ANN ARBOR, Mich. – It’s been a rough offseason for the Michigan basketball program, but on Wednesday, the Wolverines finally got some good news.
Tennessee transfer Olivier Nkamhoua has reportedly committed to Michigan over Baylor, West Virginia, and Kansas State.
Nkamhoua, a 6-foot-8 forward with one season of eligibility remaining, averaged 10.8 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists per game last season. He shot 51.3% from the floor and made one-third of his three-point attempts.
If you watched the NCAA Tournament, you probably remember Nkamhoua’s 27-point performance in a blowout win over Duke to reach the Sweet 16. In that game, he made 10 of 13 shot attempts, including three of four from beyond the arc.
Michigan desperately needs scoring next season, and Nkamhoua now figures to be one of the top options.
This offseason has not been kind to Juwan Howard’s team after missing the Big Dance for the first time during his tenure. The departures of Kobe Bufkin and Jett Howard to the NBA draft were expected, but Hunter Dickinson’s decision to transfer came as a shock.
READ: What legacy does Hunter Dickinson leave at Michigan? Making sense of another complex tenure
Then, the team’s most high-profile transfer commitment, Caleb Love, flipped his choice to Arizona, reportedly due to admissions issues.
The only proven returning players left on the roster are impending true sophomores Dug McDaniel and Tarris Reed.
Former five-star guard and Alabama transfer Nimari Burnett will try to revive his career in Ann Arbor after scoring just 5.6 points per game on 36.8% shooting as a sophomore in Tuscaloosa. He spent his freshman season with Texas Tech.
Seton Hall transfer Tray Jackson has also committed to the Wolverines.
