MBB: Valpo F Alec Peters withdraws from NBA Draft, eligible for Grad Transfer

Submitted by The Victors on

Valparaiso forward Alec Peters was a name brought up previously on the board as a potential grad transfer for Michigan--not sure if it was legitimate buzz from either party, or just fan-generated wishful thinking.

http://www.midmajormadness.com/2016/5/26/11784012/nba-draft-2016-decision-alec-peters-valparaiso-crusaders

Peters withdrew his name from the NBA draft just before the deadline last night. He could still return to Valpo or is eligible for a grad transfer to play for another college this upcoming season.

Personally, Peters would be an outstanding fit for the Michigan basketball team at the 4 position. The Illinois native is 6'9", 230 pounds with the following stats over his 3-year college career:

2015/2016 - 18.4 points, 8.5 rebounds, 85% / 51% / 44%

2014/2015 - 16.8 points, 6.7 rebounds, 83% / 49% / 47%

2013/2014 - 12.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, 77% / 49% / 38%

PB-J Time

May 26th, 2016 at 11:40 AM ^

Is there any word on if he has interest in U-M?

I did a quick look and this was the player whose coach just jumped to Vandy, so unfortunately if he does grad transfer, it may be there.

Armbuster

May 26th, 2016 at 11:57 AM ^

But Valpo has already blocked another grad transfer this season (David Skara, not the same caliber of player) from transferring to Vandy, so there is a good chance they do the same to Peters now.

 

As an aside, I think it's pretty juvenile to stop them from following their coach, but those aren't my decisions to make.

GoBlueinMN

May 26th, 2016 at 12:26 PM ^

I believe Skara was a regular transfer, rather than a grad transfer. I don't believe a school can block a grad transfer from going to another school outside of its conference. I thought the only requirement was that the player is enrolling in a grad program not offered by their current school.

ypsituckyboy

May 26th, 2016 at 12:06 PM ^

LOL. Keep dreaming. Michigan basketball prefers to recruit back-up caliber players when there are starters already in place.

I'm kidding, but not really (see, e.g., the PG recruits they're looking at in 2017 who are all back-up material since they appear unwilling to recruit someone who will give Xavier Simpson a run for his money in 2017).

Lanknows

May 26th, 2016 at 12:22 PM ^

This is a an mgoboard original production.

But yeah - it'd be awesome.  Robinson and Rahkman would be much better suited as bench players.

We have two open scholarships - hopefully Beilein has a plan for them.

Erik_in_Dayton

May 26th, 2016 at 1:44 PM ^

Maybe Donlon has a connection via the Horizon League.  Maybe Novak or GRIII or McGary have some sort of Indiana-based connection to him.  Maybe he really likes teams what wear a version of yellow. 

BigBlue02

May 26th, 2016 at 2:34 PM ^

Robinson just had one of the best shooting years in Michigan history, even with his 2nd half slump. I don't know why you would want him off the bench.

BigBlue02

May 26th, 2016 at 3:36 PM ^

Hot take!

Robinson wasn't nearly as bad a defender as people on this board think he was. Just like Donnal wasn't nearly as bad as everyone thinks either. This board's dislike for Beilein flows unnecessarily over to the players. Robinson would have started for most B10 teams

Lanknows

May 26th, 2016 at 9:34 PM ^

I'm a staunch Beilein supporter and think people who believe his job is in question are irrational lunatics.

But Donnal is bad.  He's adequate offensively when on his game, but atrocious defensively pretty much always and the rebounding inadequacy is a huge problem for the team.

Robinson gets blown by seemingly every possession. He's 6'8 and should be playing the 4 to limit his exposure to defending guards, but he's not strong enough to hold up.Robinson's 3 point shooting is very valuable and creates space for everyone else - especially critical when MAAR's shooting isn't respected (31% in Big Ten play). But his defense is a major liability.  There's a reason he wasn't recruited to D1 out of high school and that is it. 

Robinson's the same age as Irvin and Walton but gets a tiny fraction of the criticism. He is overrated by M fans.

 

hunterjoe

May 26th, 2016 at 1:38 PM ^

Who has available spots to this point?  Would it be fairly safe to assume there aren't many teams with scholarships available?  If that's the case, I like our chances.  

Harlans Haze

May 26th, 2016 at 1:48 PM ^

I thought they were a legit top 20 team, and was disappointed they didn't get into NCAA. They proved me right in the NIT, until they ran out of gas against GW. I thought Peters was a top 5 player in the nation. I can't imagine he was told that he'd go undrafted. He might not have projected into the lottery, and my guess is because he didn't play against top-flight competition night in and night out. You could argue that going to Vandy isn't much of a step up from Valpo and the Horizon. If he does grad transfer, I'd certainly bet that he went to a big-time program, where he'd be proving himself against high-caliber players every night. Don't know if that means UM. He's certainly good enough to be their best player. The Big 10 would seem like a perfect fit, he'd just have to find the right match. I hope like hell that's UM.