Michigan Basketball: A positive with Olivier Nkamhoua and a new transfer target

Michigan basketball has a new transfer portal guard in its sights, plus some confidence in the recruitment of Olivier Nkamhoua. 

The Wolverines need some additions via the transfer portal and while things aren’t looking great for guard Rayj Dennis, there is some reason for Michigan baskeball fans to have hope.

On Tuesday, there was some crystal ball movement and the prediction that had him going to Illinois went Foggy. You might think that was good news for Michigan basketball, but the feeling is that Dennis is going to wind up at Utah. He’s got connections to the staff there and that could be the spot.

Nothing is over until it’s over in recruiting. There haven’t been any crystal balls or a commitment yet, but you hear lots of rumblings about Utah on Twitter.

Michigan basketball is also reaching to a new transfer portal guard and that’s probably also a sign that Dennis won’t be joining the Wolverines.

The new guard the Wolverines are in contact with is Zyon Pullin, a 6-foot-4 graduate transfer from UC Riverside. This is according to Davis Moseley of The Michigan Insider. At 6-foot-4, Pullin would fit perfectly into the two-guard spot. He’s also a dynamic scorer and creator.

Pullin averaged 18.3 points per game last season. He also dished out 4.2 assists and made 39 percent from 3-point range. His career 3-point percentage is 35 percent and there has been some variance. During his sophomore season, he also shot 39 percent but dipped down to 31 percent as a junior.

Regardless, there is a lot to like. He’d be a high-usage scorer and has made more than 50 percent of his 2-pointers in three straight seasons. Of course, you have to wonder how that would translate in the Big Ten, but Michigan needs scorers.

The Wolverines are also desperate for a two-guard and with few options, Pullin is a must-land at this stage of the game for Michigan basketball.

A reason for confidence with Olivier Nkamhoua

The other part of this process is waiting for guys to make their NBA draft decisions. That’s been part of the delay for Olivier Nkamhoua.

We still don’t know if he’s going to return to college basketball for sure, but he’s taking two visits, so it feels likely. The first is to West Virginia and the second is to Michigan.

When I heard about the West Virginia visit I was worried and still am. The Mountaineers are a solid program and aren’t shy about using NIL.

However, the fact that Michigan is getting the second visit might be a good thing. It will give them a chance to try and match the NIL offer, plus use their own pitch, which should involve improving his draft stock, which in the long run, is more valuable than NIL for some players.

Chris Balas of The Wolverine hinted at some reasons to be confident. The Wolverines have always been viewed as the favorite if Nkamhoua returned to college and as long as Michigan basketball can be competitive in NIL (a big if), they should have a good shot.

However, this offseason has taught me to not get too excited until the program announces the signing.