Michigan Basketball: 5 Bold predictions for Wolverines 2019-20 season
Michigan basketball suffered not only the loss of former commit Jalen Wilson, but also three starters from last season. Can the Wolverines live up to these five bold predictions?
In the 12 years that John Beilein was the head coach of Michigan Basketball, he posted a record of 278-150, solidifying his name as the winningest Wolverine coach of all time. In the 12 years before Beilein, the overall record was 215-169 with three NCAA tournament appearances. John brought his insanely talented teams into the March Madness nine times.
Now that the great coach Beilein has departed for the NBA, Juwan Howard has stepped in to led the team to glory. Will he be able to forge his own legacy? We know Juwan has to the foundation to win immediately.
Zavier Simpson is in his final season with the team, and if he can improve his outside shot, no one in college can shut him down. Simpson’s go-to guy is Jon Teske, a big man that Howard has said he’s going to depend on.
And then there’s the late commitment from Franz Wagner that will undoubtedly change the game for the Wolverines. Already, the freshman is making an impression on the coaching staff who “raves about his IQ and overall feel,” according to Jon Rothstein, a CBS Sports college basketball insider.
Palpable Buzz in Ann Arbor surrounding Michigan freshman Franz Wagner. Staff raves about his IQ and overall feel. Will have a big piece of the pie in 19-20.
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) September 25, 2019
Jon visited Ann Arbor recently and from what he could tell, Wagner is going to be a starter from the get-go. That’s a big revelation and part of the reason my bold predictions today are so much more audacious than they were four months ago.
Here are five bold predictions for the 2019-20 Wolverines season.