Michigan Basketball: Jalen Wilson Announces His U-M Commitment
Michigan has landed its first pledge in the 2019 class, and it's a big one. Four-star Texan Jalen Wilson announced his commitment May 30.
Wilson announced with an impressive commitment video via his twitter account.
Wilson chose the Wolverines over Kansas, Oklahoma State, Marquette, Baylor and UCLA. He told ZagsBlog.com he was named for former Fab Fiver Jalen Rose, and that he'd forged a strong relationship with the Michigan coaches.
“I talk to assistant coach [Luke] Yaklich and head coach John Beilein all the time,” Wilson said. “I was named after Jalen Rose … so I know all about Michigan basketball, and my mom loves Michigan. They produce great players in the NBA, and they’re a great program in the Big Ten."
The Wolverines have as many NCAA Tournament wins as any program in the country since 2013, having made it to a pair of NCAA Championship games. They've won the last two Big Ten Tournament titles and should be among the favorites to win the conference again in 2018.
Wilson, who averaged 16.2 points, 6.2 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game for Guyer (33-2) during his junior season, hopes to keep that train rolling when he arrives in 2019. He told TheWolverine.com after his May 12 visit that he loved his trip to Ann Arbor and everything about the program.
"The coaches were all welcoming of me, showing me everything about how I can come in and make an impact to the team, also be a great student,” Wilson said. “They showed me the classrooms and stuff like that, where I’d be living when I was a freshman and sophomore.”
His parents loved it, as well.
“All of the little details … it was a great experience for them, too,” he said.
Wilson had the opportunity to sit down and watch film with the coaches after head coach John Beilein took them around campus personally. He got the opportunity to see how he’d be used in U-M’s offense, specifically as a scorer hunting shots.
He went into his visit like each of his others, with one thing in particular in mind.
"I really want to see if the coach is down for me,"he said. "I respect the coach coming to my house because it shows how interested they really are. Then when they sit down I can ask them about my potential impact, what's the lineup and how I can come in and immediately help and hopefully win a national championship."
He found exactly what he was looking for in Ann Arbor.
“They showed me how their guards play off pick and roll, stuff like that,” he said. “They call it the ‘wolf,’ and they showed me some of the scorers, showed me what they would do in that offense.
"They talk about the Final Four some, but they really want to focus on me and letting me know that it's something I could do and help lead them to and hopefully win. They are just pushing that they would be the best fit, and of course all of the coaches say that. Mostly that I could come in and play the game the way I love to play."
He's got one more year of high school ball, but he'll get his chance to do that in maize and blue soon enough.
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