Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Who returns for Michigan next season?
By Joe Kaiser
Michigan is ranked No. 1 for the first time in 21 years with a roster chock-full of potential NBA talent. Which underclassmen will be back next year? Who will go pro? Lets take a look at where things stand.
Realistically, there are three primary candidates to leave school early, which should surprise nobody -- Tim Hardaway Jr., Trey Burke and freshman Glenn Robinson III. That isn't to say guys like Nik Stauskas and Mitch McGary don't have a spot in the league, but that almost certainly won't come for at least another year.
Here's where Hardaway, Robinson and Burke currently rank on Chad Ford's Big Board:
Burke (So.) -- No. 16 overall, No. 3 point guard behind Michael Carter-Williams (No. 8) and Marcus Smart (No. 9)
Robinson (Fr.) -- No. 18 overall, No. 4 small forward behind Shabazz Muhammad (No. 3), Otto Porter (No. 6) and Alex Poythress (No. 10)
Barring any changes to these rankings between now and the end of the season, which certainly can happen, we have to believe that there is a strong chance that Burke and Robinson will look to go pro. Burke flirted strongly with the idea after his strong freshman campaign -- at one point the word was he was going pro -- so his excellent standing after a brilliant sophomore season could make it an easy decision for him. Robinson has the bloodlines and has impressed with his athleticism and smooth efficient game, but there are quite a few other big-name small forwards projected to go in the lottery so we have to believe he's somewhat less of a sure thing to leave. Hardaway's improved as a shooter (40.9 percent from 3-point range this season) but his draft stock seems to have fallen the longer he's stayed in school. Another year in Ann Arbor is probably in the cards for Hardaway.
