As we head into the official start of the Juwan Howard era (with an official press conference coming Thursday) news is beginning to come out from Michigan. While not much is known for certain, we are beginning to get some bits of information coming out that can be confirmed (or are close to being confirmed).
Seventh Woods Considering Michigan:
The first piece of possible 'recruiting' news has dropped for Michigan: sit one, play one transfer Seventh Woods from North Carolina is considering Michigan in his final three per a report from The State. Joining Michigan in the final three is South Carolina and Gonzaga. A report by Mike Gillespie, Sports Director for ABC Columbia, also notes that Woods has already made his decision and is likely to announce his decision next week. Woods has not visited Gonzaga and, to my knowledge, has not visited Michigan as well. Woods is from Columbia, home to South Carolina, so it would make sense that he returns home, especially given the lack of information surrounding the recruitment. Michigan is familiar with Woods as a whole as North Carolina has played Michigan each of the last two seasons. In the two games against Michigan combined, Woods has played twenty minutes, scored eight points, dished six assists, and shot three-for-five from the field.
Overall, however, Woods' career at UNC has not been as stellar as his high school mixtape. One of the most prolific high school basketball players not just of his class, but of the internet era as a whole, Woods never lived up to the unrealistic expectations some fans may have had for him. Woods played in all forty games of UNC's national title-winning season as a freshman, with 7.7 minutes per game, but going just 28.3% from the field and a mere two-for-eleven from three. Woods, however, has been banged up since then, missing seventeen games as a sophomore and several more as a junior. He has improved to being a 42% shooter with fourteen more attempts as a junior, but still is just four-for-ten from three. Still a good passing point guard, he is also prone to mistakes and turnovers. He had a three-game stretch last season -- starting against UNC-Wilmington, vs. Gonzaga, and a neutral-site against Kentucky -- where he averaged 9.3 points per game, including fourteen points in the win against Gonzaga. He also has a game with eight assists and seven assists under his belt. To me, the interest is a bit curious considering it's seemingly out of nowhere, but I would expect him to stay home and join South Carolina.
Luke Yaklich to Texas, Saddi Washington to Stay:
The key piece of news that dropped on Tuesday was Jon Rothstein's report that Shaka Smart was set to hire Luke Yaklich over to Texas. The mastermind behind Michigan's brilliant defense was an interviewee for the head coaching job, but while Howard was reportedly set for an interview Yaklich was getting interviewed by Smart to fill his assistant coaching vacancy as well. The effects on the defense will be unknown for now, with Howard's expertise being defense the likelihood that the two have differing defensive philosophies would figure to be high. That said, the effect on recruited is sure to be stronger. With connections to Jalen Wilson in 2019 and Nimari Burnett in 2020, among plenty more both past and future recruiting targets, it remains to be seen what Howard's intentions on the recruiting trail will be.
Going to Texas for Yaklich seems to be another move in the direction of looking to secure a head coaching job, perhaps as soon as the end of next season. Smart, himself, is likely on the hot seat at Texas and despite having some buzz around the Michigan vacancy, he was never connected in a strong manner to the actual job. Texas won the NIT last season and Smart continues to recruit talented big men (Jarrett Allen, Mo Bamba, and Jaxson Hayes have all been one-and-dones in the last three years) and is a strong defensive mind -- a reputation gained largely from his days running the Havoc defense at VCU which is no longer in place at Texas. The move by Yaklich is interesting as he fits into Smart's defensive philosophies I believe and is a plus recruiter to supplement the already solid recruiter that is Smart. The pairing are a good duo, and now the pressure is on Juwan Howard to name at least two assistant coaches.
At the same time, Brendan Quinn confirmed on Twitter that Michigan was retaining Saddi Washington. Washington is the most senior assistant and was the head coach on the trip to Spain that John Beilein sat out to heal from heart surgery. He is a strong recruiter, especially in Michigan, and has coached Michigan's big men well as of late. The retention of Washington keeps some level of cohesion between the Beilein-era of Michigan basketball and the new era that Howard looks to bring in. With Howard's specialty in coaching up bigs as well, there could certainly be some sort of crossover in philosophy that the two share in big man development. Additionally, given the track record of the two, recruiting of power forwards and centers may be more effective than before. Of course, how bigs are intended to be used in the Howard offense is yet to be seen.
In terms of other staffing, there is the possibility being reported of an assistant to the head coach, something more administrative than an actual assistant, like Jerry Stackhouse will have in place at Vanderbilt. A name mentioned has been Jay Smith, listed in an MLive article about possible staffing hires. Smith was an assistant coach for Howard with the Fab Five and has coached Central Michigan, led by Chris Kaman, to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, and is the current head coach at Kalamazoo. Smith has been battling prostate cancer, though, and with what is obviously such a tough illness to battle, Smith may be (rightfully) unsure about taking on a more stressful role.
Schedule News:
Some schedule news has dropped for Michigan. Jon Rothstein tweeted out the Gavitt Games line-up and Michigan is set to host Creighton in what will be Michigan's third of four games they are obligated to partake in over eight years. This game joins a home game against Oregon (the opening of a home-and-home series over the next two years) as the two games Michigan is certain of knowing in the non-conference schedule. Big Ten opponents have also previously been confirmed with Michigan hosting Indiana, Penn State, and Wisconsin once while visiting Maryland, Minnesota, and Northwestern. The rest of their foes will be played both home and away. Finally, they are in the eight-team Battle 4 Atlantis in a stacked field including North Carolina, Oregon, Gonzaga, Seton Hall, Iowa State, Alabama, and Southern Mississippi.
Looking briefly at the two teams we know of for sure ahead of next season. Oregon lose five of their top six PORPAGATU! earners in uber-talented Bol Bol (to the NBA), Paul White (to graduation), and, slightly more surprisingly, Louis King, another talented freshman (to the NBA). They are also set to lose Kenny Wooten to the NBA Draft and Victor Bailey to a transfer, and technically, as of writing, Payton Pritchard has not committed to returning for his senior season at Oregon. They bring in Chris Duarte, NJCAA Player of the Year, and return rising sophomore Will Richardson. BartTorvik has them projected fourth in the Pac-12. Creighton are the opposite sort of team. Ranked 16th in the preseason projection matrix, making them Big East favorites, Creighton are set to return all six players with at least sixteen games started. The Bluejays earned a pair of All-Big East honorable mentions in rising junior Ty-Shon Alexander and rising senior Martin Krampelj, along with an All-Freshman player in Marcus Zegarowski. However, Krampelj will be remaining in the NBA Draft, meaning Michigan have one less offensive threat to worry about. Regardless, they present a tough task looming for Michigan.
RJ Hampton's Decision -- Jalen Wilson Effects?:
RJ Hampton spurned Kansas, Texas Tech, and Memphis to join the New Zealand Breakers in the National Basketball League in New Zealand. This had been possibly in the works for up to a month now and there were murmurs of this being a possibility, however for it to still happen is a bit shocking. Hampton is the best friend of Michigan de-commit Jalen Wilson, and Wilson and Hampton were thought to be possible Kansas leans together after his de-commitment. That was always speculation, but Wilson does have upcoming visits to Kansas and North Carolina coming up. This could possible make UNC a favorite in the race. Especially with Yaklich off to Texas, this could certainly leave Michigan still on the outside, as opposed to a Hampton commitment to Kansas that would almost surely have locked Michigan out. Wilson is still considering returning to his prior commitment at Michigan, but with visits lined up to a pair of top-tier schools he is certainly going to consider his options wisely before committing to a university.
Follow me on Twitter @RMAB_Ryan for plenty more Michigan basketball coverage, as well as AFC Ann Arbor and Liverpool FC coverage as well!
Seventh Woods Considering Michigan:
The first piece of possible 'recruiting' news has dropped for Michigan: sit one, play one transfer Seventh Woods from North Carolina is considering Michigan in his final three per a report from The State. Joining Michigan in the final three is South Carolina and Gonzaga. A report by Mike Gillespie, Sports Director for ABC Columbia, also notes that Woods has already made his decision and is likely to announce his decision next week. Woods has not visited Gonzaga and, to my knowledge, has not visited Michigan as well. Woods is from Columbia, home to South Carolina, so it would make sense that he returns home, especially given the lack of information surrounding the recruitment. Michigan is familiar with Woods as a whole as North Carolina has played Michigan each of the last two seasons. In the two games against Michigan combined, Woods has played twenty minutes, scored eight points, dished six assists, and shot three-for-five from the field.
Overall, however, Woods' career at UNC has not been as stellar as his high school mixtape. One of the most prolific high school basketball players not just of his class, but of the internet era as a whole, Woods never lived up to the unrealistic expectations some fans may have had for him. Woods played in all forty games of UNC's national title-winning season as a freshman, with 7.7 minutes per game, but going just 28.3% from the field and a mere two-for-eleven from three. Woods, however, has been banged up since then, missing seventeen games as a sophomore and several more as a junior. He has improved to being a 42% shooter with fourteen more attempts as a junior, but still is just four-for-ten from three. Still a good passing point guard, he is also prone to mistakes and turnovers. He had a three-game stretch last season -- starting against UNC-Wilmington, vs. Gonzaga, and a neutral-site against Kentucky -- where he averaged 9.3 points per game, including fourteen points in the win against Gonzaga. He also has a game with eight assists and seven assists under his belt. To me, the interest is a bit curious considering it's seemingly out of nowhere, but I would expect him to stay home and join South Carolina.
Luke Yaklich to Texas, Saddi Washington to Stay:
The key piece of news that dropped on Tuesday was Jon Rothstein's report that Shaka Smart was set to hire Luke Yaklich over to Texas. The mastermind behind Michigan's brilliant defense was an interviewee for the head coaching job, but while Howard was reportedly set for an interview Yaklich was getting interviewed by Smart to fill his assistant coaching vacancy as well. The effects on the defense will be unknown for now, with Howard's expertise being defense the likelihood that the two have differing defensive philosophies would figure to be high. That said, the effect on recruited is sure to be stronger. With connections to Jalen Wilson in 2019 and Nimari Burnett in 2020, among plenty more both past and future recruiting targets, it remains to be seen what Howard's intentions on the recruiting trail will be.
Going to Texas for Yaklich seems to be another move in the direction of looking to secure a head coaching job, perhaps as soon as the end of next season. Smart, himself, is likely on the hot seat at Texas and despite having some buzz around the Michigan vacancy, he was never connected in a strong manner to the actual job. Texas won the NIT last season and Smart continues to recruit talented big men (Jarrett Allen, Mo Bamba, and Jaxson Hayes have all been one-and-dones in the last three years) and is a strong defensive mind -- a reputation gained largely from his days running the Havoc defense at VCU which is no longer in place at Texas. The move by Yaklich is interesting as he fits into Smart's defensive philosophies I believe and is a plus recruiter to supplement the already solid recruiter that is Smart. The pairing are a good duo, and now the pressure is on Juwan Howard to name at least two assistant coaches.
At the same time, Brendan Quinn confirmed on Twitter that Michigan was retaining Saddi Washington. Washington is the most senior assistant and was the head coach on the trip to Spain that John Beilein sat out to heal from heart surgery. He is a strong recruiter, especially in Michigan, and has coached Michigan's big men well as of late. The retention of Washington keeps some level of cohesion between the Beilein-era of Michigan basketball and the new era that Howard looks to bring in. With Howard's specialty in coaching up bigs as well, there could certainly be some sort of crossover in philosophy that the two share in big man development. Additionally, given the track record of the two, recruiting of power forwards and centers may be more effective than before. Of course, how bigs are intended to be used in the Howard offense is yet to be seen.
In terms of other staffing, there is the possibility being reported of an assistant to the head coach, something more administrative than an actual assistant, like Jerry Stackhouse will have in place at Vanderbilt. A name mentioned has been Jay Smith, listed in an MLive article about possible staffing hires. Smith was an assistant coach for Howard with the Fab Five and has coached Central Michigan, led by Chris Kaman, to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, and is the current head coach at Kalamazoo. Smith has been battling prostate cancer, though, and with what is obviously such a tough illness to battle, Smith may be (rightfully) unsure about taking on a more stressful role.
Schedule News:
Some schedule news has dropped for Michigan. Jon Rothstein tweeted out the Gavitt Games line-up and Michigan is set to host Creighton in what will be Michigan's third of four games they are obligated to partake in over eight years. This game joins a home game against Oregon (the opening of a home-and-home series over the next two years) as the two games Michigan is certain of knowing in the non-conference schedule. Big Ten opponents have also previously been confirmed with Michigan hosting Indiana, Penn State, and Wisconsin once while visiting Maryland, Minnesota, and Northwestern. The rest of their foes will be played both home and away. Finally, they are in the eight-team Battle 4 Atlantis in a stacked field including North Carolina, Oregon, Gonzaga, Seton Hall, Iowa State, Alabama, and Southern Mississippi.
Looking briefly at the two teams we know of for sure ahead of next season. Oregon lose five of their top six PORPAGATU! earners in uber-talented Bol Bol (to the NBA), Paul White (to graduation), and, slightly more surprisingly, Louis King, another talented freshman (to the NBA). They are also set to lose Kenny Wooten to the NBA Draft and Victor Bailey to a transfer, and technically, as of writing, Payton Pritchard has not committed to returning for his senior season at Oregon. They bring in Chris Duarte, NJCAA Player of the Year, and return rising sophomore Will Richardson. BartTorvik has them projected fourth in the Pac-12. Creighton are the opposite sort of team. Ranked 16th in the preseason projection matrix, making them Big East favorites, Creighton are set to return all six players with at least sixteen games started. The Bluejays earned a pair of All-Big East honorable mentions in rising junior Ty-Shon Alexander and rising senior Martin Krampelj, along with an All-Freshman player in Marcus Zegarowski. However, Krampelj will be remaining in the NBA Draft, meaning Michigan have one less offensive threat to worry about. Regardless, they present a tough task looming for Michigan.
RJ Hampton's Decision -- Jalen Wilson Effects?:
RJ Hampton spurned Kansas, Texas Tech, and Memphis to join the New Zealand Breakers in the National Basketball League in New Zealand. This had been possibly in the works for up to a month now and there were murmurs of this being a possibility, however for it to still happen is a bit shocking. Hampton is the best friend of Michigan de-commit Jalen Wilson, and Wilson and Hampton were thought to be possible Kansas leans together after his de-commitment. That was always speculation, but Wilson does have upcoming visits to Kansas and North Carolina coming up. This could possible make UNC a favorite in the race. Especially with Yaklich off to Texas, this could certainly leave Michigan still on the outside, as opposed to a Hampton commitment to Kansas that would almost surely have locked Michigan out. Wilson is still considering returning to his prior commitment at Michigan, but with visits lined up to a pair of top-tier schools he is certainly going to consider his options wisely before committing to a university.
Follow me on Twitter @RMAB_Ryan for plenty more Michigan basketball coverage, as well as AFC Ann Arbor and Liverpool FC coverage as well!
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