MICHIGAN MEN'S BASKETBALL- '23 -'24 Season.

[THE_WIZARD_]

FAB FIVE PART DEAUX!!

[lineygoblue]

Nah, I wouldn't go that far.

But I think they're going to be consistently in the Top 15 in the country. Hopefully toward the top end of that.

[Cody_Russell]

Nice and not surprising pickup with Jett Howard!

M has the 2nd best Vegas odds to win the national championship next season (2021-2022).
I think it’ll be a very competitive and volatile year though because of the extra year of eligibility for players. It’s affected college football already with unexpected teams rising up to the top 25. Super seniors + transfer portal is a noteworthy thing.
Hopefully M has some injury luck this time as this team is loaded!

[Hannibal]

I don't think that we have enough experience for that type of run this year, but we'll see. We had tons of experience and great team chemistry last year and we overachieved with above average all around talent. This year and in the near future, we'll see what Howard does with more high level talent in more spots, but less experience.

[Cody_Russell]

It’s like M is somewhat comparable to Duke or Kentucky of recent years. All of the highly rated freshmen that will make up the core of the roster. Duke and Kentucky have won titles + made deep tourney runs in the last decade. More often than not, upset by a lower seeded team.
Luckily, M won’t be relying entirely on freshmen. I feel like that’s how Duke and Kentucky have struggled… relying too much on freshmen players.
Hunter Dickinson should be a beast next season as he ascends in year 2. Eli Brooks is back as the heart of last season’s team. Brandon Johns, Zeb Jackson, and Terrance Williams have an opportunity to come into next season as better players too.
The wildcard is Devante Jones. Some people disagree with me, but I actually like Jones more than Mike Smith coming into M through the transfer portal. Mike Smith exceeded expectations. I just like Jones’ star potential and playmaking more than Smith. At least if you compare Jones at Coastal Carolina vs Mike Smith at Columbia.
We’ll see how good a Sun Belt Conference player of the year truly is…

[Mike]

The official polls aren't out yet but CBS and ESPN have their own takes up for viewing.

Michigan is #5 according to CBS: https://www.cbssports.com/college-ba...021-22-season/

5. Michigan: Juwan Howard should have another Final Four contender ... if his young players' basketball IQs can click with the ones who already understand Howard's style and system. The best of the newcomers is Canadian freshman Caleb Houstan, who will probably be the best freshman in the Big Ten. Moussa Diabate is another five-star face new to the roster, but it's not just freshmen who are adjusting as we speak. Expectations are extremely high for DeVante' Jones -- by way of Coastal Carolina -- as he'll be a starting guard after averaging 19 last season in the Sun Belt. Because Franz Wagner, Isaiah Livers, Mike Smith and Chaundee Brown have moved on, it leaves Eli Brooks and Hunter Dickinson to carry the biggest loads. Dickinson will battle with other Big Ten bigs for player of the year. If it's possible, I still think he might be a tad undervalued; I mostly enjoy him because, as he showed at Big Ten media day, he's not shying away from going after Illinois fans. Let's keep the rivalry hot.

ESPN has them #8: https://www.espn.com/mens-college-ba...nkings-2021-22

What does Juwan Howard do for an encore after leading a Wolverines team ranked No. 25 in the preseason to a 1-seed, a Big Ten regular-season title and one possession from the Final Four? There are now high expectations in Ann Arbor, but Howard has the talent to keep Michigan near the top of the rankings. The key will be the newcomers. Coastal Carolina transfer DeVante' Jones might have to adapt some of his offensive game to get others involved, but he's a high-level playmaker and two-way player who will have the keys to the offense from day one. Five-star freshmen Caleb Houstan and Moussa Diabate will see extended roles immediately, with Houstan a potential one-and-done top-10 pick. The top returnee is All-American big man Hunter Dickinson, but veteran guard Eli Brooks and forward Brandon Johns Jr., who started the final five games of the season, are also back in the fold. How quickly will this group adjust defensively? They were ranked in the top five nationally at that end of the floor last season.

Projected starting lineup:
DeVante' Jones (19.3 PPG at Coastal Carolina)
Eli Brooks (9.5 PPG)
Caleb Houstan (No. 8 in ESPN 100)
Brandon Johns Jr. (4.9 PPG)
Hunter Dickinson (14.1 PPG, 7.4 RPG)

Of note, CBS has Purdue #2 and ESPN has them #6. I didn't realize Trevion Williams came back. That sucks.

Lunardi projects both Michigan and Purdue as 2 seeds with Purdue being the AQ from the Big Ten.

[Cody_Russell]

Good stuff.
Yeah, this college basketball season will be like heaven to me with Purdue and M at the top… assuming injury luck.
It’s hard to believe, but Trevion Williams has only played three seasons at Purdue. Might have made some national/ BIG noise as a true freshman… that’s why it seems like he has been there forever.
Nothing like Brad Davison still being at Wisconsin. There’s a super senior!

Jaden Ivey will be the stud at Purdue. No doubt.

[lineygoblue]

Hunter Dickinson is going to be one of the most hated players in the league. He's very outspoken, but he can back up his talk with great play. Illinois already hates him, and I'm sure the 'izzones" will be at their disgusting best. As usual. That's the classy bunch that made fun of Howard when he was a player, him being a father already. It'd be appropriate if his kids come along and help beat MSU. Izzo is liable to crap a brick on the sideline.

[Mike]

Haha. From that link in the CBS write-up:

“The players aren’t that bad, I’m cool with Kofi (Cockburn),” Dickinson said. “I don’t really know (Andre) Curbelo too much, but he seems pretty cool. But it’s really the fans. They just act like they’re some powerhouse in the Big Ten and they’re really not. They’re one of the best teams in the Big Ten now, but I don’t know too much history about Illinois basketball. I don’t know if they were really that good before. Coach (Brad) Underwood has done a great job of getting them up to the powerhouses in NCAA basketball. But I think their fans are kind of annoying. Obviously some fans, like Michigan State, you’re going to get some hate from them. Ohio State, it’s not so bad. Illinois fans are pretty annoying, not going to lie.”

Circle January 14 on your calendar.

[Mike]

You thought the basketball thread was the best place to post this?

That said: Fire him. Hasn't won shit. Not going to.

[Jeff Buchanan]

Fixed, moved to the Proper thread.

[Jeff Buchanan]

Updated thread title for the coming season.

[Hannibal]

Basketball action from what is now a basketball school

[lineygoblue]

Michigan can shoot the 3. Dang ...

[Cody_Russell]

Are we really going to see Mr. TikTok Adrien Nunez be part of the rotation… or is it like Ibi Watson having a rotation moment. That’s the question….

Hard to takeaway much from a Division II opponent in Wayne State…. I’ll note the new Wayne State arena looks nice and the Pistons G League team will play there.

Diabate does look legit though.