Kornacki: Dawkins Breaks Out in Big Ten Opener
12/30/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
By Steve Kornacki
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Aubrey Dawkins was hitting three-point shots as if tossing wadded-up paper into the trash can next to his desk.
One after another, they went up and came down to kiss the bottom of the net. All but one of his seven attempts from beyond the arc was good, and the final one gave him 20 points. That basket put Michigan ahead of Illinois by four points with 1:52 left in overtime during Tuesday's 73-65 victory.
Dawkins dropped his head back after his final basket, smiled and shouted, "Yeahhhh!"
It was a primal moment in a breakout game for the freshman from Palo Alto (Calif.) High via a post-graduate year at a New Hampshire prep school.
"That was just spur of the moment excitement right there," said Dawkins. "It was exciting. For me, that's the first time with this happening on this floor. And I'm really, really excited."
So, you might ask, where had head coach John Beilein been hiding Dawkins? But the truth of the matter is that he wasn't ready to play until mastering some defense. Beilein told me after the Coppin State game one week ago to keep an eye on Dawkins, a 6-foot-6 swing man, and freshman guard Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman.
Both had been progressing rapidly and were close to getting the keys to more playing time. And with Derrick Walton Jr. on his way to a 0-for-8 shooting game, Dawkins got the opportunity against the Illini. After scoring 15 points total in 10 games and averaging 6.3 minutes per contest, Dawkins played 24 minutes and lit it up while also pulling down five rebounds.
"I think it was just understanding things better and not rushing things on the cuts (to the basket) and the defensive side of basketball," Dawkins said.
Aubrey's father, Johnny, is the basketball coach at Stanford. He's a former national player of the year at Duke, an NBA veteran and a long-time Mike Krzyzewski assistant for the Blue Devils.
Jim Harbaugh, who was introduced as the football coach at half-time to a Crisler Center crowd roaring approval, came to Stanford the year before his father did.
"I met (Harbaugh) once, and he's a good guy," said Dawkins, who shares an alma mater with Harbaugh. "My dad spoke very highly of him. I don't think he recognized me when I saw him in the hallway, but it's good to have him here.
"The atmosphere in the gym (from that) was crazy, and I think that really helped us."
Dawkins said hitting his first shot ended up giving him the confidence to take more, and he ended up leading all scorers.
Despite having a big-time basketball name, Dawkins was not attracting offers from big-time schools. He said Dayton would've been his likely destination had Beilein not found him late in the recruiting game at New Hampton Prep on the suggestion of a coach who'd just lost his job.
"It was quick," said Dawkins. "I had a lot of interest from low-major and mid-major schools. And I kept having a feeling there was something better out there for me, so I waited it out. I wasn't cutting any other schools off, but playing it safe. And eventually I got a phone call, and it was Coach Beilein, and I was shocked. He told me he was going to come over and watch me play in an open gym.
"He came and watched me play in April, and he told me after that he wanted me to come on an official visit. I was thrilled, and I got there, and they offered me. I made one more visit and made my decision. Dayton was my other choice, and I got it down to two schools. It was really quick."
Dawkins clicked his fingers and smiled. And so he became a Wolverine, and on Tuesday got a chance to lead his team in "The Victors" in the postgame locker room.
Beilein explained how he found Dawkins, "It was the Boston College coach, Steve Donahue, who had just been let go. He'd been recruiting Aubrey, and his dad, Johnny, is a good friend. We'd been on the ethics coalition together. I went to see him at the Final Four (during a coaches' convention), and that's a dead period. So, I wouldn't talk to Johnny Dawkins about his son at the Final Four, and that's the real story. And he respected that. And we got into it after that."
Beilein said Aubrey's performance against Illinois has earned him the right to more playing time.
"He gives us some athleticism that we're used to with Glenn Robinson (now a Minnesota Timberwolves rookie) that we really need, frankly," said Beilein. "So, it was really good to have him out there doing what he was doing."
Dawkins said he "took to heart" Beilein's message of "mental toughness and boxing out" to become a factor when the ball wasn't in his hot hands.
"He brings us a lot of maturity," said Beilein, "and knows how to conduct himself on and off the court. That's why his dad's successful. And he brings a great deal. His dad was a long-time pro, too, and we love that the pros trust us with their sons."
Aubrey wears No. 24 for his father, who wore that at Duke.
"It's to pay some respect," Aubrey said with a smile. "I hope to be half the player he was."
Johnny Dawkins scored 2,566 points to leave as Duke's all-time leading scorer and was one of 50 players selected the Atlantic Coast Conference's 50th anniversary team saluting its greatest players.
Dad's number is retired at Cameron Indoor Stadium, and the son wearing the same number made his first big splash at Crisler.
"Coach Beilein always talks about outliers and how any night could be anyone's night," said Dawkins. "Like Max (Bielfeldt) had his (with 18 points against Bucknell), and I had mine tonight. It could be Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman the next night. It could be anybody. You just have to stay confident and be ready."
Beilein more than agrees.
"They haven't shown in practice what we saw today yet," he said. "But we know it's coming. It's just, 'How do we speed it up?' So, we've been working every day, a lot of extra hours, just shooting so they know the offense. And it paid off today."
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