Q&A: FORMER FAU BEAT WRITER KEVIN FIELDER SHEDS LIGHT ON WHAT MICHIGAN FANS CAN EXPECT FROM VLAD GOLDIN

There will be a lot of new faces on the Michigan men’s basketball team next season, including center Vlad Goldin, who is transferring after three seasons at Florida Atlantic.

There’s a lot to like about Goldin’s game, and with the current roster, Michigan could run pick-and-rolls with Goldin a lot. Dusty May, Michigan’s newest head coach, is certainly familiar with his game.

To shed some light on what Michigan fans can expect from Goldin next season, Maize n Brew spoke to Kevin Fielder, a former FAU beat writer for 247Sports and current Kansas State beat writer for Rivals, and asked him some questions. You can find the Q&A we did with Fielder about May here.

The conversation regarding Goldin is below.

Kellen Voss: Thanks again for doing this. Why should Michigan fans be excited about adding a player like Goldin to their roster for next season?

Kevin Fielder: Goldin is a truly dominant big at the college level and has seen his scoring grow from his first year in Boca Raton to his final. When Goldin first arrived at FAU, he was a raw player with elite length and a solid defensive game. However, his offensive skillset was lacking. By the time he left FAU, he was one of the best offensive players on the team, and he kept his strong defensive ability.

Above anything else, Michigan fans should be over the moon about Goldin’s addition because he’s proven he can play against high-major talent. He was crucial in FAU’s NCAA Tournament games against Tennessee and Kansas State last season, and he was arguably FAU’s best player against Northwestern in the tournament this season. He against multiple top mid-major programs this season. There won’t be much of a learning curve for Goldin, and he should step into his role at Michigan and hit the ground running. He’s an All-Conference level player and could establish himself as an All-American with a good season against Big Ten competition.

KV: Goldin was a huge part of May’s ball screen heavy offense at FAU. Can you speak more on how May liked to utilize Goldin in the pick and roll?

KF: Goldin was the cog to Dusty May’s screen-and-roll action, as the offense would flow through him on those possessions. They used on-ball screens near the three-point line, with Goldin asked to attack the basket. From there, the guard would decide to either dish it to Goldin or use the space created from the screen to take an easy shot himself.

While Goldin would normally finish at the rim, there would be situations where he would dish the ball out to an open shooter on the perimeter. The thing about Goldin’s game is that defenses would often gravitate towards him, crashing when he would receive the ball near the rim. As he grew as a basketball player, he would learn how to punish the help side defense by dishing it out to an open shooter at the corner.

KV: In watching clips of him and a few games from the past few seasons, I’ve seen that Goldin is a versatile scorer in the paint. Can you speak about how he can beat you in multiple ways once he gets the ball in the mid-range or the mid-post?

KF: Goldin’s game is established by his ability to score at the rim, but he’s not a one-trick pony. He’s proven that he could receive the ball closer to the free-throw line and still punish defenders by establishing post position. The best part about Goldin’s offensive rise is that he’s developed more touch, which allows him to extend his game. While he won’t punish opponents with three-point shots, he’s not a complete liability on hook shots and potential jumpers further away from the basket.

KV: The advanced stats are kind to Goldin defensively. From what you saw, how good of a defender is he, especially when it comes to protecting the rim?

KF: The advanced stats would be correct about Goldin. The one thing about Goldin is that he’s always been a solid defender. While he came to Boca Raton with a limited offensive bag, his size and effort alone made him a viable defender. And it kept him as an established player in the rotation early on. His experience and playing time have only made him a better defender, too. At times, he can effectively take away the paint from opponents, which proved to be the difference multiple times this season.

Frankly, I’m shocked he didn’t get more love nationally as a defender. It might’ve been that FAU wasn’t always in the news, but he was one of the better defensive big men in the country, and he was consistently dominant on that side of the ball. However, the national media seemed to forget about that point when discussing FAU.

KV: Do you have a college basketball or pro comparison for Goldin?

KF: I’m not a fan of pro comps, but I would often compare him to a 2000s center. Unlike modern-day big men like Nikola Jokic, Karl Anthony-Towns, and others, Goldin doesn’t offer the same range to an offense. It might be the one thing that limits his NBA upside, though professional teams will still take a chance on the size.

While he’s a current player, I think he’s fairly similar to Ivica Zubac. Like Zubac, Goldin wins with his power and size, and it makes him a threat on pick-and-rolls. However, he’s likely limited to who his guards are, and won’t be able to control the offense. If you put the right players around him, he can be a very solid piece on any winning basketball team, and could potentially be your most impactful player, even if he isn’t scoring 20 points a night.

KV: What did you pick up from him at press conferences? What was his personality like?

KF: Vlad is a gentle giant. The thing that has always stood out to me is that he’s not very loud or brash. He has a calm demeanor, doesn’t like to go on social media often, and doesn’t even have an active Twitter account that’s in use. He’s a lot like other international players in the sense that he keeps to himself often, and lives a fairly private life. It’s a complete flip-flop from the player you see on the court.

I remember the first time we interviewed him, he was incredibly shy, and you could tell he wasn’t used to talking to the media. He grew more into that responsibility, but the shyness never went away.

KV: Is it reasonable for Michigan fans to expect Goldin to be one of the best players on the team next season? Also, is there anything else you’d like to add?

KF: Michigan fans have every right to expect Goldin to be one of the better players on the team next season. After all, he’s proven that he’s one of the best centers in the country, and has handled all of the high-major competition that he has played. However, I would urge some caution in the sense that he isn’t going to be the out-and-out best scorer on the team. He’ll have nights where he scores 20 points, but he’s also going to have nights where he barely cracks 10.

Even when he has poor scoring nights, he’s always going to do the little things well. It won’t matter who they’re playing or how well he’s scoring, he’ll always set strong screens, always get physical down low, and he’ll always play good defense. Those little things make him one of the better players in college basketball, and it’s the thing that will translate over better than anything else.

2024-05-06T16:03:25Z dg43tfdfdgfd