Michigan's six-man recruiting class is the nation's best, and there's really no close second at this point after Moussa Diabate's pledge. The four-star (five-star by some services) big man out of Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy, Rivals.com's No. 29 senior nationally, is an unbelievable talent and continues to improve.
"Long and intriguing, he does need to get more consistent with his motor and production, but there is also a reason why he is believed to be one of the best forwards in his class," former Rivals.com analyst Corey Evans, now with the Oklahoma City Thunder, said this fall. "He can guard practically all three spots in the frontcourt.
"He has improved his face-up game of late and is already an excellent interior force by way of rebounding and shot-blocking. Diabate would be the ideal big man ... that can toggle between the 4 and 5 and someone that would fit from day one thanks to his versatility and all-around abilities."
U-M needs a big next year to complement Hunter Dickinson. Austin Davis will be gone and they need some immediate help here.
That and relationships between Howard and Diabate, Diabate and other U-M recruits is the reason Michigan landed him. Diabate plays at the same school as Jett Howard, head coach Juwan Howard's son and a (very likely) future Wolverine — a four-star prospect with great upside himself. Some bitter rivals, of course, are trying to frame it like Michigan came out of the blue and something sinister happened — all that happened is Howard took the reins here, as he has with five-star pledge Caleb Houstan, four-star wing Isaiah Barnes and others, and outworked people.
Anybody who knows us knows where we stand on hoops recruiting. Howard has done nothing but work his butt off the last several months and, as he says, "be himself."
He was burned a number of times in the early going when it appeared as though he was going to land five-stars, only to have the rug pulled out from under him. Landing Houstan the way he did — and Evans told us when he was still at Rivals that Houstan was in play because he came from a great family who was looking for the right fit, no other reason — was a breakthrough moment for him, and his wife, Jenine, wasn't shy about letting folks know a) how important it was and b), how hard it really is.
"Imagine doing all this without paying anyone," she tweeted.
She deleted it after getting backlash from several fans of programs that ... well, you know. But she followed up with this:
And she's right.
We've given you numerous examples of shady recruitments over the years, and folks know where we stand. If we thought for a second anything "funny" was going on — can't speak for others, but there would be one less guy on this beat.
But there's not, because there's not. Good old fashioned hard work, gracious concession when things don't go your way (what a concept) and class can still get things done. We saw it with former head coach John Beilein and we're seeing it now with Howard.
From former U-M play-by-play man Chuck Swirsky, now the voice of the Chicago Bulls:
So Howard took his lumps after the Isaiah Todd and Josh Christopher recruitments went awry, but he kept his smile and moved forward. Assistant Phil Martelli, a veteran in the recruiting game, became even more sure of his boss's motives after seeing it in person.
“I think to watch Juwan from last year … well, even last year, how he’s embraced this. He’s been to the mountaintop in basketball, yet he’s willing to get his hands dirty and get on the phone with 15- or 16-year-olds,” Martelli praised. “What I really admired the most about him in recruiting is that when you hear some of the high-profile kids we didn’t get, that we put a lot of time in for but didn’t get, I’m telling you … that gets personal. You want to go to prom with a certain girl and she says no, and man, that hurts.
“Juwan just maintained his dignity and moved forward. [Assistant] Saddi [Washington] deserves a lot of credit for that, too, because Saddi has this way of saying, ‘we’ll get Michigan guys.’”
And now they are. But will all of them play at Michigan?
We can tell you now that yes, we strongly believe they will. All six letters of intent will be in tomorrow ... three-star forward Will Tschetter, four-star point guard Frankie Collins, four-star wing Isaiah Barnes, four-star (and rising quickly) shooting guard Kobe Bufkin, four-star point guard and yes, five-stars Caleb Houstan and Moussa Diabate. They're all great kids, according to everyone we've spoken with, including many who have dealt with them directly.
U-M was in on several elite players to fill that sixth spot, including big man Efton Reid, also of IMG Academy. He dragged his feet but Michigan was right there with him, so Howard and Co. needed to make sure anyone who took his spot was serious.
They wanted a guarantee and a promise from a kid they could trust that if he gave his word, they'd give him a spot. And they got it. Though he's talked about the G-League, Diabate is 100 percent planning on being at U-M next year to be part of an elite class, which is why Howard took him.
We'll have plenty of coverage tomorrow — expect quotes from Howard and the signees after all the letters are in — so stay tuned.
"Long and intriguing, he does need to get more consistent with his motor and production, but there is also a reason why he is believed to be one of the best forwards in his class," former Rivals.com analyst Corey Evans, now with the Oklahoma City Thunder, said this fall. "He can guard practically all three spots in the frontcourt.
"He has improved his face-up game of late and is already an excellent interior force by way of rebounding and shot-blocking. Diabate would be the ideal big man ... that can toggle between the 4 and 5 and someone that would fit from day one thanks to his versatility and all-around abilities."
U-M needs a big next year to complement Hunter Dickinson. Austin Davis will be gone and they need some immediate help here.
That and relationships between Howard and Diabate, Diabate and other U-M recruits is the reason Michigan landed him. Diabate plays at the same school as Jett Howard, head coach Juwan Howard's son and a (very likely) future Wolverine — a four-star prospect with great upside himself. Some bitter rivals, of course, are trying to frame it like Michigan came out of the blue and something sinister happened — all that happened is Howard took the reins here, as he has with five-star pledge Caleb Houstan, four-star wing Isaiah Barnes and others, and outworked people.
Anybody who knows us knows where we stand on hoops recruiting. Howard has done nothing but work his butt off the last several months and, as he says, "be himself."
He was burned a number of times in the early going when it appeared as though he was going to land five-stars, only to have the rug pulled out from under him. Landing Houstan the way he did — and Evans told us when he was still at Rivals that Houstan was in play because he came from a great family who was looking for the right fit, no other reason — was a breakthrough moment for him, and his wife, Jenine, wasn't shy about letting folks know a) how important it was and b), how hard it really is.
"Imagine doing all this without paying anyone," she tweeted.
She deleted it after getting backlash from several fans of programs that ... well, you know. But she followed up with this:
And she's right.
We've given you numerous examples of shady recruitments over the years, and folks know where we stand. If we thought for a second anything "funny" was going on — can't speak for others, but there would be one less guy on this beat.
But there's not, because there's not. Good old fashioned hard work, gracious concession when things don't go your way (what a concept) and class can still get things done. We saw it with former head coach John Beilein and we're seeing it now with Howard.
From former U-M play-by-play man Chuck Swirsky, now the voice of the Chicago Bulls:
So Howard took his lumps after the Isaiah Todd and Josh Christopher recruitments went awry, but he kept his smile and moved forward. Assistant Phil Martelli, a veteran in the recruiting game, became even more sure of his boss's motives after seeing it in person.
“I think to watch Juwan from last year … well, even last year, how he’s embraced this. He’s been to the mountaintop in basketball, yet he’s willing to get his hands dirty and get on the phone with 15- or 16-year-olds,” Martelli praised. “What I really admired the most about him in recruiting is that when you hear some of the high-profile kids we didn’t get, that we put a lot of time in for but didn’t get, I’m telling you … that gets personal. You want to go to prom with a certain girl and she says no, and man, that hurts.
“Juwan just maintained his dignity and moved forward. [Assistant] Saddi [Washington] deserves a lot of credit for that, too, because Saddi has this way of saying, ‘we’ll get Michigan guys.’”
And now they are. But will all of them play at Michigan?
We can tell you now that yes, we strongly believe they will. All six letters of intent will be in tomorrow ... three-star forward Will Tschetter, four-star point guard Frankie Collins, four-star wing Isaiah Barnes, four-star (and rising quickly) shooting guard Kobe Bufkin, four-star point guard and yes, five-stars Caleb Houstan and Moussa Diabate. They're all great kids, according to everyone we've spoken with, including many who have dealt with them directly.
U-M was in on several elite players to fill that sixth spot, including big man Efton Reid, also of IMG Academy. He dragged his feet but Michigan was right there with him, so Howard and Co. needed to make sure anyone who took his spot was serious.
They wanted a guarantee and a promise from a kid they could trust that if he gave his word, they'd give him a spot. And they got it. Though he's talked about the G-League, Diabate is 100 percent planning on being at U-M next year to be part of an elite class, which is why Howard took him.
We'll have plenty of coverage tomorrow — expect quotes from Howard and the signees after all the letters are in — so stay tuned.
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