1. On the commitment issue--maybe it's because I have some knowledge here, but to me, this doesn't seem all that difficult. It is clear that someone has actually committed verbally to Michigan. CB does not say that good news "is" coming, or that the news "is not if but when" to refer to a mere possibility or even likelihood; in those instances, he says that Michigan is "in good shape" or it's "50-50." It's also clear that the aforementioned someone has asked that his name not be formally revealed until he makes his announcement. It is equally clear that the source(s) who told CB of the commitment thought that the player's announcement would be this weekend, and CB reported this. Finally, for anyone who has ever parented a teenage son, or ever been a teenage boy and has even a shred of self-awareness, it is painfully clear that teenage boys do not always do things at the precise time they first tell you they will. Of course, things can always change in recruiting--the folks down the road in East Lansing found that out this week--but until further notice, it seems that nothing whatsoever has changed other than that a kid we thought was going to make his official announcement this weekend has instead publicly stated that his official announcement will be Wednesday.
2. I don't follow kids on social media--it seems weird to me--but from comments made in the forum section of another site, it seems that there was a back and forth last night regarding Charles Matthews and Michigan fans regarding what his decision "should be." This, combined with the discussion on here about Girard and Carton lead me to reiterate what many have said, namely, that kids and/or parents read comments on social media and/or message boards, and those comments, when they are negative, usually do not advance the cause of the team/program for which the fans making them root. To be clear, I am NOT stating that a moratorium should be placed on anything other than sunshine and balloons--folks are entitled to express their opinions within constitutionally or judicially proscribed limits, and (reasonable) opinions and disagreements are often what make boards interesting. However, please be aware that when you do, it's not always going to be the case that the opinion is gong to be well received by the kid or family about whom you are speaking. Further, giving advice without knowing circumstances and/or where self-interested (we all want to see kids play at Michigan as long as they can for our own enjoyment) is not something you might like to hear from others about yourself or your kids.
3. IF Matthews leaves (and to be clear, I have absolutely no idea of whether he will or will not), it will impact next year in a number of respects. We will be worse defensively. We will be thinner, depth and experience wise, and much more susceptible to injury, both from a depth standpoint and from a versatility standpoint, given that Charles is a Swiss army knife guy capable of plugging holes at multiple positions. We may actually be better offensively from a spread the floor standpoint--playing X, Charles and Teske together has its problems from a spacing and perimeter shooting perspective--but likely (depending on the readiness of the freshman and jumps made by the sophs) have less get to the rim ability. In short, Charles is a fine, fine player, and IF he leaves, we'll miss him. All that said, there is no one--repeat no one--better than John Beilein at overcoming unexpected departures, as long as serious injury adversity doesn't hit. Epke Udoh--we went from 10-22 to 21-14 and the round of 32. Manny Harris--we went from 15-17 to (again) 21-14 and the round of 32. Tim Hardaway, Jr. (many here and elsewhere were wishing him luck in Europe or in the (then) D League when he declared, 70+ million dollars ago)--we won the BT regular season by 3 games and made the Elite Eight missing Tim and Trey Burke to boot. D.J. Wilson (again a decision many labelled as "ill-advised")--we went from the Sweet Sixteen to the Championship game. Only 2014-15, in the wake of the losses of Stauskas, GR III and McGary did we face a huge downturn, and to be fair, after an admittedly slow start, we had two future NBA players (LeVert and Walton) go down early in the BT season, Walton's from an injury he suffered even before our early season struggles and tried to play through. In none of those years did we have a recruiting class coming in like this one. Thus, assuming good health, I believe we'll be good/very good next year under both circumstances (staying or leaving).
2. I don't follow kids on social media--it seems weird to me--but from comments made in the forum section of another site, it seems that there was a back and forth last night regarding Charles Matthews and Michigan fans regarding what his decision "should be." This, combined with the discussion on here about Girard and Carton lead me to reiterate what many have said, namely, that kids and/or parents read comments on social media and/or message boards, and those comments, when they are negative, usually do not advance the cause of the team/program for which the fans making them root. To be clear, I am NOT stating that a moratorium should be placed on anything other than sunshine and balloons--folks are entitled to express their opinions within constitutionally or judicially proscribed limits, and (reasonable) opinions and disagreements are often what make boards interesting. However, please be aware that when you do, it's not always going to be the case that the opinion is gong to be well received by the kid or family about whom you are speaking. Further, giving advice without knowing circumstances and/or where self-interested (we all want to see kids play at Michigan as long as they can for our own enjoyment) is not something you might like to hear from others about yourself or your kids.
3. IF Matthews leaves (and to be clear, I have absolutely no idea of whether he will or will not), it will impact next year in a number of respects. We will be worse defensively. We will be thinner, depth and experience wise, and much more susceptible to injury, both from a depth standpoint and from a versatility standpoint, given that Charles is a Swiss army knife guy capable of plugging holes at multiple positions. We may actually be better offensively from a spread the floor standpoint--playing X, Charles and Teske together has its problems from a spacing and perimeter shooting perspective--but likely (depending on the readiness of the freshman and jumps made by the sophs) have less get to the rim ability. In short, Charles is a fine, fine player, and IF he leaves, we'll miss him. All that said, there is no one--repeat no one--better than John Beilein at overcoming unexpected departures, as long as serious injury adversity doesn't hit. Epke Udoh--we went from 10-22 to 21-14 and the round of 32. Manny Harris--we went from 15-17 to (again) 21-14 and the round of 32. Tim Hardaway, Jr. (many here and elsewhere were wishing him luck in Europe or in the (then) D League when he declared, 70+ million dollars ago)--we won the BT regular season by 3 games and made the Elite Eight missing Tim and Trey Burke to boot. D.J. Wilson (again a decision many labelled as "ill-advised")--we went from the Sweet Sixteen to the Championship game. Only 2014-15, in the wake of the losses of Stauskas, GR III and McGary did we face a huge downturn, and to be fair, after an admittedly slow start, we had two future NBA players (LeVert and Walton) go down early in the BT season, Walton's from an injury he suffered even before our early season struggles and tried to play through. In none of those years did we have a recruiting class coming in like this one. Thus, assuming good health, I believe we'll be good/very good next year under both circumstances (staying or leaving).
