Any news on Charles Matthew's decision to declare or return?

Submitted by njvictor on

Tomorrow is the deadline and I've heard rumblings that he's leaning towards declaring. I've never been one to criticize a player's decision to go pro, but I think Matthews going pro would be a mistake, and not just for my own selfish reasons

MGlobules

May 29th, 2018 at 10:21 PM ^

I don't feel we recognize that if a player loves hoop and wants to make that his metier then going off and just making tens or 100s of thousands doing it--wherever in the world--full time, developing, doing what one loves, the clock round--instead of the millions that a dazzled public THINKS they should be making--may be a perfectly great decision for some players. 

DavidP814

May 29th, 2018 at 11:12 PM ^

The counter to this argument is that for Matthews particularly, he could make millions potentially if he stays at Michigan and fixes his jump shot with Beilein.  And yes, I realize as a fan that's a biased opinion--pro teams can and do develop players internally too.  But from my biased and wildly uneducated view, his best shot at a long NBA career is spending next season fixing his jump shot with JB.

bronxblue

May 30th, 2018 at 7:08 AM ^

I know it's small sample size and all, but Matthews was a much better shooter under Beilein than he was in his short stint at UK, and there were signs of consistent improvement under Beilein even as the season progressed.

And unless the NBA has changed dramatically, teams don't spend a lot of time fixing a late 2nd-rounder/FA's jumpshot when he's playing for the Indiana Fire Antz or whatever G League team. So being with Beilein may be his best chance at consistent instruction and help.

I wish him luck whatever he decides to do. But this isn't a situation like Mo where you see him at his ceiling in college and wish him luck. Matthews has areas of his game that UM can help him improve at (like Wagner did last year as a rebounder, something a lot of people said he would get better instruction in the NBA).

OkemosBlue

May 30th, 2018 at 7:20 AM ^

Matthews form has improved greatly, but he doesn't stay square to the basket too often.  He kinda of floats, usually to the left.  This is correctable, although I don't know whether he will ever be a great shooter.

 If he has solid assurances, however, that he will be drafted, then it makes all the sense in the world.  I have read that there is often guarantied money for early second round choices now.  If he doesn't have, then I think it's a more problematic decsion.    While he can concentrate on basketball as a pro (and get paid!), there are a lot of pressures-distractions that can make development difficult even if he isn't studying.  He is also unlikely to get the careful development that Beilein and the coaches give, I would guess based solely on the fact that  undrafted players rarely make it to the NBA. 

Whatever decision he makes, I hope it works out for him.  He seems a hardworking, decent, intelligent young man who deserves the best.

 

 

AZBlue

May 30th, 2018 at 12:20 AM ^

but it seems clear that he REALLY wants to go pro ASAP and is waiting to see who opts out to determine if there is any chance. I will admit that my main reason for thinking this is the fact that he opted for UK out of high school; not a choice for someone who doesn’t want a quick route to the league.



I am bummed out that if he goes it doesn’t do anything except hurt the team next year = we were counting on his leaving next year just to take 2 in the next class (and 1 more early departure if we plan on taking 3).

EconClassof14

May 29th, 2018 at 10:30 PM ^

Sam Webb this morning on wtka seemed to be bracing the fan base for a Mathews exit, I hope Mathews stays but can’t blame the guy for going to get paid at any level and I hope he comes back to finish his degree if basketball doesn’t workout

mackbru

May 29th, 2018 at 10:43 PM ^

This one is kinda bizarre. He's got plenty of potential. But right now he isn't even close to NBA-ready. Can't shoot. Can't make FTs. Poor ballhandler. He definitely needs more work if he's gonna get any kind of pro contract. I suppose he could catch on somewhere overseas or in the "minors." But what's the hurry, man? It's not like he'll make much money at all this way. A year from now, he could potentially be draftable.

mGrowOld

May 29th, 2018 at 10:52 PM ^

I believe it was Darrius Morris who said later he was under tremendous pressure from family members to go pro and in hindsite he prolly would've made a different decision.

Then when you add in agents (yes I know he hasn't signed yet allegedly) telling him how wonderful he is it's a wonder any of them stay in school.

He seems like a good guy. Hope it works out for him whatever he decides to do

TrueBlue2003

May 30th, 2018 at 1:00 AM ^

but he's definitely some kind of pro, whether it be overseas or in the G League.  So it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world to make some money in one of those leagues while working on his shot as much as possible (rather than having to go to class, do homework, etc).

maquih

May 30th, 2018 at 8:49 AM ^

NBA teams do draft projects -- it's just up to the NBA scouts/GMs if they think he's worth drafting now and how much information they're willing to share with Matthews.

He's probably getting mixed signals from a lot of NBA teams, making his decision hard.

Gucci Mane

May 29th, 2018 at 11:19 PM ^

If he cares about a NBA career he should return to school. But maybe his main priority is making money playing basketball no matter the level. If he thinks now is the time to leave to stick on a NBA roster long term he is mistaken.

The Denarding

May 29th, 2018 at 11:25 PM ^

I suspect he is gone. The fact that it’s even being discussed when two months ago it was a foregone conclusion he would stay, portends departure. I think he has a THJ game and one more year could have refined that pull up game making him an even more deadly slasher but maybe he feels that’s more likely to happen in the pros vs college.