Beilein will mold old, new
SAN ANTONIO – Moe Wagner, the versatile big man who spearheaded Michigan’s late-season run, is expected to leave for the NBA. But the 6-11 German encapsulated the program’s tradition-never-dies persona when describing what made him come back for 2017-18 to help lead the Wolverines during this storybook season.
“Every time you commit to a program like Michigan, I think you commit to an opportunity to come to a championship game. I think that’s just the culture here,” Wagner said. “It’s a winning culture. That sounds like a national championship game is guaranteed every year, but that’s not what I mean.
“The people in this program expect the best out of themselves every year, every day. I think that’s what this culture is all about.”
Much of that winning culture is fostered by coach John Beilein, who while in San Antonio has spoken about how he and his staff put a premium on developing talented, sometimes underrecruited players, more than trying to land one of the nation’s best recruiting classes. That means the freshmen coming in for 2018-19 (led by four-star standout Brandon Johns) figure to outplay their recruiting ranking.
It also means that players such as Jordan Poole, a freshman who became one of the stars of the tournament when he nailed a game-winning buzzer-beater to sink Houston in the second round, and fellow freshman Isaiah Livers, will be poised to blossom in en- hanced roles following developing rookie seasons.
Michigan guard Charles Matthews, like Wagner, has NBA talent and could leave early. The Kentucky transfer also highlights Beilein’s ability to help talent blossom. Zavier Simpson, a rising junior who had to earn his role running the point, is an example of a player who has an edge to keep on developing and take another step in 2018-19.
Should Wagner and Matthews leave for the NBA, there will be holes to fill with the graduations of Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman and Duncan Robinson. But Beilein brings enough back and welcomes in enough to keep the Wolverines in contention. It just might take some growing pains throughout the Big Ten season to have his team peaking — again — come March.