The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/510942
2015 BASKETBALL RECRUITING ISSUE man has such a brilliant future. Hav- ing him come back as a leader, he'll be healthy … he's got more of the summer this time to get in shape, rehab, the whole deal. He's going to have a tremendous senior year, and if he's having a tremendous se- nior year, it's going to be a successful Team 100." Walton will be healthy, too, and able to do what he would have done last year if not for the foot injury, Beilein added. He'll be back in June with no restrictions, and Beilein pre- dicts he'll live up to his billing as one of the best passers he's recruited when his point guard is not thinking about the pain. Albrecht, meanwhile, is preparing for a second hip surgery after under- going the first one in April, but rehab is going well and he's expected back at 100 percent in time for the season. As for the others, most have chosen to stay in Ann Arbor for both semes- ters to work with strength coach Jon Sanderson in what's become known as "Camp Sanderson" in an effort to improve their conditioning. The first semester is "100 percent volunteer," Beilein noted. It's also a residual of recruiting the right way and to a cul- ture of success. "I think it's good for people to know we did not ask one person to go both semesters," Beilein said. "There wasn't any academic need for anybody to go both semesters. We have a great group of kids that vol- untarily decided to do it, every one of them … I was the last guy to know at times they were staying both semes- ters. They made conscious, educated decisions to stay both semesters. "[Junior] Zak Irvin stayed both se- mesters last year, so I thought it was a good break for him to stay home and spend time with his family. But the comments I heard on a couple of occasions when they went home for a week to 10 days were, 'It was good, but I couldn't wait to get back.' That's a good thing to hear." There will be at least 11 very ca- pable bodies vying for playing time with the addition of sophomore transfer Duncan Robinson (6-8) out of Williams College and redshirt freshman D.J. Wilson (6-9). Both spent plenty of time on the practice squad last year and have the poten- tial to see significant playing time. Finding room for all of them is Beilein's next challenge. "It's going to be a great problem to solve, but it usually takes care of it- self," he said. "You don't like to have injuries, sickness, anything like that, but when you have 12 guys there plus [walk-ons] Sean [Lonergan] and [Andrew] Dakich, I'm sure that eight, nine or 10 will come to the forefront. "I think we have more multi-po- sition players now than ever. That's really going to allow us to explore a lot of options in our offense and in our defense." The results should speak for them- selves on the court next year and in the years to come, fostering more wins on the recruiting trail. Success breeds success, after all, providing more bricks to the foundation of Michigan basketball. ❑