3 takeaways from commitment of Justin Pippen to Michigan basketball

Michigan basketball finally landed a commitment on the recruiting trail. It wasn’t a transfer portal target, but it’s a major piece as Justin Pippen is now a Wolverine.

NEWS: Justin Pippen, the No. 62 overall recruit in the 2024 class and the son of NBA legend Scottie Pippen, has committed to Dusty May and the Michigan Wolverines, he tells @247Sports.

Story: https://t.co/j5RXGUKcqa pic.twitter.com/ASR5BHPXMy

— Travis Branham (@TravisBranham_) April 19, 2024

Michigan hosted Pippen for an official visit last weekend. It seemed to go well and also seemed to wrap up the commitment. The 6-foot-3 combo guard is a classic late riser. His ranking in the 247 Sports composite rankings jumped 38 spots just this week to No. 101 overall, making him a composite four-star.

For May, it’s a huge win. He gets a player with a potential NBA future, but also not a one-and-done. Pippen feels like a multi-year contributor. We have more on that, plus other takeaways from Pippen’s commitment to Michigan basketball.

The Sweet Spot

John Beilein did an incredible job of landing players in the range of 50-200 and developing them. Some of his best players weren’t even ranked in the top 100.

Pippen could be the first example, of hopefully many under May, of his ability to develop players for the next level. Pippen’s development will be key. He’s grown a few inches over the past eight months. He’s comfortable with the ball in his hands, can shoot the 3-point shot, and score on all three levels.

Pippen is a  “naturally talented guard” according to 247 Sports, which says he has the potential to be a high-impact guard. He’s also exactly the kind of player May wants to recruit — someone with NBA upside but destined to be a multi-year contributor. That will work out better than one-and-done prospects which U-M should mostly avoid.

Some actual momentum

It’s nice to be “trending” for recruits and it feels like Michigan basketball is trending the right way with plenty of transfers, but it was nice to close a commitment.

Momentum is momentum. It matters in recruiting and Michigan has even more now. It was starting to build momentum, but landing a significant piece late in the recruiting class is always a win.

Texas A&M, Stanford, Georgia Tech, and Cal were also in the mix. Pippen had other schools vying for his services but May was able to win out.

With Pippen’s versatility you can see why both parties were interested. It should be a great fit and you can see Pippen being the starting two down the line. Yet, I also think he’ll get more minutes next season.

Regardless of the impact, it’s good to end the commitment drought.

More about the future for Michigan basketball

We touched on this a little early on, but this commitment is more about the future than next season. Dusty May wants to win now and it’s hard to do that playing freshman. The plan with Pippen’s commitment isn’t to have him starting next season.

You do want him to play some minutes. If he could have a role off the bench, that would be ideal for his development and could supplement the starting lineup with a truly versatile guard. Pippen will be valuable due to his ability to do so many things. He is also a “late bloomer” just like his dad and his brother were.

With May’s history of developing players, Pippen could be a future first-round pick. That’s probably a tad optimistic but this is exactly the kind of player John Beilein would develop into an All-Big Ten player and a draft pick.

We’ll see if May can work similar magic. Just don’t expect a ton next season.

Thank you for reading Blue by Ninety. For more Michigan Athletics and Big Ten content from Blue by Ninety, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. You can also subscribe to our YouTube Channel. Also, be sure to check out our shop and our podcast, which is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and all other streaming platforms.