6-6 2016 wing Harold Baruti taking OV to Michigan
Per his high school team, 6-6 wing Harold Baruti, an unsigned senior out of Mountain Mission HS (Grundy, VA), is headed to Michigan today for an official visit. Rivals has him as a three star with offers from SMU and UNC-Wilmington. Highlight reel below.
EDIT: Also picked up offers from Tennessee Tech and Utah State in late April. And Texas Tech and Utah are also now in the mix.
that we can actually land enough top 150 kids in 2017 to make it worth passing up the bird in the hand. The way recruiting has gone lately, I am not that confident.
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or maybe you have just missed the last 3 years of recruiting.
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Michigan's probably not going to land 5 guys who are 4-star players, so the reality is that a 3-star now probably replaces a 3-star later. You may sacrifice a bit in the rankings but Beilein's track record on late signings (see my diary) is pretty strong
Also you have to consider that there well could be more attrition (good or bad) which would still give you a 4 person '17 class even if you take two more in '16.
In short, I wouldn't be too worried about saving scholarships for '17, but I agree it's a consideration. Best case scenario is that Michigan gets one more '16 recruit, plus a grad transfer wing.
And I agree that they probably won't land five four-star players, but I also think that at some point you have to roll the dice and at least give yourself the chance to do something like that.
I think in general you have to take them when you have the opportunity unless you are pretty sure your odds are going to be significantly higher by waiting.
Given the high attrition levels these days it seems harder to wait then ever. Michigan could sign a guy in '16 and the scholarship would be back on the table in '18 (for good reasons like the NBA or bad).
I'd be surprised to see us sign two more 2016 recruits. I think it's easy to overstate the downside to talking a flyer on a kid like this. Beilein isn't going to do it unless he believes the kid can contribute soon. If he's wrong, it's very unlikely that he will tie up a roster spot for four years.
It just depends who is on the market. I don't think Beilein is going to reach for a grad transfer that doesn't fit.
He needs an instant contributor. If that has two be two freshman who are each 30% likely to be able to fill that role, that's better than two grad transfers who are 10% likely.
I think your point about not necessarily taking up 4 years of scholarship is a good one, especially give the '14 class.
Michigan is in between a rock and a hard place now. All these transfers this year have depleted both depth and experience, especially at the wing position. I doubt a raw player like Baruti will be able to give Michigan many quality minutes next season. Still, if someone gets injured we need someone else freshman or not.
He's got the athletic ability to play right away. If you plays any defense, he could play right away.
All the starters return and will be seniors*. The backups will be very young beyond Wilson, as Wagner will be the only other non-freshman.
Still - that's way more age and experience than Michigan's had since...pre-Beilein?
*age-wise at least - eligibilities vary but all 5 started high school in the same class
Seems very athletic. JB can work with him.
If all he does is dunk like the video, I'll be ok with it. Dude has some serious ups! He has high D1 athletic abilitiy for sure.
Yeah, he got up so quickly on some those that it was like he was playing on and 8' rim.
branden dawson (althought a 5 star) was a super athlete who never had touch but found ways to be effective. looks like he goes hard, his energy alone would be a plus with 2 open roster spots.
edit: watched the full tape, he's a take
With offers to Little Sisters of the Poor and Colorado School of Mines. The John Beilein specialty. You would think at some point that he could fill the roster without having to do this.
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A collection of plays where the recruit looks his absoulte best. Did coaches ever see this kid play in person? Why has none of the 10 D1 schools in VA said hey this kid is worth a scholarship? If he turns into Caris Lavert, rip me to shreds. But, it's not likely and it's unfortunate. Michigan should be able to attract more sure fire D1 players.
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He kind of looks like Manny Harris. Anyone else see it?
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Seems a little thicker, stronger than Manny.
This guy has no problems finishing at the rim.
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This kid looks solid. I'd say he's a take. Lot to build on here.
we would be in on this late in the game, and from that standpoint, I am fine with it. But we can't keep pinning our hopes on late flier recruits. At some point we have to start landing our top targets.
Xavier Simpson is looking like a top target. The two bigs signed in the early signing period were identified early. It looks like Michigan gets its share of top targets. Fans just seem to think their top targets aren't as highly ranked as targets should be. I'm excited about Simpson and Poole in 2017. Two top 70 guys.
but the 2014 and 2015 classes were highly disappointing and the 2016 class felt like several 5-stars were in play before 'settling' for Watson plus whoever we end up with to fill out the class.
Beilein's recruiting has been good outside of '14-15. What confounds most is that those two classes happened on the heels of the back-to-back tournament runs.
We missed out on every early offer we gave in the 2014, 2015 and 2016 classes except Teske. That is the definiton of missing out on your top targets.
Also we didn't "miss" on Winston as much as choosing a bird in the hand. Very different than the Battle/Langord screw up and the '14 class debacle.
He reminds me of a slightly more skilled.....Aubrey Dawkins. Solid shooter, high flier. His lateral movement didn't wow me, but it didn't seem atrocious either. So he could be a better defender than Aubrey was. Handle needs tightening for sure. I wouldn't weep and gnash my teeth if offered, but I feel like I would rather take this kind of player as a grad transfer if one is available. We have a solid shot at some 2017 guys (plus time for more to emerge). Might be better banking it for that class and use the open spot for a grand transfer rather than commit to a four year player this late.
If we go with a freshman, I'd rather go for someone with a higher ceing like Kosta Long Greek Last Name.
Maybe a little less athletic but stronger and a more versatile skillset. If he can shoot like Aubrey that'd be a tremendous add.
he's not the shooter dawkins is. but he definitely is better at driving to the hoop and finishing. something dawkins was poor at doing. likely a better defender too.
Sounds like GR3 is a far better comp than Dawkins. Obviously GR3 ended up a 5-star recruit and this kid isn't there, but a poor-man's GR3 is still a big improvement to a walk-on.
Isn't there a Penn State/Non-Power5 conference recruit JB can flip and coach him to be the second coming of Trey Burke?
He plays like a Xavier player. Need I say more.
with an offer, not a bad look
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Good but not great-sized athlete who's limited in skill.
Ray was a top 100 recruit but I can see the same versatile skillset, athleticism and body type.
I mean, SMU is pretty damn good. They weren't in the tourney because of sanctions, but they probably would've made it to the sweet 16. Not to mention they beat the shit out of us. Twice. Negative Nancy
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The competition level definitely helps him I'd say. If I saw these types of highlights against nobodies I would not be impressed, but the fact that he's able to drive and rebound against Oak Hill makes me think he'll be a solid addition.