Michigan basketball freshmen standing out: One has 'surpassed all expectations,' another has shown 'exponential' growth

CHICAGO — Michigan Wolverines basketball‘s Dusty May found a hidden gem. LJ Cason, a three-star guard out of Lakeland (Fla.) Victory Christian Academy, was signed to play for May at Florida Atlantic, before the head coach was hired at Michigan. Despite fielding other offers after getting out of his National Letter of Intent, Cason chose to follow May to Ann Arbor.

Ever since then, Cason has generated buzz inside the program, impressing during summer workouts and early in preseason practices, which began last week.

“I knew we signed a really good player,” May said. “I don’t think I realized how good of a player. He’s adapted really well to this level. I think he’s already surpassed all expectations.”

May and Co. were ready to be patient with the 6-foot-2, 190-pounder, and they’re still willing to be, but they may not need to be.

“You sign freshman, and they’re not in the McDonald’s game or not playing with USA Basketball, you anticipate it to be a slower process,” the Michigan coach explained. “He’s been pretty impactful from Day 1. Obviously, he has to do it on the big stage, under the bright lights, but it doesn’t seem like anything fazes him. He’s played in a lot of big games in high school, on the AAU circuit, and he’s just a young guy that’s unflappable.”

Junior Tre Donaldson, an Auburn transfer, is Michigan’s projected starting point guard, but Cason could provide some minutes there and elsewhere in the backcourt.

“Right now, he’s a scoring combo guard,” May said. “He has to refine some skills to be a guard that’s just as good at distributing and playmaking as he is scoring and creating shots. But he’s made a jump.

“He has the ability to get to where he needs to get to with the ball, and he’s shot it incredibly well. I think his percentages might be the highest on our team off of catch-and-shoot threes and off the bounce from the summer to the early fall.

“Hopefully this can continue. It’s tough to be a freshman in this league. He’s changed his body, and he’s a competitor.”

We asked Michigan junior forward/center Danny Wolf and graduate center Vladislav Goldin if “the hype is real” on Cason. Wolf laughed and said, “Yeah.”

“He’s young,” Wolf noted. “He just turned 18 a month ago. He’s a really good kid, and I know our coaches and a lot of people are talking a big game, but when it comes down to it, he’s one of the most talented scorers I’ve played with or against. He can really, really score the ball. He’s a high, high level finisher, a two-level creator. He’s really, really talented on the ball.

“I think our coaches are challenging him right now on becoming more of a leader. I mean, it’s the Big Ten, and it’s a really competitive, hard-nosed league, and I think he needs to develop some leadership skills and learn how to run a program as a point guard and control the game.”

Then came the bold proclamation from Wolf, who joined Michigan after transferring in from Yale.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if, in two years, he’s the best player in the Big Ten,” he said. “He’s that good of a player.”

Goldin was at Florida Atlantic under May when Cason signed, and the two had been acquainted. Since they’ve become teammates, Goldin has forged the belief that the freshman has a bright future.

“We all have different challenges, and his challenge is to grow as a leader and be the head of an offense,” Goldin said. “But he has huge potential. He’s a great player.”

Phat Phat Brooks taken a big jump

Michigan freshman guard Phat Phat Brooks — a Grand Rapids (Mich.) Catholic Central product — was Mr. Basketball in the state. May said he’s made big strides since joining the program this summer.

“The growth of Phat Phat Brooks in the last couple weeks has been exponential,” the Michigan coach noted. “He went from a guy that was maybe even a redshirt candidate to impacting practice every single day and looking more and more like a guy that could have a role this year. Obviously, there’s a lot of time left.”

While his offensive game is coming along, Wolf said his defense is off the charts.

“Phat Phat Brooks — our coaches say it every day in practice, you don’t want to go at Phat when he’s guarding you,” Wolf said. “Super athletic, and he’s just really, really physical and competes. If basketball was just defense, he’d be an unbelievable … he’d be the best player on the court, in my opinion. He’s that good at defense.”

“He’s a great defensive player,” Goldin added. “He just knows where the ball is going to be and how he has to disrupt the players. He’s definitely one of the best defenders on the team right now.”

Michigan’s third freshman guard, Justin Pippen, dealt with a minor injury over the summer but is getting closer to 100 percent.

“Justin is coming back from a little injury right now. When he was playing, [you could see] he has basketball in his blood,” Wolf said of the son of Basketball Hall-Of-Famer Scottie Pippen. “He’s really mature for a freshman point guard, and he knows the game really well, plays with great pace. I’m excited to see what he looks like when he’s all healthy.”

“When I played in the lineup with Justin, he doesn’t look like a freshman, probably just because of his experience — it makes sense, because he was probably surrounded by basketball,” Goldin explained. “But he looks way more experienced, and he knows how to play and knows how to adjust to different roles. He’s been one of the most mature players on the team.”