Scranton, Pennsylvania was my destination over the weekend at the KYDA Invitational. The field was absolutely loaded, with several shoe-sponsored clubs taking the court featuring several Michigan offers/targets. 

In the second of three updates this week, we'll touch on the bigs today. Wings can be found here. 

 

Time to Recalibrate The Pecking Order?

Dereck Lively was absolutely dominant over the weekend for Team Final while playing against elite competition in NY Rens (Nike EYBL) and Team Thrill (Under Armour). The lengthy 7-footer was an absolute terror as a vertical lob-threat that finished with authority and protected the rim at a very high level. Those traits alone put him in elite territory, but the flashes I witnessed in other areas compelled me to bump him to 5-star status in my database. 

Let's start with his perimeter defense. Dereck's agility was definitely eye-popping stuff given his size. He gets low in his stance in a way that few college bigs can. More importantly, he slides his feet extremely well on an island. As you can see in the clip below, Lively was able to beat 5-star Jarace Walker to the spot and also did the same to 5-star Kyle Filipowski before forcing a steal. The possession starting at the :12 mark below sees Lively switch on to a guard, force him to tightrope the baseline and then make a lightning quick rotation to alter a shot at the rim after he forces the guard to give up the ball. If he's a viable switch-option in tandem with his rim protection, that is downright scary for the opposition. 

 

Dereck may be the most disruptive defender I've viewed in the 2022 class. The length and defensive instincts are off the charts. His helpside rotations are great, and because he's in good position he alters a ton of shots at the rim without fouling, even when he doesn't come up with blocks. Lively anticipates entry passes at a high level and comes up with deflections as well. His length covers such a large radius that passes in his area have to be nearly perfect to be successful. Even on the perimeter, he digs at ballhandlers and forces TOs with his rotations. The clip below lays all this out in detail. 

 

On the other end of the court, I was very impressed with his ability as a passer. Dereck makes entry passes with accuracy and touch. It bodes well for the two-big lineups that Juwan Howard utilizes. He also displayed good spatial awareness with kickouts when the opposition doubled him in the post. 

 

4-star Donovan Clingan (more on him below) has seemingly been at the top of the board for all bigs exclusive of Jalen Duren. However, the weekend performance has me convinced Lively should be on even ground, if not higher, in the Center pecking order. Whatever gap there is between the two in terms of preferred offensive aesthetics (distinct from production), the gap is just as wide on the defensive end. Dereck has potential to be a game-changing defender at the college level and reminds me of former UK standout Willie Cauley-Stein from a physical perspective. 

I spoke with Dereck over the weekend and he confirmed to me that Michigan is among the schools making him a priority. He's currently mulling over visits and I'd expect the Wolverines to receive one as things stand right now. 

[Hit THE JUMP for a new offer + updates on Duren, Clingan and Washington]

 

New Offer

A new name to the board, as Michigan offered 4-star big Tarris Reed (Chaminade HS/MO) last week. Reed is listed in the 6'8 - 6'10 range and somewhere around 225 pounds depending on your source. While I have yet to see him live, Tarris has the look of a skilled big with some ability to face-up and put the ball on the floor while stretching the floor with his shooting ability. Not really an explosive athlete with great agility, but gets off the floor relatively easy when finishing. 

This offer puts some pressure on Clingan/Lively and provides a fallback option should the staff strike out on the former two. We'll see where this recruitment goes in the coming weeks as visits are scheduled.

 

The Latest on Donovan Clingan

top8️⃣ pic.twitter.com/6azKu6943V

— Donovan Clingan (@clingan_donovan) April 26, 2021

Michigan made the Top 8 for top-50 big Donovan Clingan last week. He broke down his relationship with Michigan to 247 in the aftermath:

"I feel like Juwan Howard is a big man's coach. He's doing good things at Michigan right now and the things he's doing with Hunter Dickinson is nice to see he's becoming a really good player. I've been talking with the assistant coach for a while now but I just started talking with Juwan Howard when they offered me. We have been building that relationship and seeing how Hunter is used in the offense I can see myself having a similar role."

Accepted thought has this as a two-horse race between the Wolverines and hometown UConn for the skilled 7-footer out of Bristol. Per Rivals, the growing relationship and a Zoom call last week has shifted the momentum in favor of the good guys. 

I checked in on things and it still seems UConn is the team to beat here. The family has resisted temptations from more reputable, shoe-sponsored, AAU clubs in addition to powerhouse Prep Schools all over the country in favor of staying local. It appears that same logic is applicable with the recruitment as well, as the family dynamic is such that staying close to home may be a priority. The on-court fit with Michigan is undeniable though, and if anyone can be persuasive enough to get the Clingans to venture outside their comfort zone, Juwan Howard is surely the guy to do it. 

 

Pipedream

Number one overall prospect Jalen Duren is going somewhere other than Ann Arbor. I will continue to convey this sentiment so that your hopes are not crushed once this inevitably occurs. 

With those caveats out of the way, let's talk about Duren's performance over the weekend. He's a man among boys, it's really that simple. Jalen's physical superiority over everyone else on the court is such that the game almost looks boring to him at times. In addition to his inherent physical gifts, he's also a gifted passer that can handle the ball pretty well for a 6'10 prospect. Duren was not at 100% in Scranton, as I saw him being attended to by trainers prior to games and he sat out the second half of Team Final's second (and final) game of the weekend against Team Thrill. And yet, he did enough to produce the film above. Not much to analyze here, Jalen is the best prospect in America.

No need for a deep-dive on his recruitment, last week's update still holds. Miami hired his former HS/AAU coach and the Hurricanes are the favorite should he take the college route. The professional option is most definitely on the table as well.

 

Jalen Washington Interested In Visiting?

Top-30 big Jalen Washington is in the midst of the proverbial blow-up, with offers from Texas, Ohio State and North Carolina over the last week alone. 247 caught up with him over the weekend and he had this to say about potentially landing a Michigan offer:

"It would mean a lot,” Washington said. “They are a great program. I remember when I was a kid I used to watch the Fab Five documentary. I like Michigan a lot. I like a lot of schools, but Michigan is definitely one of the schools I really like a lot. Coach Juwan Howard is a really smart guy. He’s a great player and great coach as well. He killed it this last year. They are great. Yes, for sure I want to visit Michigan, too. I’ve been to Michigan before for a football game when they played against Penn State. It was live and it was a great game. I really liked my time there."

As of now, Washington is a Plan B prospect, as evidenced by Tarris Reed being offered first. The Wolverines are absolutely keeping tabs here, but need to see more in the way of agility/explosion and overall athleticism before stepping in with an offer.

 

Wouldn't Mind Pursuing Flip

While he's not currently being pursued by Michigan, the best overall performance in Scranton came from 2022 Kyle "Flip" Filipowski of the New York Rens (Nike EYBL). He displayed a tantalizing combination of size + skill at 6'10 with the ability to stretch the floor from distance, while being an excellent playmaker for others off the bounce. This is the definition of negligence by mainstreams. Ranking him in the 90-120 range is just plain bad. He has entered my database as a 5-star prospect and I wouldn't mind the staff pursuing should we strike out on Lively/Clingan.