What's Wrong With Michigan Basketball?
College basketball fans and analysts would agree that Michigan basketball starting the season 6-4 would be categorized as a disappointment. After reaching the Elite Eight last year to cap off Juwan Howard’s second season as Michigan’s head coach, the Wolverines brought in what many considered the top recruiting class in the country. The 2021 class featured 6 top recruits, including 3 McDonald’s All-Americans, Caleb Houstan, Moussa Diabate, and Kobe Bufkin. With a top 10 preseason ranking, the stage was set for this year’s Michigan basketball team to make a run at the Final Four. Now 10 games into the season their performance has us all asking “What’s wrong with Michigan basketball?”
Turnovers
A staple of the John Belein coached Michigan teams of the 2010’s was always ball control and limiting turnovers. With coach Howard implementing a more pro-style offensive attack, his teams were always going to be more susceptible to turnovers. However, the level of careless ball handling and lazy passing that we’ve seen from the Wolverines this year is excessive. It’s easy to point to youth as the problem, but there also appears to be an issue with energy and focus.
Michigan is averaging an abysmal 13.5 turnovers per game, which ranks them 193rd overall in the country. You have to assume that the coaching staff is putting extra emphasis on ball control in practice. Hopefully the results will translate to the court as Michigan heads into a competitive conference schedule.
Missing Floor General
Michigan fans have been spoiled with dependable point guard play in recent years. When you think back to Derrick Walton Jr, Xavier Simpson, and Mike Smith, it’s hard to remember a time when the Wolverines didn’t have a confident floor general bringing the ball up the floor. It seemed as though that tradition would continue when Juwan Howard brought in senior transfer Devante Jones. Jones averaged 19.3 points per game in his 2020-21 campaign with Coastal Carolina, which was good enough to land him the Sun Belt conference Player of the Year Award.
Unfortunately, Jones has yet to bring that level of consistency and leadership to Michigan. I’ve repeatedly noticed him miss Hunter Dickinson in the post, or hesitate to make a necessary pass. He’s also struggled so much with his jump shot that opposing defenses are sagging off of him, daring him to take shots. This Michigan team needs more from their senior leader if they expect to make any kind of postseason run.
Houstan, We Have a Problem
The player I was most excited to watch coming into this season was undoubtedly Caleb Houstan. Houstan spearheaded the best recruiting class at Michigan since the Fab Five and his high school highlight reels showcased his size, shooting ability, and temperment. He appeared to have all of the tangible and intangible qualities that could easily translate to college and the pros. He chose to graduate early and forgo his senior year in high school to join the Michigan basketball team.
However, when Caleb Houstan first stepped onto the court in a Michigan uniform it quickly became apparent that he still has work to do. Undersized guards regularly blow passed him on their way to uncontested layups. He often gets caught watching jump shots and failing to block out while his man snags an offensive rebound. His dribble/drive game shows hesitancy and leads to more turnovers than points. Until recently, his 3-point shot(which is supposed to be his specialty) was off the mark. Now, I’m not saying that Caleb Houstan will not make a star college basketball player. However, it is clear that he needs to make massive strides on offense and defense before being able to contribute to a championship caliber team.
Chemistry
The hardest thing to predict when assembling a new and talented roster is chemistry. For Michigan, the chemistry just isn’t there yet. Juwan Howard is known for preaching communication, but there is clearly gaps in communication for Michigan’s team defense. Too many defensive possessions this year have displayed excellent one-on-one defense from on ball defenders, only to watch an opponent dribble baseline with the help-side defense nowhere to be found. To make matters worse, on offense the ball sticks. Nearly every possession there is hesitancy displayed by at least one player, and the open man is rarely hit on time. Chemistry can sometimes be elusive, but occasionally young, talented teams are able to find it before it’s too late.
Missed Shots
This one is pretty self explanatory. If you want to score more points than the other team, you have to make shots. Michigan’s 3-point shooting percentage is currently 33.67%(171st nationally), and that’s with Eli Brooks shooting lights out from beyond the arch. Their free-throw percentage is an embarrassing 66.85%(266th nationally). Their field goal percentage is not quite as bad at 47%(67th nationally), which supports getting Hunter Dickinson and Moussa Diabate the ball in the post as a possible solution to their shooting woes. Basketball is about buckets, and Michigan needs more of them.
But Wait... There's Hope
So what’s wrong with Michigan basketball? A lot. But there are reasons to be hopeful. Juwan Howard is a respected coach with experience as a player in college and in the pros. His coaching staff is probably the best group of assistants in the country. The Michigan roster is loaded with talent. The issues we’ve faced this year as a team and fanbase are all correctable, and we’ve seen what can happen when the energy is high and the shots are falling(see Nebraska game). If any team can turn it around, it’s Michigan. Time will tell what the narrative will be for this 2021-22 rendition of Michigan basketball, but I remain optimistic that rings and banners may still our future.
As always, Go Blue!
