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Men's Basketball Preview

biggunsbob

biggunsbob

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Post anything if you have it. Time for JB to work is magic potion and get the guys to gel!!!!


Ranked #21 MICHIGAN MEN'S BASKETBALL 2018-2019 PREVIEW

inShare
Joel Welser
Wed, 10/17/2018

http://www.collegesportsmadness.com/Michigan Wolverines

2018-2019 Overall Rank: #21
Conference Rank: #2 Big Ten
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Once again Coach John Beilein led Michigan to a deep NCAA Tournament run. The Wolverines made it to the national championship game without playing any team higher than a six seed. Still it was a great run and this group will hope to continue that momentum. That will be relatively tough though with three starters gone. Mortiz Wagner is gone after leading the way with 14.6 points and 7.1 rebounds. Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman was third on the team with 12.9 points, while Duncan Robinson added 9.2 points per game. Those three were also the most prolific three-point shooters on a team that wants to shoot a lot of long balls.

2017-18 Record: 33-8, 13-5
2017-18 Postseason: NCAA
Coach: John Beilein
Coach Record: 248-143 at Michigan, 541-318 overall

Key Departed Players:
Moritz Wagner, Forward, 14.6 ppg
Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman, Guard, 12.9 ppg
Duncan Robinson, Guard/Forward, 9.2 ppg
Ibi Watson, Guard/Forward, 2.2 ppg

Key Returning Players:
Charles Matthews, Senior, Guard, 13.0 ppg
Zavier Simpson, Junior, Guard, 7.3 ppg
Jordan Poole, Sophomore, Guard, 6.0 ppg
Isaiah Livers, Sophomore, Forward, 3.4 ppg
Jon Teske, Junior, Center, 3.4 ppg
Eli Brooks, Sophomore, Guard, 1.8 ppg

Key New Players:
Ignas Brazdeikis, Freshman, Forward
Colin Castleton, Freshman, Forward
David DeJulius, Freshman, Guard
Brandon Johns Jr, Freshman, Forward
Adrien Nunez, Freshman, Guard
Jaron Faulds, Sophomore, Forward, Transfer from Columbia, not eligible

Projection:
Charles Matthews and Zavier Simpson are the only returning starters. Matthews is a versatile scorer who is at his best using his 6-6 frame to attack the basket. Simpson is the point guard of the team and dished out 3.7 assists per game. He can do some scoring too, but is also a superb defender. Sophomore Jordan Poole made some big shots in the NCAA Tournament and will now be asked to be more consistent. Jon Teske will have to step in for Wagner after learning behind him last season. The 7-1 junior is a fine defender, but will now be expected to boost his 3.4 points per game total. Isaiah Livers will provide an option, but Coach Beilein will need some of his freshmen to add depth in the frontcourt. Brandon Johns, Ignas Brazdeikis and Colin Castleton are all more than capable of earning quality minutes right away. This is a relatively young team and there will likely be some growing pains. But Coach Beilein has been down this road before and always remains competitive in the Big Ten.

Projected Postseason Tournament: NCAA

By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 73.6 (176th in nation, 8th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 63.3 (8, 1)
Field-Goal Percentage: 46.8 (64, 6)
Field-Goal Defense: 42.6 (91, 8)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 8.8 (75, 2)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 35.7 (137, 6)
Free-Throw Percentage: 66.1 (323, 12)
Rebound Margin: 0.3 (186, 10)
Assists Per Game: 14.3 (122, 6)
Turnovers Per Game: 9.3 (2, 1)

Madness 2019 NBA Draft Rankings:
#38 Charles Matthews

Madness 2018 Men?s Basketball Recruit Rankings:
#64 Brandon Johns
#82 Colin Castleton
#103 Ignas Brazdeikis
#119 David DeJulius
 
My biggest concern this year is our three point shooting. We need Poole to shoot close to 40% from three and Livers to do the same. They are the only two we return who shot over 35% from three last year. It would be great to see Matthews improve on his 32% from last year, but it's not his strength. We know we aren't getting three point shooting from Simpson, so we are going to be relying on freshman to step up or Eli Brooks taking the sophomore leap under JB. Iggy will be a scorer, but he's not a knockdown three point shooter.

Teske's jumper has been looking good in practice, but I don't know how many threes he'll actually take. I expect him to shoot more mid-range jumpers.
 
thewolverines24 said:
My biggest concern this year is our three point shooting. We need Poole to shoot close to 40% from three and Livers to do the same. They are the only two we return who shot over 35% from three last year. It would be great to see Matthews improve on his 32% from last year, but it's not his strength. We know we aren't getting three point shooting from Simpson, so we are going to be relying on freshman to step up or Eli Brooks taking the sophomore leap under JB. Iggy will be a scorer, but he's not a knockdown three point shooter.

Teske's jumper has been looking good in practice, but I don't know how many threes he'll actually take. I expect him to shoot more mid-range jumpers.
Click to expand...

I was thinking the same thing. Other then Poole who are the great shooters from three on this team ? One thing sounds like guys are really working their tails off. Excited to see this team play.
 
I think Livers needs to get his average close to 10+. Bang on defense gets some rebounds and play tough defense. Excited to see his development this year along with Teske, and Can Mathews and Simpson be leaders.
 
biggunsbob said:
I think Livers needs to get his average close to 10+. Bang on defense gets some rebounds and play tough defense. Excited to see his development this year along with Teske, and Can Mathews and Simpson be leaders.
Click to expand...

I'll be fine if Livers hits his corner threes, plays tough D, and ups his rebounds per game. I do not expect him to flirt with being a double digit scorer. It would be a pleasant surprise, but I don't see it happening.

The defense is going to be elite, so we'll be ok if he doesn't score a lot.
 
thewolverines24 said:
I'll be fine if Livers hits his corner threes, plays tough D, and ups his rebounds per game. I do not expect him to flirt with being a double digit scorer. It would be a pleasant surprise, but I don't see it happening.

The defense is going to be elite, so we'll be ok if he doesn't score a lot.
Click to expand...

Yeah he has a great body for defense in basketball. He should be able to lock guys down and get to th glass. Maybe some garbage buckets and such. I’m excited. He is another kid that loves to get after it.
 
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Johns is very interesting. I expected him to get little playing time this year but it appears he may be pushing Livers for playing time. That is a good thing for depth.
 
Last edited:
biggunsbob said:
Johns is very interesting. I expected him to get little playing time this year but it appears he may be pushing Livers for playing time. That is a good thing for depth.
Click to expand...

Johns is kind of in a log jam at the 4. Iggy is likely going to start at the 4 and Livers will sub in. Doesn't leave a lot of minutes for Johns. I think that's why JB is working him as a small ball 5 too.

Iggy can play the 2 as well, but he'll spend most of his time at the 4. I heard Livers is working at the 2 spot. We have a lot of guys who can play multiple positions in JB's offense.
 
According to UMHoops, Eli Brooks was the best player at the open practice last night. Consistently getting to the rim and draining multiple threes. Looks like he may be taking the sophomore leap under JB. No threat to replace Simpson as starter, but he likely will be our most reliable shooter coming off the bench.
 
Not sure what to make of the team just yet. Hard to envision us not taking a step back after making it all the way to the Finals. I do think losing Wagner hurts a lot, not only in his versatility, but with his leadership on the floor. He was always very emotionally invested in the team.

I still think we'll be solid and a top 5 team in conference. A lot will depend on how well the freshman grow and learn. JB's best teams usually have freshman contributors involved.
 
I suspect the team will struggle early on as they figure it out. I do wonder how development may be hurt with Beilein having a limited roll during practice. I have faith they will figure iy out as the season goes on.
 
wheels002 said:
I suspect the team will struggle early on as they figure it out. I do wonder how development may be hurt with Beilein having a limited roll during practice. I have faith they will figure iy out as the season goes on.
Click to expand...

I think we'll definitely have some offensive clunkers early on. It's going to be a different look this year since we don't have many good three point shooters. This is much more of a slashing team.
 
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