Michigan’s 2023 needs
It’s hard to predict roster makeup from one year to the next, which doesn’t make diagnosing needs any easier, however, we can still work out a rough guess for what Michigan might need.
Looking ahead to the 2023-24 season, operating under the assumption that Dickinson, Diabate, and Houstan are gone, the Wolverines will have a core group of Tarris Reed, Jett Howard, Frankie Collins, Kobe Bufkin, Terrance Williams, Will Tschetter, Dug McDaniel, Jace Howard, and Gregg Glenn.
That’s assuming a lot. Certainly, someone listed in the group above is probably going to transfer at some point, but out of that group, you could build a starting five of Collins, Bufkin, Howard, Williams, and Tarris Reed.
That’s not a bad group at all considering you could have Tschetter, McDaniel, Jace, and Glenn coming off the bench. However, you can see some holes. One is rim protection.
Reed is 6-foot-10 and his defense has improved, but he’s more like Hunter Dickinson than he is Jon Teske. So a defensive big man who can provide some rim protection would be huge, either at the four or five.
Point/combo guard is another position of need. Michigan basketball already has a point guard commitment in 2024 in Christian Anderson, and while he’s under 6-foot, he can shoot the heck out of the ball and looks like a solid get.
Michigan is still going to need a guard who can play off the ball. It also needs someone else in the backcourt with some shot-making skills.
A long-term option at the four should also be a priority. Like it did with Diabate, Michigan could really use a four-ready-to-play right away in the 2023 class.
Talent is more important than positional needs, but my top three needs would be a combo guard, a rim-protecting big, and a four with some shooting ability.
Now, let’s get to some of Michigan basketball’s top targets as the evaluation period got underway last weekend.