Michigan Basketball: 3 ways Franz Wagner helps Wolverines right away
It gives Howard options with the starting five
Without the addition of Wagner, the options for filling out the starting five included some question marks at the very least. Adrien Nunez, Eli Brooks, David DeJulius, Colin Castleton and Brandon Johns are all candidates to emerge and earn a place among the starting five.
Even after Wagner’s commitment, that is still true, but the Wolverines now have one less opening to fill. They also have some flexibility.
German star Franz Wagner just verbally committed to Michigan. This is a significant pledge for Juwan Howard. The brother of former Michigan star Mo Wagner.
— Evan Daniels (@EvanDaniels) July 6, 2019
If Wagner starts at the two, with Zavier Simpson in the backcourt, then Isaiah Livers would likely be the three, with Johns or Castleton competing to start alongside Jon Teske. Johns and Castleton both showed flashes last season but are unproven.
In the backcourt, Brooks has started before, while DeJulius and Nunez, as sophomores, would need to take a big leap as would Johns and Castleton. Now, Michigan gets a proven player in Wagner to start at the two or three and suddenly, the Wolverines top four looks pretty solid.
And instead of needing two sophomores to emerge as starters, the Wolverines will need only one of those guys, which leads me to my next point.