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Michigan Basketball: Spike Albrecht to Transfer

By Tyler Fenwick

Feb 17, 2015; Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Michigan Wolverines guard Spike Albrecht (2) moves the ball defended past Michigan State Spartans guard Lourawls Nairn Jr. (11) in the first half at Crisler Center. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 17, 2015; Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Michigan Wolverines guard Spike Albrecht (2) moves the ball defended past Michigan State Spartans guard Lourawls Nairn Jr. (11) in the first half at Crisler Center. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports /
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Michigan basketball guard Spike Albrecht, who sat out most of this season following hip surgery, will transfer, according to an ESPN report.

It’s been over a week since Michigan basketball was eliminated from the NCAA Tournament, but the Wolverines are back in the news as Jeff Goodman of ESPN is reporting that Spike Albrecht has been granted his release and will transfer for his final year of eligibility.

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Albrecht opted to shut down his season early in December following two hip surgeries last spring. He played a total of 69 minutes in eight games.

Albrecht’s best season statistically was in 2014-15, when he averaged 7.5 points and 3.9 assists per game, although we’ll never forget what he did in the 2013 NCAA Championship Game vs. Louisville.

The original thought was that Albrecht was done with basketball. A medical redshirt was on the table, but Albrecht made it sound like that was the end of it.

“Never in a million years did I envision it would go this way,” said Albrecht. “This definitely wasn’t part of the plan. It’s not an easy recovery. We’ve been doing everything we could for the last two months to come back. It was just time to shut it down.”

He also added that it “just wasn’t worth it,” referring to the constant pain and risk of serious injury.

Albrecht’s condition was pretty much placed on the back burner when Caris LeVert went down with his lower left leg injury that turned into something much more long-lasting than expected. He also opted to shut down his season.

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In the heat of the moment, this seems like a shocking turn of events. For one, like I said, I’m not sure how many people actually believed Albrecht would be coming back to basketball, even though reports surfaced early of this being a possibility. Second, John Beilein surely wouldn’t let a guard like Albrecht walk away, right?

Well, it’s not that simple. It hardly ever is.

It wouldn’t be fair to expect Beilein to hold out for so long with Albrecht taking up a scholarship. The Wolverines are already one over the limit without factoring in Albrecht. It’s way too easy to point the finger at Beilein, especially after fans watched Max Biefeldt walk after last season and then find success at Indiana.

As for where Albrecht may end up, there are a whole host of teams out there who I’m sure wouldn’t mind having a sure-handed guard.

Is Albrecht still a Big Ten player? That depends on how his recovery progresses. If all goes well, he’s got that potential.

Keep in mind that nothing really changes here for Michigan. It’s not like the Wolverines were expecting to have Albrecht back for another year. They were moving on either way.

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Wherever Albrecht lands, he’ll have a soft spot in the hearts of fans who loved watching him deliver passes on a dime and drill shots from 25 feet away.

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