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It sounds like Ben Cronin is done, not just for the season but for his career. This is terrible news for all involved and it’s very tough not to feel for Cronin who has been through so much over the last several years and is regarded as one of the nicest kids on the entire team.

This also explains the sudden interest in Grand Ledge big man Jon Horford. With the future roster composition I wouldn’t be surprised to see Michigan put the full court press on Jon, if they haven’t already.

Here is the official press release from the Athletic Department:

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – University of Michigan men’s basketball coach John Beilein announced today (Tuesday, Dec. 29), redshirt-freshman center Ben Cronin (Syracuse, N.Y./Hemminger HS) will miss the remainder of the 2009-10 season, and more than likely the remainder of his career, as he continues his rehabilitation on his left hip.

“Above all, our chief concern has always been for Ben’s current and future health,” said Beilein. “Following his hip surgery last season, we were hopeful that Ben would be able to return for this season.

“Unfortunately, there have been complications with this particular injury which have prevented him from progressing like we had hoped. Consequently, Ben will not play the rest of this season, and more than likely for the remainder of his career. This is a very difficult decision that has everything to do with the quality of Ben’s life after basketball.

“Obviously this was not an easy decision to make, but we agree with our doctor’s assessment that Ben’s chances for a full recovery and to play a full time college basketball schedule are slim. He will remain on scholarship and we will continue to support his rehabilitation and pursuits of becoming a teacher and coach.”

“This has been a long process for my family and me, however, after meeting with our doctors I feel it is best for my long term health to focus on my hip rehabilitation and stop playing college basketball,” said Cronin. “I really appreciated basketball and I will miss it like crazy, but my faith will help me get through this. I continue to have wonderful experiences here at the University of Michigan and I am truly grateful for all the guidance and opportunities given to me. I am looking forward to continuing my rehab, having the opportunity to finish my degree and helping this program in any way that I can.”

Previously: Point Guard, Novak

Everybody knows that Michigan was painfully undersized last year. They got abused inside by teams like Ohio State, Michigan State, and Minnesota. Their offensive and defensive rebounding numbers were near the bottom of the barrel in the Big Ten (8th and 9th respectively). Their average height of 76.1″ ranked 220nd in the NCAA and 10th in the Big Ten. In terms of Ken Pomeroy’s effective height statistic (a combination of block percentage, 2 pt% defense, eFG% defense, and adjusted defensive efficiency) only Indiana ranked lower in the conference.

Judging by Pomeroy’s rankings, center was actually not Michigan’s biggest concern size wise. Yes, DeShawn Sims is a bit small but he can get by at 6-foot-8. Point guard (Lee, Merritt, and Grady were all under 6 foot) and power forward (NOVAK) were Michigan’s biggest size concerns last year.

There are numerous solutions and combinations to try to alleviate the size issue. One of the most common suggestions is to move Sims back to the four position and throw Ben Cronin and Jordan Morgan in at the five. The most likely outcome is some sort of situational rotation – with Sims being the regular starter at the five and Gibson, Cronin, and Morgan providing situational playing time. (full positional breakdown after the jump)

Continue reading ‘Position by Position: Center’

Cronin’s likely medical redshirt has been rumored for a while but it was made official today. Cronin will undergo surgery on Wednesday January 14th and will sit out 5-6 months during rehabilitation. In limited minutes this season Cronin has played with a noticeable limp and I think this is definitely the right decision in the long run. Quotes:

Beilein:

“After discussing Ben’s condition with his family and the U-M medical staff we have decided surgery is the appropriate action,” said Beilein. “Even though it is a setback, Ben has been fantastic with his attitude and his determination to get healthy as soon as he is able to rejoin the team.”

Cronin:

“It is a disappointment that I will not be able to practice and help this team get better, but I know this surgery is the best option for me right now,” said Cronin. “I am excited to get healthy and put this hip issue behind me. I am going to take it slow, but I know I will be working as hard as I can over the next five to six months to be ready for next season.”

I’m going to take a look at each position group on this years team and look at starters, rotation, expectations and more. Starting today with the five position. The roster is shockingly bare at the five, consisting of Zack Gibson, Ben Cronin, and Eric Puls.

Zack Gibson is the likely starter at the center position. If you have listened to Beilein lately he has constantly mentioned doubling Zack’s stats from last year and coming up with great numbers.

Last year: 13.9 mpg, 5.4 ppg, 48.2 FG%, 26.7 3PFG%, 2.8 reb, .7 blk
Projection/Doubled: 27.8 mpg, 10.8 ppg, 48.2 FG%, 26.7 3PFG%, 5.6reb, 1.4blk

Clearly just doubling stats isn’t going to provide a true projection. For comparison Ekpe averaged 26mpg, 6ppg, and 5 rpg last year. Only four times did Zack play 20 minutes or more last year and only three times did he grab six rebounds in a game (Oakland, Boston College, and Brown).  It is possible that Zack can average right around that 10 points per game mark but the worry I have is on defense. Last year the Michigan defense often consisted of a defender getting beaten off the dribble and Ekpe cleaning up the mess. This won’t cut it with Zack in the middle of the 1-3-1 and Ekpe’s 3 blocks per game will be sorely missed.

There is also an issue with the shooting percentage. Beilein is convinced that Zack is a good three point shooter and he must be in practice but he shot only 26.7% from long range last year. I think it might be time to tone down the out of bounds plays designed for Zack Gibson threes unless he shows a better stroke early on.

The back up for Gibson is freshman Ben Cronin. Cronin is large (listed at 7-0 265) but has been limited by a hip injury all summer long. Had Udoh not transferred I would have expected Cronin to take a red shirt year but now as one of the only other big men on the roster Michigan doesn’t look so fortunate. It sounds like Cronin will be good to go when practice starts up but it is still worrisome that he has hip issues before he even plays a college game. Cronin was described many times as slow and lumbering running the court but if he can disturb things inside on defense and on the glass he could be an asset for 10 minutes or so per game.

The other x-factors at the five position are DeShawn Sims and Eric Puls. I don’t expect Puls to play at all and would consider it a minor miracle, he has some height at 6-10 but lacks any size (listed at a generous 210 pounds). DeShawn will of course get most of his minutes at the four but Beilein mentioned going small and running him at the five. I think this would work for short stretches especially if we can spread the floor well enough. I’ll talk a lot more about “Peedi” in the power forward preview.

Overall the center position is probably one of the biggest weaknesses on this team just because of the depth issues alone. Michigan needs Gibson to be a solid big man who can at least hold his own offensively and defensively in the post as well as on the glass. The combination of Cronin and DeShawn should be able to cover 10 or so minutes per game. The problem here is that if Gibson or Big Ben can’t cut it, there are no other options.

• Kyle Cassity made Illinois class 2a all-state first team and reportedly received a Michigan offer Wednesday and possible even verballed?. It sounds now like Kyle has NOT verballed to Michigan but he does have an offer. More tomorrow.
• Ben Cronin’s team fell in the state regional finals to Bishop Maginn. Cronin had a game high 17 points in the loss (box score).
• Stuart Douglass and Carmel lost in the regional finals 63-59 to Brownsburg. Stu had a rough shooting day going 6-20 for 16 points (box score/recap). It looks like it was a tough shooting night overall for Carmel and Brownsburg pulled off two upsets in one day.
• Terrelle Pryor likes to fight.