho) that he can do it all while being checked by other teams' best defender: shoot, pass, rebound, DEFEND.

A deep tournament run certainly seems to help players' draft stock as well :)

If I had to wager a guess however, I'd say he's gone, Manny, Darius, Glenn, etc. all left early, so I'm expecting to have my michigan heart broken again. The trend at Michigan seems to be "Leave" unfortunately for fans. 

Whichever Caris chooses, I wish him the best! I don't think we've seen his full potential.

GO BLUE

Joined: 09/22/2010

MGoPoints: 382

mbrummer

April 20th, 2015 at 9:18 PM ^

This is not coming from the athletic department.  The Daily can't confirm it and its from this leader of a organization on campus.  Doesn't seem that concrete.

 

"Caris LeVert will announce his NBA Draft decision Tuesday, according to a representative of the Order of Angell, a campus honor society from which LeVert has accepted a membership invitation for the 2015-16 academic year."

Joined: 07/29/2008

MGoPoints: 7872

LSAClassOf2000

April 20th, 2015 at 9:28 PM ^

Why is it that these things always seem to coincide with days during which I have presentations to give to directors and other people that have some sway over my future? I need to try and figure out how to make all these spring rollouts not coincide with player announcement schedules.

In all seriousness, I hope he comes back - especially with LeVert, this team has a pretty high ceiling, I believe.

Joined: 01/07/2011

MGoPoints: 130666

BlueTimesTwo

April 20th, 2015 at 9:43 PM ^

I predict that he will announce that he is going pro and that Irvin will be going pro with him, with Irvin having been found by the NCAA to have used a #3b pencil to take an exam rather than the customary #2, resulting in a year-long suspension.

Joined: 06/30/2008

MGoPoints: 13431

Rodriguesqe

April 20th, 2015 at 9:50 PM ^

My friend in real estate who works in all cities with NBA teams mentioned to me the other day that Caris has been shopping for real estate  in all cities with NBA teams. I didn't know what this information meant - do you guys think it could be related??

Joined: 12/29/2013

MGoPoints: 4222

PurpleStuff

April 20th, 2015 at 11:07 PM ^

Assuming/hoping Caris comes back, my roster hopes really hinge on DJ Wilson and whether or not he can play the 5.  If he can hold up at that spot and Morford it with Doyle, we are in tremendous shape.  If not, Donnal just can't play that spot (through no fault of his own, much like Smotrycz before him) and I would frankly rather have Max back than add a perimeter player. 

If Doyle/Wilson can man the 5, the team gets much bigger across the board.  Chatman/Wagner/Donnal can battle it out at the 4.  There is a ton of depth and talent on the perimeter then with Irvin/Robinson able to play the 3 and LeVert/Dawkins at the 2.  Throw in MAAR and maybe Williams, and you're talking about a team where the 13th best player on the team is a top-100 recruit, maybe with a few years of experience.  Not to mention a ton of lineup flexibility when you can maybe play Caris at the point and go really big or play Spike and Walton together and go fast/small.

Joined: 04/21/2009

MGoPoints: 15969

alum96

April 20th, 2015 at 11:36 PM ^

2 needs a handle in this offense - Aubrey doesnt have much of one.  Dribble drive game not there.

Unless Chatman makes a quantum leap I see Dawkins at the 4.  If Caris and Irvin are back they are going to be playing 35 min a night  at 2 and 3 respectively - no time in either spot for a guy who has earned the right to start based on last 5 weeks of 2015.  Basically he takes GR3s role but with 1 inch extra of height and similar game (might be a better outside shooter than GR3).

If Caris comes back I dont see much time at all for MAAR and Duncan Robinson types or whomever is supposed to be backing up the 2 and 3 outside of nights with foul trouble.   Assuming Spike is healthy by then he is going to soak up those backup 2 minutes when Beilein goes Walton/Spike for 5-7 minutes a game.

The "straight to the bench with 2 fouls" would be the main time the backups play.  Just not Beilein's way to give man #9/10/11 8-10 minutes a night - he rides his big guns to huge minutes.  I'd expect a 8 to 9 man rotation and a bunch of people Mgoers are extrapolating 8-11 min a night getting 2-3 most nights in conference.

With Caris I'd see your top 6 as:

  • Doyle (5)
  • Dawkins (4)
  • Irvin (3)
  • Caris (2)
  • Walton (1)
  • Spike (1/2)

The 7th spot is whomever wins the Morford role with Doyle - DJ Wilson or Donnal or whomever.  Doyle won't be playing 30+ a night so your 7th man is for sure a backup center.  Your 3rd center (the loser of Wilson v Donnal) basically plays on nites Doyle gets 2 quick ones or whatnot, similar to this year - other games he barely plays. 

Then your 8th and 9th are the 2 guys who are your key backup wings (guys who slide between 2 and 4, mostly focused on 3/4 with Spike taking some of the 2).  I assume based on STARZ Chatman gets one of those spots.  Then Wagner v Robinson ... MAAR I just see getting squeezed as I can't find him minutes with Caris taking 35 a nite.

But really that's it man outside of junk time - people are going to be squeezed out. 10 and 11 man rotations just are not realistic.

Joined: 04/28/2012

MGoPoints: 82551

DrewGOBLUE

April 21st, 2015 at 12:07 AM ^

With the skillset MAAR has, I don't think you can keep him on the bench too much.

He's already proven to be a very good defender, and should continue to get even better on that end of the floor. This can be a major asset, especially against elite guards.

Also, opposing teams have to account for Rahk's ability to drive to the basket and finish. This helps shrink defenses and can create better looks from the perimeter for Walton, LeVert, Irvin, Dawkins, etc.

So even though MAAR probably won't be getting major time, I'd expect he plays ~15 min/game on average.

Joined: 12/03/2011

MGoPoints: 2953

bluesalt

April 20th, 2015 at 11:26 PM ^

I'm probably going to get negged for my pessimism, but a couple other potential first-rounders have announced they're staying, and I think that will clear enough spots ahead of him to get drafted in the first.

I hope I'm wrong, but that plus the recruitment of the VCU kid just makes it feel that's what's happening.

That said, I hedged my bets by posting on the NBA boards I frequent that I think he's staying.  I'll be wrong one place or the other, so I hope the egg is on my face here.

Joined: 11/02/2011

MGoPoints: 8569

MichiganMAN47

April 20th, 2015 at 11:46 PM ^

Maybe an unpopular opinion around here, but LeVert and Walton sitting forced Irvin, Spike, Dawkins, and MAAR to step up, and they did. If MAAR and Dawkins make the sophomore leap, they may end up having better careers than LeVert.

Joined: 02/24/2015

MGoPoints: 3216