[DTH]

Wolverines have a good chance to land Tim Hardaway Jr.

U-M is No. 1 for Tim Hardaway Jr. | detnews.com | The Detroit News.

Thursday, May 7, 2009

Sam Webb: Recruiting

U-M is No. 1 for Tim Hardaway Jr.

The days of watching former NBA great Tim Hardaway do the "UTEP two-step" on the basketball floor now live in our memories. But it might not be long before another player bearing that name again graces the television screen.

Miami (Fla.) Palmetto shooting guard Tim Hardaway Jr. is one of the up-and-coming players in the Sunshine State. A three-star prospect (and rising) according to Scout.com, Hardaway Jr. doesn't have dad's killer crossover, but he does have the type of all-around skill-set that is garnering interest from a number of major programs, including the University of Michigan.

"Coach Beilein came down here twice," said Palmetto head coach Chris Brown. "We've been in contact quite a bit. Coach B and (assistant) Coach Mahoney have done a great job recruiting him. They really like him. They think (Michigan) is a great fit for him because of their style of play and what they're looking for."

The 2010 class will play a pivotal role in the perpetuation of Michigan's resurgence. Replacing DeShawn Sims and possibly even Manny Harris are major priorities. The addition of the 6-foot-5, 180-pound Hardaway could be a major part of the plan.

"They are looking at him as a Manny Harris type," said Brown. "He's somebody who can come in right away and be a big guard who can rebound, run off some screens, and hit the three. I think the 1-3-1 (defense) fits him well too because he's so long."

Similar game

There's reciprocal interest on Hardaway Jr.'s behalf, as well. After observing the Wolverines upset Duke during his December unofficial visit to Ann Arbor, the talented youngster gained a better appreciation for what a future in the Maize and Blue would look like.

"(Michigan) fits my game," said Hardaway. "It's just like at our school. We have constant ball movement, we pass the ball, we run a lot of backdoor cuts and we come off screens."

Brown believes his talented pupil has a particularly strong chance to thrive in Beilein's offense. One of the requisite traits for every player in the veteran coach's system is the ability to shoot. Hardaway Jr. passes that test with flying colors.

"He can definitely flat out shoot it," said Brown. "He is a 6-5 guard with unlimited range. Plus he is very versatile. He plays the one, the two, and even plays the five at times for us. He likes to get up, defend, and get after it. I think what stands out most is that he can put the ball on the floor and he sees the floor well. He can do it all as far as the one through three at the next level."

Michigan isn't the only school that is coveting that outstanding versatility. Minnesota and Kansas State have both offered, while Florida, South Carolina, Kansas State, Northwestern and Florida State are showing strong interest. The list could grow even more in the coming months if Hardaway does as well on the AAU circuit as pundits are predicting. Regardless of how numerous his suitors are, they all face they the difficult task of meeting the very high comfort threshold that has been established by Michigan.

"I don't think (Beilein) holds anybody back," said Tim Hardaway Sr. "He just wants to excel. He lets all of his ball players play the game of basketball. If you got a (open) jump shot, he wants you to take it. If you don't take it, he is yelling at you. He wants the team to play with confidence. He makes them play the right way. They pass the extra pass. They all dribble good. He just needs some athletes in there.

"I think the world of Michigan, and did before Beilein even got there," he continued. "It is a great academic school. They do a lot of great things with their athletes. The basketball program is coming back to life and the football program is too."

Right direction

Hardaway Jr. clearly shares in his father's belief in Beilein and in the direction of the Michigan basketball program.

"He's a great coach and he's really interested in me," the younger Hardaway said of Beilein. "I trust him with everything -- with all my decisions. He is just a great coach. (Michigan) is definitely on top of my list. No question about it. I am going to start cutting down schools when school starts back next year and have my decision at the end of basketball (season) or maybe during."

Hardaway indicated that his timetable is still somewhat tentative. However, if the recruiting process is indeed prolonged, it won't have anything to do with his father's rumored interest in coaching him in college.

"I'm not going to put no pressure on my son," Hardaway Sr. said. "I don't want to be a coach to him. I just want to be a dad to him. I've seen how it can tear up a home. It almost tore up ours already because I want him to excel so much. I do want to get into coaching, but now I just want to be a dad to him. If he asks me some questions -- if he wants me to go out there and show him some moves, I will. I still show him moves, show him what he needs to work on, and take him through drills and stuff. But I'm just a dad to him."

A dad that strongly believes his son could experience a great deal of success in Ann Arbor.

[tin mad dog]

Timmay!

[The Oracle]

He's a plan B as of now. Not a bad plan B at that.

[tin mad dog]

Apparently, this guy verbally committed to Michigan last month (2 days after this blog) :

The Latest on Evan Smotrycz Published by Dylan on April 7, 2009 in Evan Smotrycz and Recruits .

Just a quick update on New Hampton forward Evan Smotrycz (6-foot-9, class of 2010), a guy we haven’t covered much but one who continues to rise up the Michigan radar.

NBE Basketball was at last weekend’s Playaz Spring Fling and got a chance to see Evan Smotrycz in action. Smotrycz continues to be described as skilled with a solid shot and handle but he seemed to have an up and down weekend.

This skilled forward had a solid game. Evan has good size to go along with fine inside and outside skills. On the perimeter, he buried a three-pointer and showed good ball handling ability. He was inconsistent with his jumper though on Saturday. Evan also had a nice post turnaround drive and left-handed finish. He grabbed a few rebounds and blocked a shot as well. He struggled to finish early on and also turned the ball over several times. Evan still had a good outing though overall.

NBE Basketball also got the latest on Evan’s recruitment, a return visit to Ann Arbor is scheduling for this April.

On the recruiting front, Smotrycz informed NBE that Michigan, Oregon State and Virginia were his three favorites. He recently received an offer from Michigan head coach John Beilein and would be visiting Ann Arbor later in April.

This is definitely one to watch over the next couple weeks.

Also, if you were wondering… Manny Harris has no plans to leave Michigan. The Free Press cleans up a story that they essentially created as well after spinning a relatively harmless radio quote from John Beilein.

“It’s an option, but not really that serious though,” Harris said Monday regarding the buzz about him exploring his NBA options. “If it’s something to look into, then I will, but I haven’t even thought about it much. I doubt I’m going.”

[tin mad dog]

Evan Smotrycz To Michigan
Published
by
Dylan
on April 9, 2009
in Evan Smotrycz and Recruits
.

New Hampton junior forward Evan Smotrycz gave Beilein his verbal commitment today.

The 6-foot-9 big man transferred from Reading, MA to New Hampton and reclassified to the class of 2010. His first year at New Hampton reportedly went quite well despite hitting a couple bumps in the road:

“I can’t say enough about Evan as a player and as a young man and college coaches are really high on him,” said New Hampton coach Pete Hutchins. “He was one of two players on the team this year who weren’t PG’s, but when he was healthy he was our second leading scorer.”

The multi-versatile 6-9 wing player averaged 14 points and 8 rebounds for a team that just missed out on making the playoffs with a 14-16 record, although Smotrcyz missed some time early in the season due to a bout of mono and an injured ankle.

“It was tough at the beginning of the year because I was actually playing through mono and didn’t know it,” Smotrcyz admitted. “Then after the mono I had an ankle injury so I guess there was some turmoil to start the year, but I got through it and found my groove a little. I got into a pretty good flow and was definitely happy with my first year.”

The first place most people like to look when evaluating a recruit is his school list. Evan has offers from Northwestern, Oregon State, and South Florida but is also garnering interest from a number of high majors:

Northwestern, Oregon State, Rice and South Florida have all offered while ones who are close and/or have expressed serious interest in the local talent are Notre Dame, Stanford, Michigan, Boston College and Florida.

evan-smotAt the NPSI this Winter, Smotrycz showed why coaches love him:

While Smotrycz finished with 18 points & 10 rebounds, how he got those numbers were even more impressive. He knocked down a one-dribble step-back three-pointer, went to the low block and showed a polished jump hook, got to the rim off the dribble a few times, and even rebounded in traffic.

He was also mentioned in a recent update from the New England Recruiting Report as someone whose stock is rising:

One of the most accurate sayings we have ever heard about prep school basketball is this, “there is a fine line between exposure and exposed”. So many players transfer to the NESCAC only to find their level of success reduced by the higher level of competition. It was just the opposite for Smotrycz who raised his game to a new level in his first season at New Hampton.

It is pretty clear that Smotrycz is not a back to the basket player, he appears to be much more of a “Beilein four” who can shoot it and put it on the floor. In a recent profile, his coach breaks down his game like this:

“College coaches see Evan as a small forward or even a power forward, but he’s not a back-to-the-basket type of player,” said Hutchins. “He can do so many things on the floor and at 6-9 he can be as good as he wants to be.
“I’ll be looking forward to next season where he’ll be the leader of our team.”

evan-sssLooking at the scouting sites we are left with a bit of a mixed bag in terms of reviews. ESPN loves his game, as you can see by this glowing report from Feburary 2009, and gives him an 86 rating. Rivals has not evaluated Smotrycz and Scout lists him as a 2-star prospect.

There is a lot to like here — just about everyone that has posted a first hand account of Smotrycz’ game seems to have come away impressed. Reading the various scouting reports it’s tough to come away saying anything but “that’s a Beilein guy”. As previously mentioned the NESPAC class A is a very tough league and Evan went up against quality competition night in and night out despite being 17 years old.

The immediate question is what does this mean for the rest of the class of 2010? There are obviously limited scholarships and Michigan had appeared to be in very good shape for New York big man Will Regan and a number of wing forwards.

Luckily Smotrycz’ and Regan’s games appear to be very different — Regan appears to be more of an inside guy while Smotrycz likes to play on the wing. Michigan clearly needs at least one wing in this class but they have two more scholarships available. Would Michigan take Regan and Smotrycz? I think that they are different enough players that offering both would make perfect sense.

I am excited to bring Smotrycz into the fold and it’s a great start to the class of 2010. He is an intriguing prospect that has “Beilein” written all over him and he has the potential to have a huge spring and summer on the AAU circuit.

[tin mad dog]

ESPN comments:

Evan Smotrycz - College Basketball Recruiting 2010 - ESPN

[tin mad dog]

Wolverines Add Akunne, Bartelstein to Incoming Class

May 22, 2009

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- University of Michigan men's basketball head coach John Beilein announced today (Friday, May 22) that Eso Akunne, a 6-3 guard from Ann Arbor, Mich., and Josh Bartelstein, a 6-3 guard from Highland Park, Ill., will join the 2009-10 Wolverines as preferred non-scholarship players.

"We are very pleased to have Eso and Josh join our program," said Beilein. "They are both quality players and fine young men that we believe will make a positive impact for us. They both had attractive scholarship offers; however, they chose to play at the University of Michigan and in the Big Ten Conference. Each has a strong competitive drive that will be instrumental to their development and will raise the level of talent and depth on our roster, just as C.J. Lee and David Merritt did for our program over the last few years."

Akunne, who finished fifth in the State of Michigan Hal Schram Mr. Basketball award voting, was a four-year starter at nearby Father Gabriel Richard High School. He closed his career with a 79-20 record and averaged 17.0 points, 10.9 rebounds and 5.9 assists. The all-time leading scorer with 1,705 career points, he was part of four straight Catholic League titles and helped Gabriel Richard reach the Class B regional final in 2009 and the Class C semifinals in 2008. In 2009, he was an All-State first team selection by the Associated Press, the Detroit News and the Detroit Free Press as well as the Ann Arbor News Area Player of the Year.

Bartelstein was a two-year starter at Highland Park High School before electing for a postgraduate year at Phillips Exeter Academy (N.H.). While at Highland Park, Bartelstein averaged 10.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists in two seasons, helping them to a 45-10 record. He helped Highland Park to the North Suburban title in 2008 and to two 4A Regional titles. He averaged 13.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 7.0 assists in his one season at Phillips Exeter. He finished the season with 52 three-point field goals to set the school record. He also set a Phillips Exeter record with 21 points in a half against New Hampton Prep.

With the additions of Akunne and Bartelstein, the Maize and Blue have will have six newcomers added to the roster after Blake McLimans, a 6-10 forward from Hamburg, N.Y., Jordan Morgan, a 6-8 forward from Detroit, Mich., Darius Morris, a 6-4 guard from Los Angeles, Calif., and Matt Vogrich, a 6-4 guard from Lake Forest, Ill., committed during the early November signing period.

•

[Dave Bing]

Christian Pace commits to UM. That makes 12 commitments for 2010.

Sporting News Today - June 3, 2009

[DTH]

Tim Hardaway Jr. commits to U-M

The Detroit News

Tim Hardaway Jr., a shooting guard from Miami (Fla.) Palmetto, has committed to the Michigan basketball team, TheWolverine.com reported Monday.

Hardaway Jr. attended Michigan coach John Beilein's Elite Camp last week. His father, Tim, was an NBA player.

"I know he's excited," Palmetto coach Chris Brown told the Web site.

[bozo the clown]

Is he good?

[DTH]

He's a 3 star out of 5.

Hardaway is a 3-star shooting guard on both Scout and Rivals. ESPN grades him as a 93, which is very good. By comparison, Michigan's other 2010 commit, power forward Evan Smotrycz, is graded as a 95. Obviously stars and rankings aren't that important when you consider how unheralded Stu Douglass and Zack Novak were coming out of high school, but it is still nice to see future Michigan players rated highly by a site like ESPN.

[joe servo]

Nobody in Wolverine-land is excited about getting this kid. Blah.

[MRSA]

I am. UM is finally on their way back to basketball respectability ... maybe.

[joe servo]

The people who've actually seen him play aren't excited. I haven't but I've followed his recruiting closely and I've read all the write-ups other have posted and he seem very ordinary.

[bozo the clown]

More good news. Wilt Chamberlain Jr. has committed to U of M !!!!

The best part is that now the Wolverines have thousands of players to choose from.

[Dave Bing]

So did Shawn Kemp, Jr. And Shawn Kemp, Jr. And Shawn Kemp, Jr.

[tin mad dog]

While it would be great to sign a top 10 guy, I have faith in Coach B that he can make TimBug Jr. a player to be excited about.

[Joe_Loco]

Smotrycz, Akunne and Bartelstein. Oh yeah, you guys are recruiting all the studs. One of them might even make Law Review.

[hack]

I give Hardaway Jr. the inside edge. His dad knows that reading is FUN-damental, so that's a head start right there.

[Dave Bing]

Did you ever see Tim Hardaway on NBA broadcasts? I didn't understand one out of every three words.

[hack]

Talking, perhaps, is not FUN-damental.

[joe servo]

Originally Posted by Joe_Loco

Smotrycz, Akunne and Bartelstein. Oh yeah, you guys are recruiting all the studs. One of them might even make Law Review.

Smotrycz is blowing up this summer and is possibly top 50. Akunne's a walk-on, Bartelstein isn't on the radar. I'm excited to see this Darius Morris kid coming in this year.

[The Oracle]

Originally Posted by Joe_Loco

Smotrycz, Akunne and Bartelstein. Oh yeah, you guys are recruiting all the studs. One of them might even make Law Review.

2 walk ons in that bunch. Sound analysis.

[RugbyPike#11]

Smotrcyz has apparently been shooting up the rankings lately. He's been really impressive according to some people. TMD almost took him in the summer draft.

[tin mad dog]

Nice one.

[tin mad dog]

Freshman Forward Morgan to Undergo Knee Surgery
June 29, 2009

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ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- University of Michigan men's basketball head coach John Beilein announced today (Monday, June 29) incoming freshman forward Jordan Morgan (Detroit, Mich./University of Detroit Jesuit HS) will have surgery on his left knee to repair articular cartilage and will be out four to five months during recovery and rehabilitation. The surgery, to be performed by Dr. Jon K. Sekiya, is scheduled for Wednesday, July 1, at the University of Michigan Medical Center.

"The timing of Jordan's injury is very unfortunate," said Beilein. "We are very confident; however, that with the great medical staff at the University of Michigan, Jordan will make a full and speedy recovery."

Morgan is one of six newcomers to the Wolverines' lineup in 2009-10. During his four-year career at University of Detroit Jesuit High School, he averaged 14.5 points, 10.1 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game. A three-year starter, Morgan was a 2009 Detroit Free Press Class A All-State third team selection and earned All-Catholic and all-league honors his last three years. He was the recipient of the 2009 Sam Madden Boys' Basketball Scholar-Athlete from the Catholic League and was a National Merit Outstanding Participant honoree.

Contact: Tom Wywrot (734) 763-4423

[RugbyPike#11]

It's too bad he won't be available to practice. He was likely to redshirt anyway but you always want big bodies on the scout team.

[tin mad dog]

ESPN's rankings have Timbug Jr. in the Top 100 (#93) and Smotrycz at #47. If we get McCallum(#20) or Ziegler(#38) to sign, that would give us another Top 50 player.

That's a pretty solid class, really our best in years.

[hack]

That's great to hear -- 3 top 100s would be awesome. In other news, we got seasons for basketball and football. Excited! Student prices is definitely cheap entertainment! Planning to go to lotsa basketball games in particular...

[Joe_Loco]

Speaking of GOOD college basketball teams, a Kentucky newspaper columnist recently included MSU's Tom Izzo in an article based on "It's a Wonderful Life." By his figuring, Izzo being born has cost the Wildcats three potential national championships because they keep running afoul of his teams in the tourney. Presumably the Louisville papers picked up the story too.

[tin mad dog]

Originally Posted by hack

That's great to hear -- 3 top 100s would be awesome. In other news, we got seasons for basketball and football. Excited! Student prices is definitely cheap entertainment! Planning to go to lotsa basketball games in particular...

I went to a couple of hoop games in 2006-07. I think they were the first games I'd seen live since the days of Bullock and Traylor. I was struck by how young everyone looked in person (I was in the 8th row for the Michigan vs. Georgetown game)....and in turn how old I then felt. It was also a pretty quiet atmosphere at that point. The game a went to later in the season was a little more lively, probably because we won.

You don't really notice that when going to a college football game because of the helmets.

[RugbyPike#11]

Try going to the Swamp and stand on bleacher seats for 3 1/2 hours. Then you'll feel old ha.

[tin mad dog]

Well, I went to the Michigan vs. tosu game in '07 and stood on bleacher seats with it being 40 degrees and raining for 3 1/2 hours and saw what I think was a modern day record for punts in a game.

I didn't feel old, just miserable.

[RugbyPike#11]

You win.

[El Axe]

I just noticed that if you replace "state" with "fake", you get tofu.

[tin mad dog]

If you replace "Ohio" and "State" with "Asshole" and "Cocksuckers" and then slide in the unseen "of" right before you put "Ohio" back in for "University", you get taco!

[El Axe]

LOL. I don't have that much hatred for The school, but The whole idea of making The an important part of The name for The school invites and deserves ridicule.

[tin mad dog]

With all the controversy over the last couple of days about Michigan's practices hours, here's a link to a Sparty website that seems to indicate they do the same thing:

Preseason Camp Reflections - Week 1 - MICHIGAN STATE OFFICIAL ATHLETIC SITE

A typical day consists of showing up for meetings as early as 7:30 a.m. and being dismissed after our final meeting at 9:30 p.m. In those 14 hours, we have meetings, practice, lunch, more meetings, film sessions, dinner and meetings.

[RugbyPike#11]

Probably neither MSU nor UM has done anything wrong.

See analysis here:
Jihad The Second: Stop Bringing Up Maxwell | mgoblog

MGoBlog has some other solid breakdowns of the actual NCAA provisions which seem to indicate that a 10 hour Sunday is not necessarily a violation. Rosenberg is a hack.

[Orwellian O.]

They could be screwed....they may be made out to be a show case...

[RugbyPike#11]

Unlikely. If there are any violations at all, they will be considered minor violations. Rosenberg either doesn't bother to explain the NCAA rules, that is, distinguishing in-practice hours which are subject to the 20 hour per week/4 hour per day limit and unaccountable voluntary hours like weight training, film study, team lunches, dinners, etc which aren't subject to the cited limit. Either he didn't understand the rule or he intentionally left out an explanation to make the story appear to be much bigger than it actually is. A real investigative journalist would have never written a piece like this. Rosenberg should get fired for such shoddy journalism, but his rag will be going bankrupt in a few months anyway.

[Joe_Loco]

Originally Posted by tin mad dog

With all the controversy over the last couple of days about Michigan's practices hours, here's a link to a Sparty website that seems to indicate they do the same thing:

Preseason Camp Reflections - Week 1 - MICHIGAN STATE OFFICIAL ATHLETIC SITE

Preseason Camp takes place before school starts, so there is no violation.

[Orwellian O.]

The real question, which this issue only sniffs at, is should these kids be focusing more on their education?

[hack]

You should have.

[Dave Bing]

Originally Posted by Orwellian O.

The real question, which this issue only sniffs at, is should these kids be focusing more on their education?

I never understood why anyone cares. So sanctimonious. No one cared if I studied in college.

[Dave Bing]

Rosenberg just hates Rodriguez for some reason.

[Joe_Loco]

There are plenty of good reasons to. Even by the standards of major college football coaches, the guy's a jerk. But one motive that has been suggested is the new regime's refusal to cooperate when Rosenberg was putting together his book on the UM-OSU rivalry. Carr's departure apparently complicated completion of the book.

[DTH]

Good article. Even the Ohio State players defend Michigan.

Ohio State Buckeyes defend Michigan Wolverines against charges - ESPN

[The King]

I have had negative vibes about Rich Rod since we got him. He just doesn't appear to be a "Michigan Man." He's a hick from West Virginia and I don't think will ever live up to Michigan fans ideals.

I think he can make us a better team on the field, but there are always going to be issues that come up with him and the always constant threat of him leaving and going elsewhere. He just seems like one of those modern coaches who is all about himself and puts his players second.

[Joe_Loco]

Regardless of whether Rodriguez turns this around or not, I think public perceptions of Michigan football will get a much-needed updating.

Success on the level fans want today doesn't leave room for moral superiority. You can win, and maybe you can be clean - but the idea that some invisible bond or ideal unites every Michigan player going back to Willie Heston is just bullshit.