On Friday, the Michigan men’s basketball team will depart for Lithuania, kicking off a nine-day trip in which the Wolverines will play three exhibition games against international competition.
The trip, which will take the team through both Lithuania and Croatia, allotted Michigan up to 10 additional preseason practices, and so far it’s been using those to its advantage. Coach Mike Boynton Jr., senior guard Elliot Cadeau and sophomore guard Trey McKenney all spoke to the media Tuesday, each conveying their confidence with how the team has progressed through summer practice and their excitement for a first test in Europe.
“It’s been really helpful,” Boynton said of the extra practices. “This team (is) totally different in terms of the pieces and even the roles for the guys who are returning. So both the new guys and the guys returning in those new roles need some time to figure out how that looks for each of them.”
Two players who don’t have much uncertainty surrounding their role this season are the two who spoke Tuesday: Cadeau and McKenney. Given their presence as the two biggest contributors to last season’s championship as well as their quick, tone-setting decisions to return after the departure of coach Dusty May, the backcourt duo’s expectations are both clearer and higher. Cadeau certainly feels that way, claiming he and McKenney will be “the best backcourt in college basketball” this year.
There’s a reason claims that bold aren’t being made about other aspects of the team. This edition of the Wolverines has only recently begun to share a floor together, and not yet against anyone other than themselves. There are plenty of still-unknown variables outside of the few returners. So far in practice, though, some of those variables are starting to get worked out.
For example, transfers junior forward J.P. Estrella and junior center Moustapha Thiam have made a strong impression so far. Cadeau praised their shooting ability in particular, noting the versatility and spacing that skill can bring to Michigan’s offense. Five-star freshman guard Brandon McCoy Jr.’s athleticism seems to have made itself known, too.
“I’d be shocked if (McCoy) doesn’t have at least a dunk in every game,” Boynton said. “And most games he’ll have multiple dunks, just because he can. … I watched him for four games in Switzerland last summer … and I think in four games that I watched, every shot that he attempted was a dunk, and I was worried about that. How does this work in college? And the fact of the matter is, it does. It works.”
Estrella, Thiam, McCoy and several other new faces will get to translate their practice success to in-game contexts in the coming weeks. The Wolverines will start against the Lithuanian national team and B team this weekend, and then play Serbian pro team KK Mega Basket in Croatia next Wednesday. And while Boynton has been clear that these games will be a testing ground, that he’s gonna “try some things,” the players are certainly looking forward to the challenge.
“Our first goal is to win every game,” Cadeau said. “But other than that, we just want to be able to learn from everything, and just get situated with everything, be able to know our roles on the team, and just learn about ourselves and about our teammates as much as possible.”
Because of how far away the regular season still is, Boynton’s purported strategy and injury reasons — senior forward Jalen Reed is still recovering and won’t play on the trip — the Europe tour will not be a reliable indicator of Michigan’s quality come November. But it will be the Wolverines’ best chance yet to learn about themselves, continuing the progress that’s been made so far in summer practice.
