Is Michigan PG Jaelin Llewellyn an upgrade over Frankie Collins?

Michigan lost a point guard when sophomore-to-be Frankie Collins his the transfer portal, bolting for Arizona State. The Wolverines needed a guard even before he left one and got on in the portal when Princeton’s Jaelin Llewellyn pledged after de-committing from Clemson.

RELATED: Michigan guard Jaelin Llewellyn a top-50 player in On3’s college basketball transfer portal rankings

All’s well that ends well, it seems, especially given what Michigan is getting in the 6-3 standout.

In Llewellyn, Howard landed his third overall guard from the portal and second from the Ivy League. Columbia’s Mike Smith was hugely successful in helping lead Michigan to the 2020-21 Big Ten title, while Coastal Carolina’s DeVante’ Smith came on strong by the end of last year to average 10.3 points and 4.6 assists per game along with 4.5 rebounds. 

On3.com’s Jamie Shaw called the 6-2 Llewellyn a “perfect fit” who makes “too much sense” to not have ended up at Michigan.

“Jaelin Llewellyn finished first-team All-Ivy League last season and finished top five in the league in points (15.7) and field goal percentage (44.7),” he noted. “Llewellyn carries the same traits that Jones did — aggression and confidence.

“Llewellyn was one of (only) two Ivy League players with a usage percentage over 25 and an offensive rating over 109 last season. He also added 64 threes at a 38.4-percent clip. Howard seems to prefer headstrong point guards who can create, and Llewellyn fits that mold.”

He’ll enter the season as the favorite to start at the point after Collins’ sudden departure. Though Collins showed flashes, including 14 points in an NCAA Tournament win over Colorado State, his shooting — 16.7 percent from long range, 44.1 percent from the free throw line — made him a potential liability far too often. 

Like Smith and Jones, Llewellyn will have to prove he can play at the highest level after spending four years in a lesser league. Shaw believes he will. Though more instinctive than high IQ, Shaw said, the Canada native has obviously got the mind to learn Michigan’s extensive playbook.

“He’s a tough-minded point guard … a lead guard,” Shaw said. “He looks to score, and he can score … touches the paint [on his drives]. He can shoot it a little bit, but he’s more a downhill, rugged guard. There’s a guy who played a couple years ago at Iowa State in Lindell Wigginton (now with the Milwaukee Bucks) who was also a Canadian point guard. I’m not saying he’s the exact same, but the same archetype player.

“His shot selection has improved. The mechanics of the shot, the balance is good, but mostly finding his spots, he’s improved. He’s not wildly taking shots as he sees them come open. He’s trying to mechanically get to a spot and knows how, and he can shoot off the bounce.” 

He has the potential to be what they thought Jones might be from the outset last year, he added. Jones found a groove midway through the year, but he struggled some out of the gate.

“You won’t see that from Jaelin,” Shaw said. “Jaelin has played at a high level. He played Canadian ball, played high level high school and AAU ball, played high level games at Princeton, as well. I don’t think it will be any type of overwhelming situation at all.”

But he’ll have to start learning the playbook immediately. That will be his first task when he arrives on campus, and odds are he’s already dived into it.

“High IQ involves pace and volume,” Michigan assistant Phil Martelli said. “This is one of the biggest playbooks I’ve ever been around. And even scouting, like when I scouted for all those years and when I scout in the Big Ten … there are not people doing this.

“So … it’s volume and pace. We’ll even teach something on the day before a game.”

Which was new to him, as was the extensive defensive call list. He’s even impressed with the scout team players, Martelli said, for learning not only that but the offenses of the teams they’re emulating in practice.

Llewellyn won’t have to worry about that. He’s preparing to be Michigan’s point guard, and Shaw isn’t alone in thinking he will — as long as he picks up the offense.

“I think he’s more of an instinctive player than an IQ player. But not by any stretch am I saying he’s not a smart player,” Shaw said. “He’s a very instinticve player who plays with an aggression — a confidence and an aggression. 

“I think it’s a good fit. He can definitely play in the Big Ten. And he’s at a position at Michigan where I think he can come in and kind of solidify it.”

Better than Frankie Collins?

Quite possibly. He’ll get his chance to prove it soon enough.