Michigan Basketball: David DeJulius transfer was just a matter of time

It was only a matter of time before a Michigan basketball player entered the transfer portal and the first was David DeJulius.

It’s been known for some time that Michigan basketball was going to experience some roster attrition at some point this offseason, especially if recruits like Isaiah Todd and Joshua Christopher wind up coming to Ann Arbor.

The first shoe to drop was Isaiah Livers declaring for the NBA draft last week. He can still return, but it seems like there is a good chance he won’t. And on Monday, the bigger news came as reserve guard David DeJulius has decided to put his name in the transfer portal. The news was first reported by The Michigan Insider.

While it wasn’t shocking to see DeJulius end up as one of the guys to transfer, I suggested he was one of three of the most likely to do so just about a week ago, it’s still disappointing because of what he could mean for next year’s team.

Just like with the NBA draft, DeJulius could technically remove his name from the transfer portal and return to play for Michigan basketball again, but that rarely ever happens.

It does explain why Michigan has expressed interest in Mike Smith of Columbia and Bryce Aiken of Harvard, a pair of graduate-transfer point guards, but more than likely, Christopher will be starting in the backcourt, if he commits, along with Eli Brooks.

When the Wolverines started showing interest in point guards, there was some thought that either DeJulius or Brooks would be transferring but DeJulius made the most sense. He never earned a role as a starter and despite averaging 7.0 ppg, he only played about 20 minutes and if Christopher, a five-star guard commits to U-M, his role could shrink even more.

In the grand scheme of things, it would mean that if Livers stays in the draft, Michigan would be at 13 scholarships with the additions of Todd and Christopher. If another player decided to transfer, that could open up another spot, but that’s where things stand right now.

The hope among fans was that maybe a big like Colin Castleton would have transferred or maybe even Adrien Nunez, but the reality is that their decisions probably weren’t going to change what DeJulius did.

Maybe with so much fluidity. he wanted to explore his options, just like the Wolverines, but it’s likely he wants to go somewhere he can be the featured guy. He’s talented enough to have that role, it just didn’t seem to be in the cards in Ann Arbor.

We’ll see what happens. For now, the hope is that Christopher commits, otherwise, the backcourt is going to feature Zeb Jackson much sooner than expected.