The first installment of the Michigan basketball player profiles is a fitting one, and technically one that could be in the NBA next season. We are going to take a look at Charles Matthews and address his career up to now, his style of play, future projections, and of course, how he would fit in the team next year if he does not return. Let's jump right in.
An Introduction:
Charles had high hopes surrounding him entering this season. Matthews decided to transfer from Kentucky where he went as a top 100 recruit in hopes of the sort of NBA stardom that kids sign with Kentucky for. Unfortunately, Matthews was not able to shine on the 2015-16 Kentucky Wildcats and decided to make the decisive decision to sit out the next season and transfer to Michigan.
The redshirt year and change of scenery did Matthews well. Matthews was one of two players on the Michigan team last season (along with Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman) to play in and start all 41 games of Michigan's national championship runners-up season. If he indeed returns, he will be the leading returning scorer having averaged 13 points per game and leading rebounder with 5.5 boards per game. Matthews would live up to his nickname of 'The Wolf' and get to hunt for all the shots he desires next season in Ann Arbor.
Last Season:
Matthews' season could be dissected into the Big Ten season and the non-conference season. Matthews' biggest games all took place outside of conference play. He dropped 31 in against Alabama A&M, scored 28 against LSU in Maui, had a points/assists double-double against UC-Riverside, and in the NCAA Tournament carried Michigan through some tough stretches, especially the Montana game. It cannot be understated how crucial he was at the most crucial time of the season. Matthews was able to turn it on in the tournament and help Michigan find massive success.
Within Big Ten play, however, Matthews found some struggles. He had just one game of more than 15 points against a Big Ten team, and that was against Iowa in the Big Ten Tournament. He shot 41.6% in conference compared to 49.5% overall. He only averaged 9.6 points per game against conference foes and his three-point percentage was down from 31.8% to 29.3% and he did not average a make over the games. There are many logical explanations for this: the Big Ten season is a grind and often tough on transfers in their first year (i.e., Duncan Robinson's full-season three-point percentage at 45% vs. just 35.2% in the Big Ten during his first season at Michigan). This is something that should not be concerning to Michigan fans.
Strong Points:
Matthews is, first and foremost, an outstanding athlete that is bordering on elite level. He is able to get to the basket well and over the course of the year began finishing with more consistency. His signature move, a running free-throw-line jumper was seemingly automatic as well and is an example of a 'low-percentage' shot turning into a high-percentage one in some cases. Matthews performance in the NCAA Tournament proves that he can shine in the big moments which is a massive plus for him, especially at the next level. Additionally, because of his length and strength, he is a plus-plus defender and a massive reason that the Wolverines defense was so good.
Points of Improvement:
The further development of a three-point shot seems necessary for Charles to excel at the professional level, and would be nice to see at the collegiate level. As mentioned, he shot only around 30% and while not his game, as the likely number one option on the Michigan offense next season, this would be key for he and the team. Free throws were also a concern, the peak being a 2/10 night against UCLA. He steadily improved over the course of the year on a historically poor John Beilein free-throw shooting team, his 55.8% stood out as a percentage that had to be better. Finally, ball-handling will have to be better and turnovers (especially in traffic) must be cut down. This is an area I think will be most improved and I look forward to seeing the improvement.
Final Outlook:
This was written with an eye on Matthews coming back, but the fact is that if someone decides to take a chance on Matthews in the second round and that is clear, he very well could head to the NBA. That said, I do believe he will be back and the extra season in Ann Arbor will help him develop into a projected first-round draft pick in the 2019 NBA Draft.
If you look at the stats, and if you experienced the past two seasons of Michigan basketball, Matthews is a pretty close comparison to Zak Irvin of two seasons ago. While not carbon-copies, the similarities are certainly there (better mid-range shooters than from three, strong defenders, occasionally prone to turnovers) but there is a key difference to me. Irvin's senior year I think was the peak of his development, Matthews is not 'raw' but not yet a polished finished product. A Matthews-led Michigan team next season will be one to watch out for, and his development will be exciting to watch through the 2018-19 season.
All stats were taken from Sports Reference.
An Introduction:
Charles had high hopes surrounding him entering this season. Matthews decided to transfer from Kentucky where he went as a top 100 recruit in hopes of the sort of NBA stardom that kids sign with Kentucky for. Unfortunately, Matthews was not able to shine on the 2015-16 Kentucky Wildcats and decided to make the decisive decision to sit out the next season and transfer to Michigan.
The redshirt year and change of scenery did Matthews well. Matthews was one of two players on the Michigan team last season (along with Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman) to play in and start all 41 games of Michigan's national championship runners-up season. If he indeed returns, he will be the leading returning scorer having averaged 13 points per game and leading rebounder with 5.5 boards per game. Matthews would live up to his nickname of 'The Wolf' and get to hunt for all the shots he desires next season in Ann Arbor.
Last Season:
Matthews' season could be dissected into the Big Ten season and the non-conference season. Matthews' biggest games all took place outside of conference play. He dropped 31 in against Alabama A&M, scored 28 against LSU in Maui, had a points/assists double-double against UC-Riverside, and in the NCAA Tournament carried Michigan through some tough stretches, especially the Montana game. It cannot be understated how crucial he was at the most crucial time of the season. Matthews was able to turn it on in the tournament and help Michigan find massive success.
Within Big Ten play, however, Matthews found some struggles. He had just one game of more than 15 points against a Big Ten team, and that was against Iowa in the Big Ten Tournament. He shot 41.6% in conference compared to 49.5% overall. He only averaged 9.6 points per game against conference foes and his three-point percentage was down from 31.8% to 29.3% and he did not average a make over the games. There are many logical explanations for this: the Big Ten season is a grind and often tough on transfers in their first year (i.e., Duncan Robinson's full-season three-point percentage at 45% vs. just 35.2% in the Big Ten during his first season at Michigan). This is something that should not be concerning to Michigan fans.
Strong Points:
Matthews is, first and foremost, an outstanding athlete that is bordering on elite level. He is able to get to the basket well and over the course of the year began finishing with more consistency. His signature move, a running free-throw-line jumper was seemingly automatic as well and is an example of a 'low-percentage' shot turning into a high-percentage one in some cases. Matthews performance in the NCAA Tournament proves that he can shine in the big moments which is a massive plus for him, especially at the next level. Additionally, because of his length and strength, he is a plus-plus defender and a massive reason that the Wolverines defense was so good.
Points of Improvement:
The further development of a three-point shot seems necessary for Charles to excel at the professional level, and would be nice to see at the collegiate level. As mentioned, he shot only around 30% and while not his game, as the likely number one option on the Michigan offense next season, this would be key for he and the team. Free throws were also a concern, the peak being a 2/10 night against UCLA. He steadily improved over the course of the year on a historically poor John Beilein free-throw shooting team, his 55.8% stood out as a percentage that had to be better. Finally, ball-handling will have to be better and turnovers (especially in traffic) must be cut down. This is an area I think will be most improved and I look forward to seeing the improvement.
Final Outlook:
This was written with an eye on Matthews coming back, but the fact is that if someone decides to take a chance on Matthews in the second round and that is clear, he very well could head to the NBA. That said, I do believe he will be back and the extra season in Ann Arbor will help him develop into a projected first-round draft pick in the 2019 NBA Draft.
If you look at the stats, and if you experienced the past two seasons of Michigan basketball, Matthews is a pretty close comparison to Zak Irvin of two seasons ago. While not carbon-copies, the similarities are certainly there (better mid-range shooters than from three, strong defenders, occasionally prone to turnovers) but there is a key difference to me. Irvin's senior year I think was the peak of his development, Matthews is not 'raw' but not yet a polished finished product. A Matthews-led Michigan team next season will be one to watch out for, and his development will be exciting to watch through the 2018-19 season.
All stats were taken from Sports Reference.
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