Michigan Basketball: Wolverines enter loaded recruiting battle
Michigan basketball jumped into the mix with a four-star center last week and is competing with some of the top programs in the country.
Last week, Michigan basketball head coach Juwan Howard expanded the recruiting board at center in the class of 2022 and did so with an offer to four-star center Dereck Lively II.
Lively is out of Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, and is listed at 7-foot-1, 220 pounds. He’s also ranked in the top 50 of the 247 sports composite rankings at 36th overall. He’s the No. 4 center and it’s easy to tell he likes the idea of playing for Juwan. Here’s what he told 247 sports:
"“Michigan has Juwan Howard,” Lively said. “He’s a great coach and he knows what to do with bigs. I think I can trust him.”"
It’s notable that every time Michigan offers a big man, they say something like that. Juwan is an X-factor that gets the Wolverines in the door with lots of centers and power forwards.
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Howard has a solid reputation for developing those kinds of talents in the NBA and he has only expanded on that so far with Michigan basketball.
Last season’s breakout campaign by Hunter Dickinson was probably the best example yet of what Howard can do with a big man at the college level, although Jon Teske, Austin Davis, and even Brandon Johns, showed improvement last season.
It doesn’t always mean the recruit will end up committing. But it certainly doesn’t hurt and the Wolverines will need every advantage they can get in this recruitment, especially if Kentucky jumps into the mix with an offer.
Where Lively fits the board
Right now, Jalen Duren and Donovan Clingan are the top two guys Michigan is targeting at center in 2022. Duren is expected to go pro and not play in college, so Clingan, a 7-footer from Connecticut is really the top option.
Lively is a five-star candidate though and teams recruiting him hardest according to Rivals reflect that as Duke, North Carolina, Kentucky, and Michigan are among those mentioned.
Kentucky hasn’t offered yet and it sounds like it could be a game-changer for him like Michigan was a game-changer for Seth Trimble.
Lively is a name to watch though and you never know, Juwan might be able to work his magic.