As for Grady, I like to hear this, but I just don’t know what kind of difference he can make at this point. However, for everyone wondering, if it means anything, I just saw him playing in an IM bball game on Monday night, so perhaps he has been playing for a little while now.

I mentioned Vogrich loosing minutes, but it in regards to the fact that Stu would be taking more minutes now at the two, and then LLP would lose minutes. That could mean that LLP or Stu sees some minutes at the three in replace of the minutes that vogrich was getting. I dont want to see Vogrich lose minutes because as limited as they are right now for him, I believe they are important to his development.

“Unfortunately he used poor judgment on Friday. It is best for Manny’s future if he stays home and sits out this Purdue game. We will meet with Manny and the team again when we return to determine if he has learned enough from this suspension to rejoin the team for Tuesday’s game. I am confident that this learning experience will be valuable in the future to both Manny and our basketball program.”

http://www.annarbor.com/sports/um-basketball/manny-harris-suspended-for-todays-game-at-purdue-michigan-basketball-coach-john-beilein-says/

Permanently moving Stu to SG allows Morris to take over the PG responsibilities and I think at this point of the season, regardless of how we finish, it is time for Darius to take over the PG position. He was recruited for that position and he needs to be allowed to assume that role for this team – he is going to be this team’s leader in that spot for the next 3 years. He will still make the freshman mistakes and even have bad games, but I think Coach B making the decison to “turn over the team” to him will be a tremondous boost of confidence because he will know he can make mistakes and not get benched. I believe it will pull his performance up to this higher level of expectation from Bielien.

When Darius does revert to freshman moments Grady will provide an ample replacement – especially on offense because he will continue to provide the penetration that Darius provides when he is in the game. Yes defense will suffer while Grady is in, but no more so than when any of the other bench members come into the game to spell a starter. I would envision a Morris/Grady split of 30/10 per game. Another thing I always liked about Grady last year was that he seemed to get the team out running more – he is definitely a fast break initator. No, up tempo is not our main focus, but when we get into the offensive lulls he provides an excellent change of pace off the bench that can reignite the offense.

Lastly, I have felt all season that the reason Stu’s shooting is out of sorts is because he is playing out of position. The PG has a lot of other responsibilities that detract from what Stu does best – whether starting or coming in off the bench – shoot threes. Alternating “microwaves” between Stu and LLP is a luxury most teams don’t have. Somebody mentioned Grady would take pt from Vogrich, but Vogrich has been spelling Manny lately and I think that is good way to get him a few minutes every game. Vogrich’s defense is not good enough for him to merit any more than 5-8 minutes a game anyway.

My concern is not so much with who gets minutes, as it is with how well the team is going to play. They seem to have found their stride a little bit as of late, and it has been keyed by their defensive performances more than anything. Having more offense is always nice, but it doesnt do you any good if it costs you more points on the other end.

Are you seriously concerned with poor Stu and LLP losing playing time? As I stated last month Grady was the biggest loss from the 2008-2009 team, not to mention our best 3pt shooter by percentage behind CJ Lee. This is a huge recruit for Beilein just landed his best recruit for the ’10-’11 season.

Michigan just got quicker and more athletic.

Our chances of a win today just went out the window. Learning experience for Vogrich if nothing else?