Mike Boynton Jr. Has Michigan Basketball's Starting Lineup, Rotation Figured Out

Michigan still has one more exhibition game to play and that will take place on Sunday against Houston, but it's starting to sound like Mike Boynton Jr. has a plan on what his rotation is going to look like this season.

The Wolverines got great news on Thursday. Roddy Gayle Jr. is finally fully eligible and he will play against the Cougars in Grand Rapids on Sunday. While Boynton Jr. had good news to share — there was also some not so good news. Freshman Joseph Hartman will be out for a few weeks with a shoulder injury. Hartman was playing his way into a role this season.

With that in mind, Boynton Jr. told the media who he had in mind to start, and which players would come off the bench in a rotational role.

"I think as I go in today, I would imagine Roddy will slide into that starting wing spot with Elliot, and Trey, JP, and Moustapha," Boynton Jr. said. "And then you're looking at Ricky, Quinn, and Oscar, probably in that next group with Joseph out. Marcus is still working back. Jalen Reed's certainly going to be a part of what we do. 

"So I feel good. I mean, that's where you want to be, you know, 8, 9, 10. The sweet spot's probably 8. It's probably perfect. But you've got to have eight really good ones, like we did last year, to be comfortable at 8. 9 is probably more comfortable for coaches. So we're right there."

Starting five

Rotation

Jalen Reed's role moving forward

When Michigan went and landed LSU's Jalen Reed, many thought he was going to be a big part of what the Wolverines did this season. Boynton Jr. included Reed, but after Liburd, Goodman, and Costello.

Come to find out, Reed was viewed as an insurance policy at first. But as he has gotten healthier, after suffering two season-ending injuries, Reed has shown he's capable of doing more. As of now, he is listed as the third center on the depth chart behind Thiam and Estrella, but Michigan could use Reed in a variety of ways this season.

"Yeah, he's sort of a piece we can move around," said Boynton Jr. "But we weren't expecting it. We kind of, when we talked about it, talked to him even when we were recruiting him at the end. This is before we knew 5-for-5 was a thing or whatever. It was still a thought that if he's not healthy, maybe he just sits the year and we get them next year for him. So it was more of a kind of an insurance piece.

"But he's worked so hard in his recovery. He's done such a good amount of work on his own with our trainers. He's ready to go. I mean, right now he's on the third string center, if you will, behind Moustapha and JP. But he easily slides to the floor because he can move well. And he's still in the game."

Why Kenny Noland?

One name Boynton Jr. didn't mention in the rotation is Columbia transfer Kenny Noland. After LJ Cason transferred away, the Wolverines searched far and wide for a new backup point guard. After talking to a bunch of players, Michigan went with fifth-year Noland.

We added Noland as part of the rotation and we would expect him to see playing time. Clearly, Elliot Cadeau won't come off the court very often, but when he does, Noland should find his way onto the court. He played four seasons at Columbia, showed he can score at a high clip, but he also showed he can run an offense and play defense.

"Yeah, I think I talked to him about him a little bit before," Boynton Jr. said. "It was probably as intentional of a signing as we had this spring, especially because of the timing. And we probably got called by 25 kids. We probably looked at 20 of them. A couple, we were just like, that's not going to work. 

"And then it came down to who really can fit this specific role. It's a very specific role. There probably wasn't a starting opportunity available at that spot. There probably wasn't a ton of minutes at point guard. But his ability to have a high floor, he brings a tremendous amount of stability if Elliot's in foul trouble like he did the other day. Or maybe he's just having an off night.

"But he also can play with him because he's shown the ability to score. He can make shots. I think he's still trying to figure out the size and speed of the game at this level and practice has helped with that. But his IQ, his toughness, his intelligence, and his desire to win and want to compete on a team that can play in the NCAA tournament was very, very attractive to me."

Michigan will take on Houston this Sunday before opening its season up against Oakland on Nov. 2.

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