Basketball

The Franklin thing in a nutshell. PSU's OL coach catching strays from Anonymous NFL OL Coach:

Penn State’s Olu Fashanu

“He’s extremely athletic for his size. Their system is hard to watch. You’ve gotta sift through that stuff. The guys shuffle. They play with high-pad level. They don’t snap and strike guys. But he’s got all the traits. He’s a good prospect.”

Phil Trautwein has been their OL coach since 2020, but PSU's grim OL goes back farther than that.

Also. A couple of Michigan takes from that article:

Michigan’s Michael Barrett

“This is a really good player someone will get in the fifth or sixth round. Just a tough-ass kid. He’s a junkyard dog. Plays faster than what he runs. I hate saying that because once you get to the NFL that stuff catches up to you, but I like him a lot. I think he’ll be a really good special teams player too.”

And on Sainristil:

On Michigan’s Mike Sainristil

DB Coach 2: “He is one of my favorites. The habits are just so good. I’m not leery of his size because I think he plays a lot bigger. I have no reservations about him. He’s so aggressive and plays the ball so well in the air. I think he uses his lack of size to an advantage because he’s super quick and he’s able to get around blocks and people can’t get their hands on him.”

Scout 1: “He’s one of the best football players on anybody’s board if he’s on their board. Some guys will think he’s too small. Some guys will take him too high. Really good zone nickel. Really good player. He’s versatile, but the size is a concern. I like big guys. If he adds to your culture, it makes sense.”

DB Coach 1: “I’m not as high on him as some people. I think he’s a really good zone nickel. He has all the production with his eyes on the quarterback. He’s really good at that but does that fit what you do at that position? To me the highest value of the nickel is, can he cover the slot? And you don’t really see that as his major skill set.”

[After the JUMP: additional basketball man?]

Things Discussed:

• Spring game takes:
• QB: Wasn't a good format (no zone reads, mostly under-center) for gauging Orji. It was him or Warren, and Warren wasn't a speed-reader upon further review.
• RB: Edwards is geared up. Tavierre Dunlap had a really good game.
• TE: Saw Marlin Klein's speed, has a good feel for timing blocks. Saw some Tonielli too.
• OL: Hard to judge Persi from guard, Gentry moved guys but also had some breakdowns. Big drop from there to Link, who looks like a future player. Like some young Cs, Raheem Anderson stood up to Grant, Guarnera looked plausible at guard.
• DT: Both Benny and Pierce were out so we saw Ike and some DEs they had to move down. Keep an eye out for Chibi Anwunah next year. Joey Klunder played hard.
• Edge: Guy is real.
• LB: Barham is big and can move. Hausmann looked really good. Rolder looked really good.
• S: Hard to tell, but Oden is a lot bigger than we thought, might be ready to contribute early.
• CB: Waller and Hill coming on.
• Waller to the portal: Sam says sometimes a guy asks for way more than the pay scale. There's a lot of nodding and talking around without actually saying that Kentucky has a reputation for promising more than they deliver. Schools have got to be sick of this by now. Sam: Gotta live in today, which means you gotta go tamper.
• Dusty May Builds a Dusty May Program Overnight! These guys were all primary creators for their teams; Rubin Jones is also an elite defender. Choosing to pursue Tre Donaldson of the two Auburn guys shows Dusty knew what he was doing, took the path of greater resistance. Roddy Gayle is in the draft if he doesn't shoot 28% from three, and he had a wrist injury to explain it. Sam Walters shot 43% on *contested* threes, because when you're a 6'10" pogo stick there's no such thing as a contest. Danny Wolf is a very underrated creator, should team with Goldin to be the best pair of Cs in the B10? Nimari Burnett can actually be Nimari now, and Tschetter can Tschetter.
• Concerns: They all have elevated TO rates (should come down as they aren't all forced to be creators), they're a bit weak defensively at the four (Walters has length but he was a beanpole freshman last year), and it's going to take time for everyone to get used to playing together.
• We're gonna LOVE Rubin Jones. Very good rebounder, very smart ballplayer, put Johnell Davis in a hell, which is probably why May wanted to go and get him.
• NFL Draft? Sorry out of time.

[Hit the JUMP for the player, and video and stuff]

Michigan landed its floor general over the weekend when former Auburn guard Rhodney "Tre" Donaldson announced his transfer to Michigan on Sunday.  

I'm relatively familiar with Donaldson, having scouted him extensively at the HS level and watching multiple games of the Auburn Tigers over the last two seasons. Tre is much different than the typical point guards that have played in Ann Arbor and I think he'll become a fan favorite, in part, because of his propensity for highlight reel plays in the open court. 

SCOUTING (Offense)

Tre's most enticing skill is the ability to hit pull-ups from distance. In a B10 conference that has a plethora of relatively slow-footed bigs that like to play drop coverage, this is a real weapon to counter that approach. 

When you have off-the-dribble (OTD) shotmaking that extends beyond the arc, it puts opposing coaches in real conflict. Show high with your big and risk a numbers disadvantage on the backend or take your chances giving up a triple. 

Donaldson is a tough shotmaker in general, and the pull-up prowess isn't limited to those occasions when opposing guards go under screens/opposing bigs play drop coverage. He routinely hits contested midrange pull-ups as seen below.

Tre decelerates + maintains balance pretty well, and he's able to square up and get real elevation on his jumper. While he's not an elite OTD shooter, Donaldson did check-in at 51st percentile nationally on pull-up jumpers..........but on really high volume at 86th percentile in attempts. Given that volume and what I see on film in terms of body control/balance, the pull-up shooting should translate well in my opinion. 

For me, playmaking for others is the most undervalued facet of Tre's game. He's not necessarily the typical ballscreen shot-creator for teammates that we're accustomed to (in part because of the Auburn offensive structure), but the pass placement/execution is really impressive.

Donaldson routinely fits precision passes in tight-windows. The ball placement isn't where teammates are currently at, but rather where they need to be in order to finish the play. 

And while we don't see a ton of Tre hitting roll-men in PnR, the efficiency in the ballscreen game is absolutely there. Donaldson generated .99ppp in PnR possessions including passes, good for 78th percentile in the country with 89th percentile volume on such possessions. Additionally, the 28.3 assist rate this season also lends credence to the playmaking prowess.

[After THE JUMP: great finisher and above 40% from three? Sign me up.]