He Gone

John Beilein has only been gone about a day and a half and I have already rationalized it.

First and foremost, great schools are always about getting what you want, which includes moving on if that is an improvement.

In that respect he earned it (see posts below).  I'll check as I update/improve this post, it starts with back-to-back 30-win seasons.  It was a group of players and style of play that almost always meant a chance to win except against the very best teams.  It was 100% scandal free (that I do not have to check), and this was a program (the Fab 5) that was up to its eyeballs in scandal; Steve Fisher was a great coach but he did not leave voluntarily, and the Michigan booster scandal is still about as bad as it gets in a sport, and its recruiting, that makes heads spin.  Beilien was so clean it was almost a joke.

He did break at times, e.g., the late game intentional foul which he admitted later, this past season.  There have been comments on mgoblog from intensive, perceptive observers that sometimes this past season he appeared disengaged.

But 99% of the time he was everything conceivable in a spokesperson and program representative.  In his elder years he became virtually unquestionable in his wisdom--see below in this post.  He had aged, with health, perfectly.

Basketball-wise he had finally reached the upper echelon.  His relatively new-found success allowed him to finally recruit the players he coveted:  positionless "wing" players.  Make no mistake, at 6' 7" or so they were plenty capable of dunking and showing off like anyone, but they could also defend against a center if necessary.  I cannot think of a name or perfect example; they ranged from over-performing guards (Derrick Walton, Jr.) to slow shooters (Nik Stauskas and Duncan Robinson) and the point that there is no one example is the example.  Plus, the "bigs" have excelled (DJ and Moe) because everyone else was a dribbler and they had to.  That was Beilein's repeatedly-stated goal, "possitionless basketball," a euphonious for ballhandler and athlete.

Finally, in the last few years Beilein's teams put it all together with defense and a will to win.  They won, pure and simple.

Seconds, thirds, and maybe more coming soon.  The team and the time make sense.



The other two are:

Second, the NBA offers a lot to almost anyone.  Time off in the offseason.  Expense account.  Basically no pinching pennies and playing by NCAA rules.  Long hours but also lots of time off.  Basically, greed.

Third, Michigan basketball is going to be less good next year, what with the two (Iggy and Poole) players leaving and strikeouts so far in grad transfers (e.g., the guy who went to North Carolina).  Beilein has expressed frustration around this issue before but he still tried to--and did for the most part--tow the line.  The holes in the roster, including some deadweight (Austin Davis and maybe others), was mounting. 

The offer was there and Beilein took it.  His prerogative.