myblueheaven

January 12th, 2015 at 8:47 PM ^

Michigan has a great chance of landing JB and part of the reason why is he has a lot of family in Michigan, not to mention his mother would not be against coming back.Talk to him personally after his game against Pope and I got a feeling that he is actually longing to be in Michigan and spoke fondly of the possibility. Oh, and the kid is a great leader on the court, very humble and a tremendous athlete. He is exactly the type of recruit that Beilein covets. Here's a pic of JB and my two nephews!!!

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gobluesince1992

January 12th, 2015 at 8:31 PM ^

is absolutely a one and done and most likely a top 10 pick. He's a 2 at the NBA level with his height and smooth jumper. This would be an incredible get for our program. Even if we just have him for one year he will make a massive difference for our team. 

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johnthesavage

January 12th, 2015 at 7:17 PM ^

In the last three years, we've won multiple B1G titles, been to back-to-back elite eights, narrowly lost in the national championship game, and sent five underclassmen to the NBA. I don't know that we need to be worried about finding the "next level". This level is just fine. I guess you could say Kansas, Duke, and Kentucky are a level up from us, but that's about it, and realistically, that's unlikely to change. Those are clearly basketball first schools.

Joined: 03/30/2013

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Don

January 12th, 2015 at 8:24 PM ^

I think you've hit the nail on the head. The vast majority of the elite recruits believe they're one-and-done, and don't really give a shit about academics beyond what's necessary to stay eligible for one season. And these kids all know that under Beilein they'll have to go to class and there will be no "extra" help writing papers and taking tests. As True Blue Grit stated downthread, only a "select few" of these kids are truly interested in what Beilein and Michigan are offering.

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johnthesavage

January 12th, 2015 at 7:20 PM ^

Again, we've recently sent five underclassmen to the NBA. If that doesn't show great recruiting, I'm not sure what does. The only school that has clearly recruited better than us recently is Kentucky. Those rankings aren't everything.

As for recruting "like an elite program", I think Beilein will always have a hard time getting elite big men to come play in his system. It just has a reputation as being much better for guards than centers and power forwards, especailly those that like to bang down low. But he's proven that he doesn't need those players to play at an elite level.

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johnthesavage

January 12th, 2015 at 8:19 PM ^

What you mention is kind of the problem. Stretch fours often end up playing center for Beilein, and then small forward types end up playing the four here. If you're a legit NBA-style stretch four, you're gonna be the biggest guy on the court for us most of the time.

I think this then is a trickle-down recruiting problem for Beilein as any player with decent size probably plays out of position here. That included GRIII, and was possibly a reason why he left early. Elite NBA potential guys with SF size might also be scared off by the likelihood of playing the four here, not showcasing what they'll be doing at the next level and being asked to defend bigger guys routinely.

The evidence that the problem exists is there -- it's why we've been undersized and will likely continue to be. But this is OK with me. It's just unrealisitc to think we're going to be one of the top 2-3 basketball programs in the country. This blog is evidence enough that this is still very much a football-first school.

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UMaD

January 12th, 2015 at 9:28 PM ^

If Beilein hit's his A-list targets (e.g., Kevin Looney) he will play these type of kids at the 4.  Beilein isn't willing to sacrifice skill for size.  That he is making these kind of choices is a recruiting failure.

Don't let this program's on-court success cloud the fact that they have struggled on the recruiting trail with the exception of the 2012 class (and to a lesser extent the 2013 class).

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MGoPoints: 4960

umumum

January 12th, 2015 at 10:41 PM ^

What stretch 4s have we been playing the 5 under Beilein?  Donnal is the only one I can really think of--and that is out of desperation and we know how well that has gone.  Mitch was a genuine 5 for college--though a 4/5 in the pros.  Sims was a 4 size-wise, but Beilein didn't trust his ball-handling enough to play him at the 4.

And, as Beilein has pointed out ad nauseum, the 4 in his system is really just the left-hand side of the 3.  If GRIII had a better handle (or even confidence), he would have been given more opportunities to create offense on his own.

Now I do believe that high end centers may have some convincing to do to play Beilein's system.

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Perkis-Size Me

January 12th, 2015 at 6:53 PM ^

Hopefully Beilein can reel this kid in. 5 players drafted, 4 in the 1st round in 2 years, says a lot about a program. Especially when you're not Duke or Kentucky.

He'd be one hell of a talent.



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