What’s next after Michigan Basketball misses on Olivier Nkamhoua?

The brutal offseason continues for Michigan basketball as Olivier Nkamhoua reportedly eliminated the Wolverines from contention on Monday.

Things just keep going from bad to worse for Michigan basketball as a comically bad offseason took another turn on Monday.

Olivier Nkamhoua has been a long-time priority for Michigan basketball and following a visit over the weekend, the Wolverines thought they were in a good position.

But they thought wrong.

After a visit to Baylor, Nkamhoua has narrowed his choices down to the Bears and West Virginia — the two strongest NIL bids it seems — leaving Michigan basketball at the altar once again.

What’s next for Michigan basketball?

For the 2023-24 Michigan basketball team, it’s a crushing blow and one the team might not recover from. Yes, the losses of Hunter Dickinson, Jett Howard, and Kobe Bufkin were the biggest hits this offseason, but add Caleb Love and Nkamhoua and you at least got a shot.

Right now, it’s hard to make a case for Michigan basketball to make the NCAA tournament and keep a straight face. Sure, it’s possible, even likely that Dug McDaniel and Tarris Reed take big leaps this year, but there are still so many holes right now.

George Washington III would need to be a leading scorer and average double figures as a freshman. That, or Tray Jackson and Nimari Burnett both need to take dramatic leaps.

They each have potential. Burnett was a five-star recruit and Jackson has shown he can score at a high level — he just needs to do it consistently. Terrance Williams, Will Tschetter, and Jace Howard would all need suddenly become functional players, plus Jaelin Llewellyn would have to play key minutes either as a starting two (Burnett at the three) or coming off the bench.

With 10 scholarship players, you wonder if Michigan basketball can even fill the remaining spots on its roster. Zyon Pullin visited Florida over the weekend. There were reports that the Wolverines were among the top two, but I see no reason to get your hopes up.

I wouldn’t hold my breath if Antonio Reeves enters the transfer portal from Kentucky either. He’s going to want an NIL deal and it’s clear Michigan’s administration has no clue in that department.

It’s wild that I actually believed NIL would help the Wolverines. Instead, it’s hurt because Warde Manuel refuses to get his head out of the sand. The baskeball program is suffering and right now, it’s hard to have hope or any reason to be excited about the 2023-24 season.