lance ware

Hello again. I haven't done a "hey I'm back" post because I'd rather use my energy on actual posts, and also because I'm still largely taking things day-by-day and week-by-week. That said, I'm taking back the recruiting posts for now, so please excuse me while I get back up to speed—I wasn't tracking this stuff much during my time off.

A clear theme has emerged: the blue-bloods can only take so many guys. That's the hope, at least, as Juwan Howard's focus has been on a lot of top-tier prospects with the likes of Duke, Kentucky, and UNC high on their lists. Michigan hosted multiple such players over the last couple weekends for official visits and should gain some clarity relatively soon; for the moment, however, there's not a lot moving.

The Best Bet?

Five-star California combo guard Nimari Burnett recently named Michigan to his final five, and last weekend he was in Ann Arbor for the first of his official visits. While he's known Howard for a long time, he wasn't as familiar with the rest of the staff, and this trip helped get him comfortable with them, per 247's Josh Gershon:

“What stood out was how transparent and real all of the coaches were,” Burnett said. “It’s a perfect coaching staff that complements each other and I had a good time picking their brains.”

Burnett is one of the top combo guards in the 2020 class, which is a role that he would continue to have if he were to choose the Wolverines.

“They said that I would play both the one and two and be able to play in their up-tempo style of play, playing 30-35 minutes a game,” Burnett said.

Michigan is a contender and they lost some competition when Burnett canceled his planned official visit to Louisville this weekend and said he's no longer considering the Cardinals. He still has OVs set over the next month or so to Oregon, Alabama, and Texas Tech. That's tough competition; it's not Kentucky.

[Hit THE JUMP for battles against blue-bloods.]

Sponsor note. Thinking about signing a contract? Starting a business? Making some tacos? Richard Hoeg can help you with most of that! Probably all of it, I mean, who can't make tacos. I make these fish tacos where I cook the heck out of some tilapia, like make it all brown and crispy, and then re-hydrate it a bit with some broth like they're potstickers. It sounds weird but it's good, because crispy tilapia bits are good. Why not eat a meal that's all crispy bits, that's what I say.

Right: Hoeg. If you've got a taco truck, Hoeg can help you with the various aspects of running a small business. I do not know if he can help you with taco recipes. But if you hire Hoeg to help you I'll chip in some taco takes, although to be honest if you need me to give you taco takes you may want to start a different sort of business.

Bush light. Er… Bush heavy. Josh Ross didn't get the snaps his play warranted last year, per both your author's grading and PFF:

Josh Ross is ready to step-it-up for Michigan this season. pic.twitter.com/MCWpxgmykQ

— PFF College (@PFF_College) July 16, 2019

Bush had an 85 grade; Ross probably won't get there but won't be far off.

Franz… hello. He's with the German U18s as they prep for the European Championship at the end of this month:

Michigan commit Franz Wagner balling with the German U18 national team against Serbia: 29 points (10-12 FG), 6 rebounds, 5 steals, 3 assists and an efficiency rating of 43 in 24 minutes. pic.twitter.com/2PFVVKHLU9

— NBADraftProspects (@draftprosnba) July 15, 2019

He's not going to blow by defenders but if he gets the whisper of a driving lane he's got the length to finish over people. Also that jumper gets off in a flash.

[After THE JUMP: acquiring Franz, Battle For Atlantis takes]

More of this, please. [Patrick Barron]

Before the possibility emerged of John Beilein leaving to coach the Detroit Pistons, everything was falling into place. In Luke Yaklich, Beilein had found the defensive coordinator he long needed to consistently compete not just for Big Ten championships, but national championships. After a most unlikely Final Four run, the Wolverines reloaded with one of the most talented incoming recruiting classes in program history. Charles Matthews announced his return and 2019 blue chip prospect Jalen Wilson committed in rapid succession. More five-star talent looked to be on the horizon.

And then, for the better part of a week, it was up in the air. Sure, Beilein could leave Ann Arbor today as the greatest coach in program history, but—like with so many of his rapidly developed players—his work at Michigan would feel unfinished, not for lack of accomplishment but the distinct possibility of even greater heights.

If fans of any program know that periods of great prosperity must be appreciated in their time, it's Michigan basketball fans. (At least those of a certain age.) In choosing between a great new challenge or conquering an old one, Beilein seemed to take the same perspective. Well, either that or he met Tom Gores. Regardless, he told the Freep's Nick Baumgardner that he chose to pull out of the search when he realized where he wanted to finish his career:

“It became very clear to me where I was meant to finish coaching,” Beilein told the Free Press on Thursday after a speaking engagement in Ann Arbor. “If you followed my career, it was ‘you’ve built this up, you’ve got it right and you leave the program in better shape than you found it.’ And then go and do it again somewhere else.

“I wasn’t offered the (Pistons) job. I was a finalist, but I wasn’t offered the job. And I decided rather than to go through it more, I knew where I needed to be.”

Beilein's contract extension, which The Athletic's Brendan Quinn reports is near completion, should pay him around $4 million per year (up from $3.37M) through the 2022-23 season, which would put him among college basketball's highest-paid coaches. One would expect the assistants will get nice raises, too. Warde Manuel appears to recognize what needs to be done to maintain an elite program.

[Hit THE JUMP for a quick Big Ten outlook, a recruiting update, and more.]