Michigan basketball’s depth seemed enviable at the beginning of the season, with as many as 10 players seemingly ready to contribute. The lineup has since shrunk a bit, but as head coach Juwan Howard said recently, the Wolverines are going to need all hands on deck to navigate a tough Big Ten.

With fifth-year senior center Austin Davis out likely several more weeks with a foot injury, someone other than freshman Hunter Dickinson needs to step up and provide minutes at the five. Junior Brandon Johns would be the logical candidate, especially against a team like Maryland (Thursday night’s opponent) that likes to play small ball.

But Johns has yet to make the most of his time on the floor. He’s surpremely talented, but he’s managed only 14 points in his last five games and was held scoreless in two. He’s averaging 4.1 points per game.

“He has to breathe,” assistant coach Phil Martelli said Tuesday. “He’s trying to play this game right now holding his breath, and he's got to loosen up, be that guy. He got 20 on the biggest stage, Madison Square Garden … had a monster game last year and carried us over the top at home against Iowa.”

In other words, he’s got the ability. He just plays too tight, too often.

“Even in practice, he seems to me to be tensing up. Juwan is not a coach that causes you to tense up,” Martelli said. “I’m going to make that a project to make sure Brandon remembers to breathe and relax. He's the best offensive rebounder on this team, has got a beautiful stroke, particularly from three. He has the leaping ability.

“We’ve got to get him not more relaxed, but to stay more engaged for longer periods of time, including practice.”

On the flip side, Dickinson has taken his opportunity and run with it since Davis went down. Martelli told him this summer he could be a typical freshman anywhere but on the basketball court, and the 7-footer took it to heart.

Though he initially took a backseat to Austin Davis, Dickinson has continued to dominate. He recently won his third Big Ten freshman of the week award.

“Hunter came in with remarkable coaching both through the summer ranks with Team Takeover and also at [Hyattsville, Md.] DeMatha. He had a wealth of experiences and played an awful lot of basketball,” Martelli noted. “He’s a prime example of this COVID (impact), because Hunter in a way had a stretch where he wasn't with us in the gym ... I like to call it the lab. And he wasn't in the lab with Juwan.

“When he got into more of a routine, and this will be blunt … Austin Davis beat Hunter out. That’s why Austin Davis started. It wasn't a feel-good story about a fifth-year kid. Austin Davis beat Hunter out. But we have a saying around the office that some guys play when the popcorn popping. That’s what Hunter did.”

He brought a ‘different juice’ when it mattered most, starting with an intra-squad scrimmage where he was really productive, and he’s still only scratching the surface, Martelli added. He has a nice touch but has yet to make a jumper, and he’s an even better passer from the low post than he’s shown.

He’s now averaging 15.3 points, 8.4 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game and is humble and willing to learn, one of the reasons he came to U-M.

“The biggest factor is Hunter's willingness to be coached. Some guys come in without that willingness and you have to break them down. When he expressed to Juwan and me he wanted to come to Michigan, he pointed directly to Juwan and said, ‘you can coach me to be great,’” Martelli recalled. “Most announcements you feel like guys are gifting you with his presence ... we’ve fed into that system.

To watch that relationship [grow], that has been the healthiest [development].”

One that’s been fun to watch and that promises to only get better.

Until Davis returns, however, the Wolverines need another big body to step up. Johns will continue to get his shot ... as a junior, it's time for him to take the next step toward reaching his potential.

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