The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1169070
OCTOBER 2019 THE WOLVERINE 49 BY CHRIS BALAS F ive-star guard Nimari Burnett's first Michigan visit, when John Beilein was still head coach, was cut a bit short. Burnett and his family made the trek back to Ann Arbor for U-M football's weekend with Army (Sept. 7), and this time they saw ev- erything they wanted to see. Burnett (6-4, 180, Rivals' No. 22 se- nior nationally) was in last winter and left without an offer when he didn't get a chance to see the entire campus. He picked up his offer a few months later … and then Beilein accepted a job with the Cleveland Cavaliers. "[Former Michigan assistant coach] Luke Yaklich coached Nimari in first and second grade. We knew him well, and that was really one more reason we were actually entertaining Michigan," Brian Burnett, Nimari's father, said. "Once Beilein left, we didn't know about the scholarship and didn't know if Luke was going to stay or leave." It became a moot point when How- ard was hired. The younger Burnett, now at Napa (Calif.) Prolific Prep, at- tended several of Howard's Chicago summer camps over the years when he played at Chicago Morgan Park. He even became friends with How- ard's son, Rivals three-star senior Jace Howard (6-7, 210) of Hollywood (Fla.) University School, and the fam- ilies grew to know each other. "The crazy thing about it was we ran into Juwan in Indianapolis right before Beilein even left," Brian Burnett said. "We go back to when Nimari was 7 years old, and for six years in a row Nimari made his camp. He watched Nimari grow up from 7 to now. "He is a good guy. He's the type of guy I could trust my son with." If it were just about relationships, he added, his son would probably already be committed to U-M. But choosing a school is a life decision, and Burnett is looking for a place where he can thrive on the court. There has been talk that he wants the ball in his hands all the time, and some schools have been adamant he will (his other finalists include Texas Tech, Oregon and Alabama). Michigan has one 2020 guard com- mitment already in Montverde (Fla.) Academy's Zeb Jackson (6-3, 165, Ri- vals' No. 58 senior nationally), and Brian Burnett believes there's room for both should his son choose the Wolverines. "Nimari can play on or off the ball," Brian Burnett said. "But we don't want him alongside a guy that's just got to have the ball in hands all of the time. That means he's not going to have the ball in his hands. "Zeb was actually even looking at coming to Prolific Prep. He and Ni- mari are good friends. They talk a lot." Burnett is in no hurry to decide and will visit his other three finalists over the next month. He will wait to see how the teams do in some of their early season games before making a decision and might not sign until spring. "We went to see a lot of schools and their style of play," Brian Burnett said. "We want to know if they'll al- low they players to make mistakes and play through them. "It's Juwan's first year in college basketball. We want to see how he is going to adjust to the college style of play. He went over everything in the visit on what type of style they're going to run, but it's not like seeing in action." There's no question the Wolverines are in the mix. The family loved the town — they were surprised how much Ann Arbor had to offer, Mr. Burnett said — and the coaching staff and players greatly impressed. Ni- mari even told his dad he hoped the players at the other schools were as down to earth and accommodating as U-M's. "One thing I can say for sure is we had a great visit to Michigan," he explained. "It's better than what we thought. The coaches are great guys. Phil Martelli is a great guy. "We hit it off with all of them. They were hands-on, and we all liked them, Nimari, his mom and me. Ju- wan has put a great group together." BASKETBALL RECRUITING Michigan Visit Set The Bar For Five-Star Nimari Burnett Burnett, the No. 22 senior in the nation per Rivals, officially visited U-M for the Sept. 7 Army game weekend. The 6-4, 180-pounder attended several of new Michigan head coach Juwan Howard's basketball camps in Chicago as a youngster. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM