Silver Lining: No Early NBA departures?
Ight.
But the NBA drafts so much on potential. So I'll keep my fingers crossed until it's official.
March 24th, 2017 at 12:55 AM ^
So you're telling me theirs a chance..
I see what you did they're...
Should be a good team that will be very big. Add a grad transfer at point guard and hopefully Charles Matthews is good.
March 23rd, 2017 at 10:05 PM ^
Can you imagine if we could recruit NBA talent?
March 23rd, 2017 at 11:24 PM ^
Does Charles Matthews have NBA "talent"? I really am asking and am not trying to be snarky.
Was a fringe top 50 guy, so maybe.
If Moe and DJ stay, we could have a great team next year. Matthews is supposedly a good defensive player who could be an effective replacement for Irvin.
The only issue is PG. I am not confident that X can do the job. He lacks size, scoring ability, and defense. Hopefully, he will improve. But PG is the key position on the court, and the drop off from Walton could be the difference.
There will likely be a dropoff. How much remains to be seen? I believe the way X played was somewhat passive due to playing off the bench. He deferred to DW and DJ and Mo and even Duncan and MAAR. If you look at some of his confident drives he was able to create his own shot well at times. His drives often created good looks for others as well. I think he will be a hard worker and be able to dish and create as he experiences driving the team. If not then Coach B and staff will find others to step up.
Go Blue!
I think he will improve as a floor general, but it's his D I'm primarily worried about. You can't teach height; and in these days of 6'4" PGs he will struggle.
Lots of college players are not ready for the NBA, but go for it anyway. Burke damn near left after his freshman year. With that said, I hope they do return though.
I agree their stock dropped today as both struggled against smaller opponents.
next year will be fun. X has big shoes to fill, and he won't be another Walton, but Livers can be an upgrade over Irvin IMO. add Matthews to the mix and return the rest. we should be in another sweet sixteen next year.
This is way underrating what Irvin brought to the team. He was great the last month after he worked his way out of his slump. Carried the team for portions of the second half.
March 23rd, 2017 at 10:15 PM ^
Irvin was GREAT on D, provided absolutely crucial offense, didn't take a hard shot unless there were no other options. Remember, he's the guy that beat Purdue in DC. He and Walton were the team today.
> but Livers can be an upgrade over Irvin IMO
Whoa there man. Zak was arguably our best player tonight.
March 23rd, 2017 at 10:16 PM ^
I'll be happy if Livers can give a decent 10 minutes per game. no chance freshman Livers is anywhere near Senior Irvin. That's just stupid.
March 23rd, 2017 at 10:20 PM ^
and our biggest liability for 50% of the season. even today when he was carrying the team he BADLY missed many shots. I don't mean to shit on him, he was solid, but I think Livers will contribute the same offensive output as Irvin.
March 23rd, 2017 at 10:36 PM ^
You really expect Livers to put up 13 ppg/4 rpg/3 apg next season? Not to mention that Irvin was one of our best defenders all season, and his shooting slump (when he was suffering with an illness, BTW) only actually lasted about 5 games.
March 23rd, 2017 at 10:37 PM ^
You don't mean to shit on him? Hey, then don't.
Without his effort we're not even in the game in the second half.
March 23rd, 2017 at 10:40 PM ^
Irvin averaged 13 points per game this year. That means you expect Livers to average more than the following freshman: GR3, Stuaskus, Walton, McGary, Hardaway, Juan Howard, etc. To average more than 13 points as a freshman would put him along side names like Burke, Rose, Crawford and Weber. I like his film, but let's be realistic.
March 23rd, 2017 at 10:40 PM ^
Irvin was flawed but there is no way Livers equals his offense next year. Matthews maybe but not Livers
March 23rd, 2017 at 11:55 PM ^
he was 8/14 for 19 points on 14 shots. He was outstanding. Who cares if one or two of his misses weren't close? A miss is a miss. And when you make 8/14 you've been very efficient.
March 23rd, 2017 at 11:21 PM ^
Livers? You mean Charles Matthews?
March 23rd, 2017 at 11:56 PM ^
because yes, Mathews will take Irvin's spot and Livers will develop behind DJ until he leaves.
Logic and reason do not always dictate NBA decisions. I would not be so cavalier about this.
If every player who lost a close NCAA tournament game stayed in school, there wouldn't be many early entries.
Wilson hitting those threes were a double-edged sword. He fell in love with them. He never got to the middle of the paint and used that little baby hook or anything. Any chance we had of getting Bell in foul trouble went out the door. Maybe we were better off with the 3s, I dunno.
I think we were better off with the 3's, especially early on with the offense as stagnant as it was.
But I do agree with you, I think he should have expanded his game tonight.
March 24th, 2017 at 12:00 AM ^
that is outstanding. He certainly did not take too many. Bell is insanely good at protecting the rim without fouling. Why challenge him when you can get 1.5 (!!!) points per three point shot. Whenever we tried to challenge him, things went poorly. The Duncan drive that got blocked and obvioulsy the late Walton drive come immediately to mind.
FWIW, I've decided to return to college. I'm either living with Thornton Melllon or Rushing the Godfather's Frat. As my kids say, "Don't Judge Me". Let's streak through the Quad!
I don't see how Mo can still have a first round grade after that. Pretty brutal after a stellar game.
DJ had an opportunity for a dunk plus a foul, instead he blew a layup. Gotta go up strong and at the very least get to the line.
Mo Bamba, come compete for one of these spots.
March 23rd, 2017 at 10:16 PM ^
"One of those spots." Think of what 3 great big men in rotation could do for this team. Wagner wouldn't lose any minutes at all.
March 24th, 2017 at 10:05 AM ^
There is no way Bamba comes to Michigan next year if Wilson, Wagner, and the other two 7' centers are on the team. But I'll gladly eat a lemon if I'm wrong.
1: Players who aren't ready for the NBA sometimes leave early anyways.
2: There's a chance Moe could go back to Germany, play a full year there, then try for the draft
Don't put words in someone else's mouth.
any word on that?
X is well the X-Factor next year. MAAR Robinson Wilson and Wagner have unfishef business. Matthews will start and Poole & Livers are going to be good.
We need something from Austin Davis too
Or Teske figuring out what he's doing on the court, which is maybe not likely but we saw how far Wilson and Wagner came in a year.
March 24th, 2017 at 12:02 AM ^
with a lot more skills and athleticism. Teske game in with...height. Big difference.
Have you ever actually watched Teske play (other than the 3 minutes per game he averaged)? Honest question. Because he has a lot more skill than you give him credit for
I hope they come back for selfish reasons - I love UM and I don't care for the NBA. That said, I've never really believed either of them were ready. Need to add a little more muscle. Wilson needs to get a little better handle and Mo needs to be more consistent. That said, I loved watching them play and was very impressed with them, especially relative to expectations.
It sucks to lose Walton and Irvin (and Donnal, who had his moments), but I am already looking forward to next season.
A lineup of Simpson, MAAR, Matthews (remember him - could be a nice player for us), Wilson and Wagner could be pretty good. Plus our bench would still have Robinson and I think Austin Davis will be the backup big. Plus we have Eli Brooks coming in - I've never seen him play (obviously) but I've read that he's a college ready ball handler which immediately makes me think Spike 2.0. Then Jordan Poole is supposed to be a dead-eye shooter and we also have Michigan's Mr. Basketball in Isaiah Livers. Heck, if we somehow get Mo Bamba, then this team would be loaded!
I don't want to get ahead of myself (too late) but I really like the direction of the program right now. Of course 2 months ago, I wondered if we'd win another game after losing to that craptastic OSU team at home, so what the hell do I know?
Basically we need a point guard to distribute the ball, Mo and DJ to get a little stronger, Matthews to live up to the hype, and a backup big. Poole being deadeye would help too.
March 23rd, 2017 at 11:05 PM ^
Simpson can distribute the ball. Whether he can score enough is the question.
March 24th, 2017 at 12:15 AM ^
We will be a deeper team next year, but we will lose some serious talent and experience with Walton and Irvin. Basketball is a game of inches and their leadership made a huge difference in our win total.
Next year our depth should be:
Forward/Center: Wilson, Wagner, Teske, Davis, Bamba?
Wing: Matthews, Robinson, Livers, Poole, Watson
Guard: Simpson, MAAR, Brooks.
I think we see MAAR at the point for stretches next year, unless Brooks is 100% ready. Point Guard play could be us weakness next year unless there is significant improvement from Simpson- he did play great at times this year. I think we have enough depth at wing to find a few serviceable players.
March 23rd, 2017 at 10:06 PM ^
Fake news
March 23rd, 2017 at 10:11 PM ^
You know what happens when you assume. What the hell??!!
March 23rd, 2017 at 10:14 PM ^
Both guys are basically late fst round/early second round. With another year, they could be lottery picks.
March 23rd, 2017 at 10:17 PM ^
Haha okay. One game doesn't change their stock. Wilson is 95% going but won't hire an agent. Wagner is 50/50.
March 23rd, 2017 at 10:19 PM ^
Wilson might go, but no one with any clue would state he is 95% gone.