Rumor: Olivier Nkamhoua eliminates UM
Apparently down to WVU/Baylor and NIL was the difference per antwright twitter space
Mr. Nkam, Nka, not gonna play at UM anyway…
Wouldn't say I have been missing it, Bob
If the program struggles enough, some rich donor(s) will get frustrated enough to address the NIL shortcomings. As long as the football program remains on an upswing people will be more forgiving of basketball's dip.
Would be nice to have them both humming at once though.
Does this mean the Basketball program's sky is falling again?
I got clipped on the shoulder by a chunk of sky just reading through the comments here.
remember when the blog was melting down because JH wasn't going to have a top 20 recruiting class (two years ago, or was it last year?).... those concerns seem to have quited down a little.
Your starting 3,4, and 5 averaged 14 pts a game last year combined. This isnt that.
Everyone knows Baylor offers players big bags…
again? no, still.
The NIL era of basketball is hard to accept, but it is the reality of the current environment. The programs (coaches, ADs, donors, etc.) that have embraced the new reality have been more successful. Miami bought its team, Kansas State made a deep run with a team full of transfers, and SDSU and FAU found undesired pieces and made them work.
We act like the Red Sox with a Royals budget. We need to moneyball our program. There is a pool of kids who are far less swayed by NIL (or have far less access to higher dollar amounts), more interested in the prestige of our degrees, and are more likely to stay all four years. Yes, these kids will take longer to develop and have a much lower ceiling, but could pay off big when they hit. If we can identify and recruit these kids, like Beilein did for many years, we could put competitive teams on the court.
Or we could realize that basketball is not what it once was and adapt like every other team in the Big Ten or country. Michigan shouldn't have to moneyball anything.
There are a very limited number of high-impact recruits each year. We have deep pockets, but other programs have deeper pockets - Duke and Kansas are going to outbid us for the top guys no matter how we point our money cannon. So, let's use our resources intelligently and optimize a roster based on our constraints and strengths. We should get two to five of the top 25-75 kids each recruiting cycle and supplement with occasional transfers. Swinging for the fences or trying to take kids that may not be accepted by admissions and then scrambling is proving to be a losing strategy. Maybe more money would solve that issue but I would prefer to take a more thoughtful and sustainable approach.
Boo! Cue the gnashing of teeth and tearing of cloth.
My only half-facetious theory that I've said before is that this early 2020 conversation happened:
MEPHISTOPHELES: Ok, so I have a sweeeeet-ass deal for you
MGoFAUST: Yeah, nice try. You're literally the devil. Hard pass.
MEPHISTOPHELES: Just hear me out. So, you will beat Ohio State two year in a row. And you'll beat them pretty decisively, to the point where everyone is memeing about how Ryan Day got stranded on third base, which doesn't make sense right now, but it will later on. In exchange for all that...
MGoFAUST: OK, sign me up!
MEPHISTOPHELES: But.... you didn't even hear the terms! Are you sure?
MGoFAUST: I said what I said.
You should have negotiated for 3 years.
To infinity and beyond....
Hard to not see a rough year heading Michigan's way next year.
Not going to blame Juwan for all of this, as he appears to be repeatedly hamstrung by admissions and what sounds like a very weak NIL offering. In today's college basketball world, kids want to get paid, and then if you also can't even reliably guarantee that a kid's credits are going to transfer in, why in the hell are they going to want to waste their time looking at Michigan?
Those are not Howard's fault.
But a good chunk of what plagues the program still falls at Howard's feet. The repeated implosions at the end of a ton of this year's swing games are definitely something he can be blamed for.
Waiting for BronxBlue's positive spin on this...
We're on fire! Help us, Jesus! Help us, Jewish God! Help me, Allah! AH! Help us, Tom Cruise! Tom Cruise, use your witchcraft on us to get the fire off us!
It's not a rumor.
But hey, football is going to be great!
@#$%ing-A, if PineNutPesto has called it, I'm completely satisfied.
- - -
Yes, it appears that we're not going to get the guy. Too much smoke.
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I'll repeat my Ant Wright question for Joe Tipton. Credible source? I see his name all over the WWW, so, probably?
Tipton is the guy who makes the "COMMITTED" graphics for guys, so he's one of the more reliable sources on stuff like this.
With all due respect to Beilein, I believe he would have been ran out of Ann arbor. With this new era, he wouldn't have time to develop players and if he didn't, aouldnr have the funds to keep them. would probably never have a top 100 recruit due to his style of recruiting
That is the exact reason JB left. He don't like the way it was changing people leaving early or transferring. jB liked to teach nad have kids for 3 years but in the new era of CBBall it is not the new reality. That's why JB is the Director of player development with the Pistons.
This thread smells of many an excuse.
Tough to close a basketball deal when we're nationally known to be a lacrosse school.
It turns out the Michigan money cannon isn’t for the players
More admin positions for buddies!
More raises for said admins!!
Never been happier for our $100mil tv contract! That and getting Peacocked this fall is going to be amazing!
Bear with me, but is there a chance that the last 2-3 years with transfers and NIL are not going to be what CBB looks like in the near future as the instability settles? Some programs were poised to excel in this chaos, and some were not, but in the end it may level out and historically good programs will rise back up to their usual levels?
Part of me wonders if Juwan and UM weren't prepared and suited for this environment, but could be fine in the near future once the markets normalize and UM gets better at NIL. I know this sounds crazy, but maybe we don't fire a guy right away when a lot of the mishaps have been because of UM and/or the current CBB landscape. Because if we fire Juwan, who do you get that doesn't have the same issues with recruiting and transfers?
If you want him fired because of in-game coaching or the in-game altercations, I guess I'd want to know who you think UM can get that's going to be better.
Or, could we give Juwan another two years and see if he and the university can get better at operating in the new CBB world and as that world starts to settle down.
I dont want him fired I want him to have an actual U of M basketball roster not this garbage.
I want him fired for repeatedly having Twill inbound the ball, only to have it stolen.
Nkamhoua was a luxury when you have TWill. We’ll be fine.
And Yoyo dont forget Yoyo. Never before has a 1-2 punch provided 11 points per game in such a dominating fashion. At 36% from the floor no less!
We are reaching Leland Anderson/ Dominic Ingerson level of duo.
Dave Brandon level post.
Are we going to have 10 players next season? I saw the guard from Miami chose Baylor over us as well.
There literally could be points during next season where there are 8 dudes dressed.
Good luck with that
I like JH, did some great things here early on, but I believe this will be his last year as coach...not that he will get fired, he will leave for NBA. Like many mention above, his hands are tied in many ways, so that will pull him away just like JB. But after all JBs legacy guys left/graduated, been a quick dive downhill, and these 1 and done players we have been going after have cratered this program.
I hope Im sooo wrong, and Ill eat a big crow pie, but its going to be super ugly next year and that will be that.
If that happens, go get a coach who will go after those 3 start guys, sprinkle in a 4 star here and there, and build a team for the long haul...get one of those Sr. laden teams that know each other in and out and can weather a storm. Thats the program we need to be with the zero NIL game we have.
I am starting to think that Howard will bolt once Jace is done at UM, and it'll be in no small part because of however UM handles things like NIL and transfer credits. People forget with the recent football success but the issues with NIL and transfers existed there too and while I do think they're probably a bit overstated it's clear that UM is lagging with some financial packages for certain recruits.
The problem with focusing 3* guys who'll "stick around" is that clearly they won't. If they develop they'll either go to the NBA or transfer to a place where they'll be paid more money. Maybe a couple stay but it's the same guessing game UM plays now with the added risk of lower-rated guys just not being any good.
I get really dizzy trying to follow your shifting excuses while you pretend to be some voice of reason.
Juwan Howard is a MESS..looks like this turned out to be a bad hire
Don’t know how you can look at this upcoming team and then Neg this statement.
We will officially be in Ellerbe territory next year. This year had the Tommy Amaker feeling, next year it will be the Ellerbe feeling.
Truth. At least we have men's dart throwing.
Meanwhile MSU has nearly everyone eligible return but yeah it's all NIL man.
Remember when JH was gonna relate to the inner city kids with his friendship with LeBron and being a south side Chicago guy?
Martelli has come out and said they won't engage with a player on NIL talks. If that's your philosophy going in to recruiting, then are you really surprised on how it's all playing out right now?
My thoughts: Howard is a great Xs and Os coach, but has no ability to manage a roster right now. Martelli is a dinosaur and needs to go - I am not sure what his value is in today's college game. Someone needs to be hired as a "General Manager" - and to scour the transfer portal for talent. For gods sake, fix the basketball team NIL. I know we're not a "basketball" school, but you're looking at paying real money for - what? - 5 or 6 players a year versus 50 for the football program.
Jalen Rose, Dwayne Wade, all your NBA contacts Juwan - get on the horn and make it happen.
My thoughts: Howard is a great Xs and Os coach
I'd be fascinated to hear how you reconcile this with the garbage end-of-game plays we saw over and over again
You stole my post.
Never seen a team go 0 for 17 on last 3 minutes like last year's nonsense. But yeah X and Os.
We were one of the youngest teams in the country playing with a freshmen point guard and your surprised that the end of the games were often a cluster?
Because we can't get any players? Because NBA guys say the best offense being run outside of the NBA is by Juwan?
"NBA guys say the best offense being run outside of the NBA is by Juwan"
...but X&O's includes defense.
And defense is mostly about athleticism and this team had less than an early Beilein team.