The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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20 THE WOLVERINE JUNE / JULY 2022 to go? Were you really under that much pressure by your boosters to not sign off on him to take summer classes there to be able to graduate even after he an- nounced he's not coming back? "You should be ashamed of yourself for using your power over a kid to pre- vent him from going where he wanted to just because you wanted him to stay at your school. Recruits and their families know that if you go to Texas Tech and don't like it you might not be able to go where you want." Dickinson also observed — follow- ing his 33-point explosion against MSU — that Izzo had nothing to say to him afterward. The Spartans' coach praised him effusively following Michigan State's win in East Lansing earlier in the season, Dickinson noted. "He's just an interesting, engaging dude," Boesch said. "It's one thing if you're a really good player. It's another thing if you're someone that embraces this. He enjoys this. He wants to be a part of the campus life. He wants to be out in the open. "He's very good in interview settings, just talking to somebody, out walking on campus somewhere. This is something he embraces. NIL probably really started him thinking about coming back for a third season, and then everything else, including a chance to graduate. "There's that competitive side of him, I think he really wants to play in a Final Four. A lot of people do, but it's realis- tic here. Michigan has been right on the doorstep, especially two years ago." ROSTER MOVES CONTINUE TO SWIRL FOR WOLVERINES While Dickinson's return remains the headline for Juwan Howard's crew, there's plenty of roster talk abounding in the approach toward summer. Ob- viously, the Wolverines feature a four- man incoming freshman class, ranked No. 18 in the nation according to the On3 Consensus. Center Tarris Reed Jr. and forward Jett Howard — a 6-9, 230-pounder and a 6-7, 220-pounder, respectively — head- line the class. Point guard Dug McDaniel (5-11, 167) and 6-7, 215-pound forward Gregg Glenn round out the class. They're detailed extensively else- where in this issue. There's also guard Jaelin Llewellyn (6-2, 185), a graduate transfer from Princeton, who is expected to boost Michigan's perimeter shooting and perhaps take over the point guard duties. Rising sophomore forwards Moussa Diabate and Caleb Houstan have sub- mitted their names for the NBA Draft, while retaining the ability to return to Michigan. Diabate earned an NBA Draft Combine invitation, meaning he's headed for Chicago May 18. Diabate averaged 9.0 points and 6.0 rebounds for the Wolverines last sea- son, including a career-high 28-point performance in Michigan's 84-79 win at Iowa Feb. 17. Houstan averaged 10.1 points and 4.0 rebounds per game, scoring a career-high 21 points twice — against Rutgers and Illinois. Neither Diabate nor Houstan were showing up high on NBA Draft boards as of mid-May. Still, some were thinking at least one of them could take a chance on making the jump to the NBA. Boesch likes the look of Michigan's basketball roster, even with the uncer- tainty regarding Diabate and Houstan. "Oh, I definitely think so … when you look at the guys you are pretty sure of being on this roster next year, and the guys who are coming in, I'd be hard pressed to find a roster you'd feel bet- ter about, at this stage," Boesch said. "That's even so with Moussa and Caleb testing the waters. Let's split the differ- ence. Say one of them stays and one of them goes. That's a pretty formidable roster. There's some real talent there. "And I do think that getting Hunter back adds that leadership and experi- ence that Michigan will be lacking with- out an Eli Brooks coming back. There's a lot of potential to fill that from within." Brooks and transfer starter DeVante' Jones are both gone from the 2021-22 squad, which advanced to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament last spring. Rising sophomore guard Frankie Collins was expected by many to step up and become Michigan's starting point guard next season. When injuries sidelined Jones during the NCAA Tournament, Collins stepped up with 14 points in Michigan's March 17 victory over Colorado State. That game represented Collins' first career start, and he added six rebounds and a pair of assists to his heartening effort. But shortly after the announcement about Llewellyn transferring in from Princeton, Collins let it be known his Michigan career was over. Within days, he'd transferred to Arizona State. Tom Crawford, who has followed Michigan basketball since the 1960s and appears on the "Press Pass" sports show on the local FOX affiliate, expressed a strong negative take on Collins' depar- ture. "It's, 'What can you do for me, right now?'" Crawford offered. "'Now, I'm 2022-23 U-M BASKETBALL SCHOLARSHIP ROSTER (Unofficial, as of May 13) Returning Players Cl., Ht., Wt. Pts. / Reb. Per Game C Hunter Dickinson Jr., 7-1, 260 18.6 / 8.6 G Jace Howard Jr., 6-7, 225 1.1 / 0.5 F Terrance Williams II Jr., 6-7, 230 4.7 / 2.4 G/F Isaiah Barnes So., 6-7, 185 0.0 / 0.5 G Kobe Bufkin So., 6-4, 175 3.0 / 1.1 F Will Tschetter R-Fr., 6-8, 230 — Newcomers G Jaelin Llewellyn Gr., 6-2, 185 15.7 / 4.1 (at Princeton) F Jett Howard Fr., 6-7, 220 — F Gregg Glenn III Fr., 6-7, 215 — G Dug McDaniel Fr., 5-11, 167 — C Tarris Reed Jr. Fr., 6-9, 230 — Declared For NBA Draft* F Moussa Diabate So., 6-11, 210 9.0 / 6.0 F Caleb Houstan So., 6-8, 205 10.1 / 4.0 * Underclassmen who declare for the NBA Draft have until June 1 at 11:59 p.m. ET to withdraw their names and retain their eligibility.