This week, two of the 2024-25 Michigan men's basketball team's biggest stars will launch their NBA careers, as the league hosts its annual draft in Brooklyn Wednesday night. Ahead of the event, we preview each of their journeys to draft night, strengths and question marks as a draft prospect and break down where publications project them to be drafted. Previously we looked at forward Danny Wolf.
Next up is former Michigan center Vlad Goldin
Bio
Position: Center
Height: 7-foot-1
Weight: 250 pounds
Age: 21
Hometown: Vorenzh, Russia
2024-25 stats: 16.6 points, 7.0 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 1.4 blocks per game
At Michigan
After three increasingly productive seasons at Florida Atlantic, Goldin followed Dusty May to Michigan for his fifth and final collegiate season. Given his track record, expectations were high for Goldin to be among the Big Ten's best centers, and he lived up to that billing. He led the Wolverines with 16.6 points per game (3.4 more per game than the next-highest scorer), and failed to score in double figures in just two of Michigan's final 30 games, compared to 13 games with at least 20 points in that stretch.
He finished fifth in the Big Ten in points, seventh in rebounds, fifth in blocks, second in field-goal percentage (60.7 percent) and first in true shooting percentage (65.4 percent). After not attempting a single 3-pointer in his first four seasons, he went 11 for 33 from 3-point range, and shot a career-high 73.1 percent from the free-throw line.
For his efforts, he was named first-team All-Big Ten by the media, and second-team All-Big Ten by coaches and the AP. He was also named the Most Outstanding Player at the Big Ten Tournament, after averaging 17.0 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game in wins over Purdue, Maryland and Wisconsin, as Michigan won the title.
Though Goldin had plenty of statistically strong games, his 23-point, 12-rebound, 3-block game against Texas A&M was a difference-maker in the Wolverines' second-round NCAA Tournament win.
What scouts like
Goldin has legitimate size and strength, and even in jumping from the AAC to the Big Ten, the fifth-year senior was one of the most consistent and efficient scorers in the country. He and Creighton star Ryan Kalkbrenner were the only 7-footers to average at least 15 points per game on a true-shooting percentage of at least 65 percent (there were 143 7-footers who logged minutes in college basketball last season, for reference).
Within the numbers, Goldin's high shooting percentage by the rim highlight his savvy veteran moves, and consistent motor and work ethic, while his improvements in free-throw and even 3-point shooting show a softer shooting touch than others at his position, and a willingness and ability to expand his game.
Goldin has been a reliable offensive presence for years, but showed in the Big Ten that it wasn't just him beating up on lesser competition. At the NBA Combine, he also logged a 7-foot-6 wingspan.
Question marks
The biggest knock NBA scouts will have on Goldin's profile is that he's already 24. Combined with more average athleticism, and NBA teams might be skeptical of just how high his ceiling is.
His defense, while at times effective, will be another question. Generally in the NBA, bigger, non-perimeter centers can struggle on defense, especially if they aren't otherworldly shot-blockers or athletes.
That he added a 3-point shot should capture a few NBA teams' attention, but finishing the year 2-for-17 on 3s negates some of the strong progress he showed earlier in the season.
Passing and avoiding turnovers is also not a strong suit of his, as he had 40 assists and 86 turnovers last season, and 95 sssists and 239 turnovers in his career.
Latest projections
CBS Sports predicts Goldin to go 59th overall to the Houston Rockets
The Athletic projects Goldin to go 48th overall to the Memphis Grizzlies
ESPN projects Goldin to go 49th overall to the Cleveland Cavaliers
Yahoo Sports predicts Goldin to go 55th overall to the Los Angeles Lakers
Bleacher Report projects Goldin to go 59th overall to the Houston Rockets
Goldin is commonly predicted as a mid-to-late second round prospect, with most citing age, athleticism and a lack of shooting touch as drawbacks preventing him from moving up in the draft.