Michigan Basketball: Beilein Won’t Change Recruiting Strategy

Fit first. That’s how Michigan head coach John Beilein will continue to recruit at U-M, he told The Huge Show’s Bill Simonson Wednesday … and that doesn’t mean he’ll sacrifice talent to do it.

Far from it, in fact.

Beilein is looking for talented individuals who also care about education and culture, and there are some five stars who certainly fit the bill. Westtown (Pa.) School’s Mohamed Bamba in the 2017 class, for example, visited this fall and has the Wolverines on his short list heading toward a spring decision.

"Are we going to recruit them? Yes. Are we going to take them? Yes,” Beilein said of the five-star recruits. “But … it's just so different [in college basketball. Even in football ... football has got three years with those dudes. No matter what, they have three years with them. In basketball, there could be situations where it's not productive. There are other situations where it's very productive, when you can really get a guy who fits what you're looking for.

"We'll continue to pursue those [guys], but it's not going to be, 'Oh, no, we didn't get a five star. We can't win.' If we can get one, that's great, but not if he's not going to make us better. If he's not going to make us better, then we don't care."

Some work out, some don’t after all. Glenn Robinson III, a five-star in the 2012 class, stayed for two years and helped lead the Wolverines to the NCAA Championship game and an Elite Eight. Classmate Mitch McGary was No. 3 at one point before finishing No. 20 … he also stayed for two years, though his career was shortened by injury and suspension.

U-M’s highest NBA Draft picks – Trey Burke, Nik Stauskas and Caris LeVert – were also the lowest rated. Burke was outside the top 100, Stauskas top 75 and LeVert a two-star prospect who got bumped to three after committing to Michigan late.

“If you look at last year, a guy like Henry Ellenson, a tremendous player for the Piston … did Marquette go to the NCAA tournament last year?" Beilein said. "The kid down at LSU [Ben Simmons], a lottery pick, the first pick in the draft, did LSU go to the NCAA tournament?

"Our thing is, ‘whatever players it takes to get to the NCAA tournament.’ We care about are they five-star players when they come out of here. Caris LeVert and Trey Burke ... are they five-star players when they walk out of here? Yeah."

And they’re always trying to get highly rated prospects who fit, he added.

"We've been involved. We've gotten a couple -- Zak Irvin is a former five-star guy,” he said. “We've got a ton of four-star guys. Mitch McGary was a five-star guy. So we've been able to get those guys. We've finished second [at times].”

Some of the higher rated guys haven’t panned out, too, like Portland’s Kam Chatman (No. 25 in 2014), now at Detroit Mercy.