Vlad Goldin: How Michigan's 7-footer Went From Never Shooting 3-pointers to Thriving on the Shot

Goldin's three made treys in a span of 2:29 ignited the Wolverines as he scored 31 Sunday in an 80-76 overtime win over pesky Northwestern

Photo Courtesy of University of Michigan Photography

Vlad Goldin launches a three-point shot Sunday against Matthew Nicholson, the 7-foot Northwestern center from Clarkston, Mich.

By Steve Kornacki

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Vlad Goldin never so much as attempted a three-point shot in his first four seasons of college basketball.

However, Michigan’s 7-foot-1 center made three shots from beyond the arc from his favorite spot – directly behind the free throw line – in a span of 2:29 midway through the first half. It ignited what had been a listless offensive game until that point, and Goldin was on his way to 31 points in Sunday’s 80-76 overtime win over Northwestern.

I asked Goldin, a graduate transfer from Florida Atlantic University, if there was any way he could have imagined prior to this season hitting a team-high trio of triples in a game.

“Ahh, of course,” said Goldin, his eyes dancing as he cracked a smile and laughed heartily.

The No. 20 Wolverines (14-4, 6-1 Big Ten) trailed, 12-10, when Goldin swished the first of his three treys with 10:18 left in the half.

Goldin said, “I feel like I was pretty wide open and [7-foot teammate] Danny [Wolf] taught me something – that it’s impossible to block the three from a seven-footer because I’ve shot [it] all summer.”

He was 1-for-2 on treys over the first 12 games, but something was ignited in his long-range shooting tendency by making the two he took Dec. 29 against Western Kentucky. Goldin is 8-for-14 on those shots over the last six games, and 9-for-16 on the season for his team-best .563 accuracy.

“Vlad does a lot for us,” said Michigan coach Dusty May, “and now he’s knockin’ down threes and free throws [improving from .647 at the line in his career to .721 this season]. We were struggling to get anything going, and in theory [his threes] loosened them up.”

Factor in that he leads the team with 16.4 points per game and 33 blocked shots while averaging 6.1 rebounds and drawing fouls at a crazy pace, and Goldin has become a total beast with an inside-out game opening up the driving lanes to the basket for him as well.

“It opens up a lot,” said Goldin, his eyes widening at the thought. “I had a couple drives, and I felt like I could make that [shot] or the free throws. If you shoot the ball [deep] it helps a lot because people start getting close to you [out deeper].”

Teams get physical with Goldin despite his size, but he simply blinks his eyes after getting smashed in the face and goes to the free throw line with great calm. He’s made 75-of-104 at the line. Even on a team filled with physical, hard-driving players, Goldin has nearly double the free throw attempts of any other Michigan player.

I asked May – who coached him the last three seasons at FAU before both came to Ann Arbor – about a conversation he might have had with Goldin at some point to prompt his working on shooting threes.

“Yeah, we had conversations about a year ago,” said May. “Our philosophy’s always been – for big guys that never shot them – to shoot them every day for a year until you have the confidence and comfort and rhythm. And then, we’ll shoot them.

“But our team last year – there really weren’t enough shots for our team. We had our whole team back [after reaching the Final Four the previous season], and so part of it was circumstances. Part of it was being the only true big man on our team, and so he had to put pressure on the rim.

“The best way for a five man [center] to get threes off are defensive rebound, outlet and then trail it up. Your point guard finds a way to get you a shot. And when we do the shooting drills, he’s knocked it down with consistency.”

When asked why he’d he never shot one in four previous seasons, Goldin said, “Because I don’t need it. It’s not that I was scared or couldn’t do it. Obviously, I’ve put in a lot of work. And Danny taught me that I have a lot of time [to shoot it when open]. But on my previous teams, that’s not what they wanted from me. And this team, it’s something that I can help.

“So, I’m going to do it. I’m going to do whatever it takes.”

He did miss one triple from the corner against Northwestern, but said taking nearly every attempt from straight in front of the basket “comes from circumstances.”

“Mostly, because I play pick-and-roll [action], I have to be there,” noted Goldin. “If I’m going to be there, I’m going to shoot. But that’s my normal spot.”

Goldin added, “If I’m open, I’m going to take any kind of shot. It’s just shot selection.”

I asked guard Nimari Burnett – whose .481 shooting percentage on threes is second-best on the team – when he realized Goldin had become a three-point threat.

“I realized that, honestly, in June,” said Burnett. “I saw him step out and shoot it in live plays, and I was like, ‘Oh, wow, he’s really developed.’ Especially we being at Texas Tech together [in 2020-21] and seeing how he shoots the ball. And it’s confident. It’s not something that: ‘Oh, he made it! Wooo!’

“He puts in the work, too.”

Goldin was just below his career-high 36 points two weeks ago at UCLA. His scoring average continues rising, and his .646 accuracy on field goal attempts is threatening the .661 school record of Loy Vaught on the 1989 national championship team.

Now, even if he continues making a fantastic .563 of his threes, that will bring down his overall field goal shooting percentage a bit. You can bet that’s not going to keep him from shooting those bombs, though.

Goldin does “whatever it takes” to win, and has added another element to his game that makes him tough to beat.