The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1310365
38 THE WOLVERINE DECEMBER 2020 This year, he continued, is about ad- vancing every aspect of his game. He's become a leader, one of many to have stepped up after point guard Zavier Simpson graduated. He's not worried about hurting feelings, something he and his teammates learned from Simp- son — if something needs to improve, he's going to say it — and he took the time during the COVID-19 shutdown to watch film and work on his body to lead by example. "I feel good where I am," he noted. "I feel good with where I am in quar- antine from a physical standpoint and in terms of getting better as a player. I'm just ready to take the next step and help the team even more than last year." Franz fully expected the compari- sons to his brother and had no prob- lem with following him to U-M. The younger Wagner found out early he could compete at this level, and once he did, he continued to take off. He's only getting better. Though he didn't make the Big Ten's preseason top-10 watch list of the conference's best players — no Wolverines did, in fact — many believe he has as much potential as anyone in the league. He's ready to prove it on the court. "I just want to make the next step as a player," Wagner said. "I think part of that is being more vocal and stepping into a leader role. I think I had a good freshman season, and I want to build on that." TURNING HEADS The construction began in the offseason, when Wagner worked diligently in the gym to reshape his body. He's no longer the skinny freshman he once was, now looking thick and chiseled while continuing to grow. He hasn't lost any of his ball han- dling skills, despite approaching 6-10 — in fact, teammates and coaches say, they're only getting better — and he's doing things on the court even his brother might envy. He's still working to become the shooter his brother (39.4 percent from Wagner tallied double-digit points in each of his final seven appearances last year, notching averages of 15.6 point and 6.4 rebounds during that time period. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL Wagner "I just want to make the next step as a player. I think part of that is being more vocal and stepping into a leader role. I think I had a good freshman season, and I want to build on that."