Michigan Basketball: What Austin Davis injury means for Wolverines
Juwan Howard announced that Michigan basketball will be without Austin Davis indefinitely and here’s what that means for the Wolverines.
In the short term at least, Michigan basketball will have a new starting center as Juwan Howard said Austin Davis will be out indefinitely on Friday.
247 sports reported that the injury is a plantar fascia, which he suffered against Toledo on Wednesday after scoring the first 10 points of the game.
Davis is a fifth-year senior for the Wolverines and has started each of the first five games. While he has played just 12.4 minutes per game, he’s averaged six points and 3.6 rebounds in addition to shooting 75 percent from the field.
Now, freshman Hunter Dickinson will move into the starting lineup, which is something many have been clamoring for, although certainly not in this way.
What’s will the absence of Davis mean
Well, even though it will be good to see Dickinson starting the game, Michigan basketball is definitely going to miss having two big guys who can get buckets inside.
Davis has his limitations and he has a hard time playing extended minutes simply due to getting into foul trouble.
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However, Davis is a really good finisher inside and after shooting close to 70 percent last year, he’s gotten even better and in the rough and tumble Big Ten, that will be missed.
Obviously, the Wolverines will turn to Dickinson and he will need to play more minutes than he has already this season but Brandon Johns will also get more time in the rotation as the backup center.
He’s seen some time in that role during the non-conference schedule but probably not enough. Either way, he’s a solid rim protector and one of Michigan’s best rebounders.
Freshman Terrance Williams is another player that is likely to see more minutes with Davis out. Like Johns, he has played some minutes as a small-ball center and even if he doesn’t get as many minutes in that role, there should be more time in the frontcourt due to Johns seeing more time at center.
What we learned during first 5 games. dark. Next
The good news is that Davis should be back at some point this season. But until then, we will get our chance to see what Dickinson and Johns can do in more prominent roles.