The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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10 THE WOLVERINE FEBRUARY 2021 INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS U-M ALUM DYLAN LARKIN NAMED DETROIT RED WINGS CAPTAIN Former Michigan hockey standout and current Detroit Red Wings forward Dylan Larkin was named the team's captain ahead of the 2020-21 season. He is the 37th captain in the organization's history, which dates back to 1926, just the fourth in the past 35 seasons and the first player to earn the distinction since former Red Wing Henrik Zetterberg in 2017-18. "Dylan is an extremely competitive and driven player who sets the standard for dedication and conduct for the Red Wings," Detroit general manager Steve Yzerman said in a state- ment. "This is the right time to name our new captain, and we're certain Dylan is ready to take on the responsibility. He will be an outstanding leader for us, both on and off the ice." The 24-year-old served as an alternate captain the prior two seasons. "Dylan is a great person and he's got great attributes that winners always have," Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill said in a press conference. "He's highly competitive every day. He works extraordinarily hard. He's got that inner drive it takes to be elite at any level." The native of Waterford, Mich., was a one-year standout at Michigan in 2014-15, before heading off to the NHL. He was selected No. 15 overall by Detroit. In his 35 games for the Wolverines, Larkin notched 47 points (15 goals and 32 assists),151 shots on goal and three game-winning goals en route to second-team All-America honors. FORMER WOLVERINE DUNCAN ROBINSON BECOMES THE FASTEST PLAYER IN NBA HISTORY TO HIT 300 THREES Former Michigan basketball standout and current Miami Heat forward Duncan Robinson continues to defy all odds in his young career. Now in his third season in the NBA, Robin- son became the fastest player in league history to make 300 three-point shots, with the sharpshooter hitting the thresh- old in just 95 career games. He reached the milestone in a Jan. 6 loss to the Boston Celtics in which he scored 16 points and made five of his 11 attempts from beyond the arc. Robinson didn't just break the record, he shattered it. Dal- las Mavericks guard Luka Dončić and Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard were the previous record-holders, having each hit 300 triples in 117 career games. Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (123 games) and Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell (132) check in next on the list. Robinson played at Division III Williams College before transferring to U-M under former head coach John Beilein. He was unselected in the 2018 NBA Draft, and worked his way from a two-way contract with the Heat and the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA G League all the way to being a starter in last year's NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lak- ers. In the 2019-20 campaign, Robinson nailed 270 shots from three-point range, the most in a single season in fran- chise history. MICHIGAN STUDENT-ATHLETES USING PLATFORM, NEW GROUP TO FIGHT RACISM Michigan graduate student and track and field standout Briana Nelson took action over the summer and created Wolverines Against Racism (WAR), which is a group of stu- dent-athletes with a mission to "raise awareness surround- ing racial injustices with the intention of engaging in mean- ingful action in our communities. We desire to experience safe, genuine engagement through education, research and discussion while attending the University of Michigan." Athletes from around campus, including men's basketball senior forward Isaiah Livers, are on the executive board, and have organized "unity calls" over Zoom, full of discussions on how they can use their platforms to combat racism and create change. "We start with the basics: conversation, communica- tion and support," Nelson explained in an interview with MGoBlue.com. "Those first unity calls, that's exactly what we need more of — those conversations breaking that barrier within athletics. Different teams have different dynamics and demographics. "At the end of the day," she continued, "it's realizing we're people first. First, I'm a human. A lot of this is just about hu- man rights and decency, and that's more important than anything else — going back to fundamentals and being able to talk about that." With the program having just begun this past semester, Nelson and those involved are looking to expand to the greater student-athlete community, hoping to get hundreds of members of sports teams together for discussions on how they can make an impact on not just the campus com- munity, but the country and the world. "As student-athletes we have several identities: an athlete, a student, being part of other things on campus," Nelson said. "Take [what you learn] there, take it back to your family, your community at home. Education is a domino effect. The more I know, the more I can affect the person next to me." — Clayton Sayfie Robinson needed just 95 NBA games to reach 300 career triples, shattering the previous league record of 117. PHOTO BY ISSAC BALDIZON/COURTESY NBA PHOTOS MAIZE AND BLUE NOTEBOOK