Best of The Herd

Live from Chicago, I caught Michigan–Tennessee in person, then went home and watched Duke build a big lead and collapse against a March-tough UConn; wherever you are, thanks for hanging with us.

Duke raced out while UConn bricked threes early, but Hurley’s crew mauled them after the break; youth showed, the Boozer kids got rattled, and Duke’s late-game guidance vanished when a simple timeout could’ve steadied everything.

UConn’s older core and cemented culture travel in March; it felt as much like Duke let it slip as UConn seized it, and that pattern of blown leads has become a tell.

Michigan checks every box right now—size, rim protection, unselfish half-court passing, and high-level shooting; Mara and Lendenborg create mismatches as playmaking bigs, and that 21–0 burst on Tennessee was the giveaway.

Arizona’s guards are dangerous, but if you don’t dent Michigan’s bigs, you’re in trouble; NIL has actually supercharged programs that blend five-stars with grown men who already know the system.

Michigan has the mix Duke doesn’t—grown vets with young pop; I’m gutted by that end-game, because a timeout or a simple heave to two open teammates changes everything.

That’s the NIL edge for UConn and Michigan—you get elite recruits plus a Caravan-type voice who’s basically a second coach; if Kaden Boozer is a junior, he probably calls that timeout on instinct.

Quick hits where I was right and wrong—Michigan looks like the pick, the Big Ten flexed on the SEC, tanking won’t die without new ways to acquire stars, the Knicks remain flawed late, and baseball’s ABS twist turned into a fun strategy reveal.

Ryan Russillo is here: what makes Hurley unstoppable in March—scheme, recruiting, or that relentless edge?

UConn’s run is absurd—eighteen straight wins from the Sweet 16 on—and it traces back to a real culture that Calhoun set; Hurley’s intensity is that good kind of crazy that convinces a team the tide is turning even when shots aren’t falling, and the defense follows.

I don’t love hammering coaches, but with a young roster you can’t let chaos snowball; was Shire too slow on the whistle?

I put more of it on player execution than philosophy; Shire’s a great coach who’ll win big there, even if Duke losses light up the country like nothing else.

Michigan’s half-court flow looks like an NBA team right now; are they the team to beat?

Their big-to-big passing is outstanding and Lendenborg’s perimeter game jumps, though the guards can wobble; Arizona’s depth and waves of creators make that matchup feel like anybody’s game.

On the draft, I love Acuff’s instant-offense profile and worry about Peterson’s durability and tunnel vision; am I overthinking it?

The league seems less spooked than the chatter suggests; Peterson shows star-level shotmaking and reads, AJ and Boozer are wildly efficient, Acuff looks like a real NBA guard, and some execs might secretly prefer picking second to dodge the spotlight.

Title picture for me is Celtics and OKC, with fans swooning over the Lakers; I don’t think their defense holds up when teams hunt matchups for a week.

Against Houston I’d lean Lakers, but versus Denver or Minnesota I’d take the other side; LeBron still has monster nights, yet the athletic dip and targetability show up in series, and Denver remains the standard.

By the way, Russillo’s rocking a sling from wide-grip pull-ups—welcome to the not-so-young club; good seeing you, man.

He’s jacked and still tweaked a shoulder; I’m just out here cut and catching strays.