Michigan Basketball: Predicting UM’s starting five for 2020-21 season

Starter: Mike Smith

Point guard is one of the two positions that I think is a toss-up at this point as far as who starts. Transfer Mike Smith, senior Eli Brooks, and true freshman Zeb Jackson will battle for the starting spot.

As it sits right now, I’m going to give the edge to Mike Smith. Smith is more of a natural point guard compared to Brooks and Jackson. He will also provide the experience that every team needs from the PG spot.

When Michigan lost David DeJulius unexpectedly after last season, Juwan knew he had to bring in a transfer PG to help out this year. He struck gold by landing a 5th-year guy who was 6th in the country in scoring last year.

It still remains to be seen how well Smith’s game will translate to the Big Ten. The scoring should be there, but defense is a major concern. No matter what his role is on the team is this year, there’s no denying that Smith has the right attitude. Here’s what he had to say when speaking to Andrew Kahn from MLive:

"“At Columbia, they needed me to score and create for others, so I did,” he said. “It’s a different ball game in the Big Ten. I’m not saying I can’t compete with the Big Ten players, but I don’t necessarily have to score as many points. Scoring, passing, defense and doing the dirty work — I’ll do whatever the team needs.”"

Behind Smith, Brooks and Jackson will both see time running the offense. They are both combo guards that can play either backcourt spot. Also, don’t count out Duquesne transfer and current walk-on Brandon Wade. He’s a talented guy and will be looking to prove he belongs on a Big Ten roster. It would not shock me if he gets a handful of minutes per game running the offense.