Where Michigan Basketball stands with top targets after official visits

Michigan basketball has hosted a few top targets on official visits this summer including two last week and here’s the latest as decisions are looming. 

Don’t look now, but Michigan basketball is squarely in the mix to land the No. 2 overall prospect in the entire 2023 recruiting class.

Isaiah Collier, who has been ranked as a five-star point guard, saw his ranking jump up to No. 2 overall according to On3’s 2023 rankings. He’s ranked ninth overall and as the No. 2 point guard according to the 247 sports composite rankings and by all accounts, he really enjoyed his official visit to Michigan basketball last week.

Collier posted photos with Juwan Howard and Juwan is probably the biggest reason Michigan basketball is a player in this recruitment. The Wolveriners certainly helped themselves but will it be enough to overcome the lure of UCLA or USC, and Hollywood, which is nearby.

https://twitter.com/isaiahcollier04/status/1553527060492128258?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1553527060492128258%7Ctwgr%5Ea02e04efe3d17a6745b139b088b9b058f84298d0%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.on3.com%2Fteams%2Fmichigan-wolverines%2Fnews%2Fmichigan-basketball-post-visit-intel-on-isaiah-collier-zayden-high%2F

Chris Balas of The Wolverine has reported that Collier is interested in some of the opportunities the West Coast could provide, yet the Wolverines have momentum. They just need to capitalize and remind Collier that Michigan has a big national reach too — bigger than UCLA by a longshot.

At this point, it’s hard to call anyone a clear leader, and since Michigan basketball got the last visit, and with a decision likely coming sooner rather than later, according to Balas, the Wolverines should at least feel good about where they stand.

Hunter Dickinson said that Michigan was going to struggle to land elite, top-5 recruits and we’ll see how that plays out with the recruitment of Collier.

More on 2023 targets for Michigan basketball

Another top target was on campus this past week and that’s four-star forward Zayden High. The 6-foot-9 forward is one of the fastest risers in the 2023 class.

High was rated among the top stretch or face-up fours in the class recently by 247 sports and he’s ranked 35th overall in the 247 sports composite rankings for 2023 and is No. 8 among the power forwards.

High is out of Chandler, Arizona and he’s the kind of combo forward who could play the three or four that would make him a perfect fit for this class, especially if Michigan was able to win the commitment of Papa Kante, a 6-foot-10 center set to decide soon as well.

The Wolverines are the leader for High right now according to the On3 prediction machine but Villanova is right behind them and North Carolina is also in the mix.

Rutgers and Pitt are the teams to watch for Kante and while there was more confidence on the Michigan side of things, it now seems much more 50/50, which is about the best you could say about each of these recruitments.

Of the three, High seems more set on taking his time to make a decision. We should hear something on Kante soon and sooner might be better for Collier too since Michigan seems to have momentum right now. It’s the perfect time to capitalize.