Tarris Reed Jr. welcomes challenge as Michigan basketball's next big big man

It was Wednesday morning, not long after 9 a.m., when Tarris Reed Jr. worked on his computer in the front room of Action Sports and Community Center in South Lyon.

The only noise that drowned out the voice on the other side of the video conference call — an economics course he's taking this summer — was the squeaking of shoes and dribbling of basketballs from the adjacent gym in the back of the building.

Moments after the lecture had concluded, Reed was on those courts, a whistle draped around his neck as he called out instructions for a drill.

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He and Michigan basketball teammate Will Tschetter served as counselors at "Ballin' on Break," a basketball summer camp for third- through ninth-grade students hosted by walk-on teammate Cooper Smith.

"Coop threw me in the deep end and expected me to swim," Reed joked about his role as he helped lead approximately 100 campers through drills, skill challenges and various games. "It's great. The kids love me, I love them, we’re all having fun. They’re asking 50 million questions, they just love to talk, it’s something new every day."

Something new every day — that's also how Reed described his first year in Ann Arbor.

His freshman year numbers don't jump off the page — 3.1 points and 3.4 rebounds in 12.6 minutes per game aren't exactly All-American totals — but those who followed his season closely saw his development by March.

The 6-foot-11 center became the Wolverines' most versatile defender — a clear bright spot in an otherwise dismal season. It was a campaign, Reed said, that was at times frustrating but, upon reflection, also a blessing.

"Looking back at the season, my first year playing college basketball — even though I wanted everything to go right, (realistically) that’s not the way it’s going to go," Reed said. "Playing behind Hunt (Hunter Dickinson), even though I didn’t like it at first, actually taking advantage and accountability in my role, learning from him, him showing me the ropes (was all helpful)."

This fall, Dickinson won't be in Ann Arbor — the three-time All-Big Ten selection and former face of the program opted to transfer to Kansas. Another blow came to U-M's depth at center came in April, when incoming four-star Papa Kante requested a release from his national letter of intent. (Kante has since committed to Pittsburgh.)

Without time for a learning curve and little depth behind him, Reed has reset his entire mentality for the upcoming season.

"(Hunter) left and I’m looking around like ‘who’s next,’" Reed said. "It’s myself. ... When it was my first year, I didn’t know anything, so now I can actually build off that and take it to a whole new level my sophomore year."

Two points of emphasis

While Reed had to work his way into a notable role in 2022-23, the Link Academy (Branson, Missouri) alumnus found himself getting minutes early because of his defense.

Strong enough to stay with bigs while fast and long enough to defend guards, Reed adds defensive instinct and desire to his athleticism.

It was engrained into him during his prep school days.

"I come from a high school, we have rules defensively, where if you don’t pass the test you don’t play," he said. "It was like 10-12 questions, we had a handbook of all our plays and all our defensive rules. We had the test before the first game and if you don’t pass the test, you don’t play the first game. If you don’t pass after that, you don’t play the second, and on and on.

"I was built with a defensive base, that’s my foundation."

Now, Reed is focused on rounding out his game.

Just as he did last season, Reed currently weighs 265 pounds. But a quick glance at the St. Louis native makes clear it's not the same 265. While the rising sophomore spent the past three months of the offseason growing every aspect of his game, there were two key points of emphasis: "Getting my body right and shooting," he said. "I know I can shoot, but having the confidence to shoot in games, working on that. That and my body was the main focus."

Reed shot a respectable 51.7% last season, though it mostly came in the paint, and on a modest 2.6 attempts per game. Stuck behind the most decorated player on the U-M roster, Reed played fewer than 15 minutes in each of his first 15 games before coach Juwan Howard deployed his two-big lineup for the first time at Iowa in mid-January.

On that night, Reed played 21 minutes; although he scored just two points, he tied a then-career high with seven rebounds.

From there, the freshman played double-digit minutes in all but one of U-M's final 15 regular-season games. That included the Wolverines' home win over Michigan State on Feb. 18, when he made a handful of game-changing plays late and finished with eight points and 10 rebounds.

"Honest to God, I’m super excited about Tarris’ defense," Tschetter said. "He has the tools to be a Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year candidate. ... This year, I think he's gonna take a step on offense, too."

There's little doubt where Reed needs more growth.

Though his defense was desired, he often couldn't be in games late because he shot just 40% on free throws — the worst percentage in the Big Ten among players with at least 65 attempts. Every visit to a gym this offseason has featured work from the foul line, because he knows he has to be on the court this season.

"I’m pretty excited getting my chance to start, but I know it’s not going to be given, I know coach Howard," Reed said. "I know how he rolls, he’s going to make me earn it. I”ll show him I deserve to start this year and if I don’t, I’ll understand why. So it’s all on me. It’s 100% on my plate."

'We know we can do it'

Although Reed has some individual goals for his sophomore season — Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year among them — they come second, he said.

The main goal? Get the Wolverines back to the NCAA tournament.

To that end, he's shutting out the program's haters, especially on social media.

"I stay off it, I stay away from it," Reed said of social media and the observers who say the program is headed in the wrong direction. "I don’t think it’s really about proving to other people. We know we can do it, it’s a chance we can say, ‘OK, we know what we did wrong.' Now, next year, we see the ropes, we see what our worst is and know what our best is."

That best wasn't reached last season, despite the Wolverines' talent.

In addition to Dickinson, Michigan had two players selected in the top 15 of Thursday's NBA draft — Jett Howard (11th overall by Orlando) and Kobe Bufkin (15th overall by Atlanta). Michigan was the only program who could make such a claim. And yet the Wolverines went 18-16 overall, missed the NCAA tournament for just the second time in 15 years and fell in the second round of the NIT.

Why did the team underachieve?

"Leadership," Reed said. "Being more accountable, holding each other accountable, that’s where we fell short sometimes, even after games, looking back in the game, it was like, ‘I should’ve told this guy to be in this spot at that time,’ but I didn’t feel like doing it because I was too much in my feelings.

"It will be tough, but we’re not going to be on our teammates just to be on them; we all have the same goal in mind, and that’s what we have to realize and go in with that same understanding."

While there were times Reed may have felt that way last year, he couldn't say it. That's not the way locker-room hierarchies work. A leading role must be earned, often through leading by example. It's why Reed has put in the work these past few months.

The Wolverines will need a leader this fall; Reed doesn't care if he hasn't yet started a game — he feels strongly about who needs to set the tone for the season.

"I have to," he said. "Have to."

Contact Tony Garcia at apgarcia@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter at @realtonygarcia.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan basketball's Tarris Reed Jr. ready to reach 'whole new level'