The Wolverine

August 2019

The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports

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AUGUST 2019 THE WOLVERINE 31   BASKETBALL RECRUITING pressed no doubt in his one-time teammate when Howard first ac- cepted the job, predicting he would start landing McDonald's All-Amer- icans. Guard Daniel Horton was the Wolverines' last back in 2002, though Beilein got more than his share of recruits that turned out to be better than many. Howard hasn't shied away from pursuing the potential one-and-do- nes, but those will still be hard to land. "I don't know if that's a matter of Jalen trying to pump some optimism into the hiring or not entirely know- ing the dynamics of recruiting," Ev- ans said. "Four, five years ago the NBA guys were test-runs, and now there are multiple of them. The pitch is getting to be the same with Penny Hardaway [at Memphis], Jerry Stack- house [at Vanderbilt] and Patrick Ewing [at Georgetown]. "There are multiple NBA guys now that can say, 'Come here, we'll make you a pro.' After a while it's the same pitch. So it remains to be seen." But there are several recruits al- ready on the radar who seem to be listening. THE CLASS OF 2020 Howard has identified a number of top 2020 prospects, and many of them aren't in a hurry to decide. That should give Michigan's first-year coach a chance to win them over. "I think a lot of the guys they're in- volved with are going to hold off on committing for a while, and I think that's good for Michigan," Evans said. "It will allow them to invest more time and play catch up, and I think they have gained some ground with some guys." There is an obvious one many be- lieve will join Jackson in the 2020 class, and he's Howard's son, Jace. He is a 6-7, 210-pound three-star out of Hollywood (Fla.) University School, and while he might not of- ficially have an offer, there will likely be a spot for him on the roster if he wants one. Beilein had just started recruiting him before he took the Cleveland Cavaliers job. "He's a good-sized wing," Evans said. "He's not a great shooter, but he's decent enough off the catch. He has a good basketball body that he has filled into, and he's a good ath- lete that should be able to guard ei- ther wing spot. … He's intrigued by Michigan and I think he goes there, but he also wants to be recruited." He's an elite student, too, Evans added. He hasn't had "the talk" with his dad about officially joining him, but he knows it's an option. "I think he did offer," Jace How- ard said with a laugh. "It wasn't like official, but he implied it and says something whenever other schools are coming for me." And there are several. St. Louis, Northern Illinois and Dayton have tendered, and he recently received an offer from Brown. He's hearing from Harvard, VCU, Georgetown, George Mason, Yale and others as well. "Right now, I still like to try to say I consider myself 100 percent open because I want to make the best deci- sion for myself," he said. "Basketball- wise, I want to make sure the deci- sion I make is best for me and my career. "I'm pretty into the process right now, picking up especially after the [July Nike] Peach Jam [in South Car- olina] and how I played." He scored 17 points and notched eight rebounds in his last game in South Carolina. Other 2020s on the U-M radar: Josh Christopher 6-4 • 200 • SG Lakewood (Calif.) Mayfair Rivals' No. 11 pros- pect nationally Missouri and Arizona State have been consid- ered frontrunners for Christopher. His older brother, Caleb, plays for the Sun Devils and another family member is the strength coach at Mis- souri. He just picked up a Kentucky offer, however, and some believe that's a game changer and could move the Wildcats to the top. "We saw him at the EYBL event in Indianapolis, and his college-ready body and athleticism stuck out even if he was on a big stage," Rivals.com national recruiting analyst Eric Bossi said. "He could seemingly get to the rim anytime he wanted to." Evans believes Christopher will stay out West. "I think ASU is where he goes," he said. "But I think Juwan Howard has definitely piqued some interest there with Christopher and his father." Nimari Burnett 6-4 • 180 • SG Napa (Calif.) Prolific Prep Rivals' No. 23 recruit in the country B u r n e t t i s g o o d friends with Jace How- ard and has gone to Ju- wan Howard's camps in Chicago. He said in the weeks following the hiring that Michigan had moved up even more on his list — Beilein's staff had of- fered previously. "I definitely want to see Louisville for an official [visit], UCLA hopefully, and maybe Arizona and Arizona State," he said in late June."Most likely, I would want to narrow some things down and hopefully make my decision around January or February, or maybe a little earlier than that." He released a final 12 July 22 that included U-M, along with Illinois, Auburn, Arkansas, Arizona, Wake Forest, Marquette, Alabama, Stan- ford, Louisville, Oregon and UCLA. Terrance Williams 6-6 • 210 • SF Washington (D.C.) Gonzaga Rivals' No. 91 pros- pect in the nation Williams received his offer in mid-July after an outstanding show- ing at the Nike Peach Jam in South Carolina. "Exactly what position Williams fits on the next level, there really isn't a defined role," Bossi said. "Just ex- pect that he's going to find a way on the floor, and he's going to find ways to be productive. "He scores inside when he needs to, starts making jumpers when his inside game gets figured out and he always seems to end up having put together a much better statistical line than you would expect." Georgetown and Notre Dame are out front, and some believe Williams will end his recruitment sooner than later. He said in mid-July, however, that he wanted to see more schools before pledging. "Michigan contacted me before Peach Jam," he said. "I plan to cut my list by the end of July and take visits to those schools."

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