Nimari Burnett will be an essential piece for Michigan Basketball

Michigan basketball landed Nimari Burnett in the transfer portal this offseason and he’s going to have a huge role to play for the Wolverines. 

While Michigan basketball fans are focused on the next potential move in the transfer portal or even the one that got away in Caleb Love, Nimari Burnett is one transfer that is already signed with the Wolverines and there are plenty of reasons to be excited about him.

Burnett was a former five-star recruit for one thing. Michigan basketball was heavily involved in his recruitment coming out of high school before he ended up at Texas Tech.

Hampered by some injuries, things didn’t really go as planned for Burnett at Texas Tech or Alabama. He’s played just two seasons and started nine games last season for Alabama but averaged 14.7 minutes and 5.6 points.

With Michigan basketball, Burnett is going to start. He’s also going to be the team’s best perimeter defender. He was a stellar defender for Alabama too and he kind of fit the mold of a 3 and D guy.

Burnett hit 32.1 percent from 3-point range and made 1.2 triples per outing. Both of those numbers are likely to improve with Michigan basketball. And if Juwan Howard and the coaching staff can unlock his five-star talent, he could be a steal.

At the very least, the 6-foot-4 guard will give Michigan basketball someone it can put on the other team’s best perimeter player on offense, whether that’s a guard or wing.

Even if Michigan adds someone like Jose Perez, Burnett will have a key role to play. The Wolverines are going to need him to be more assertive offensively and if he’s going to want to develop into an NBA-caliber prospect, he’ll need to show he can do more on that end.

Burnett played in 27 games total last season and made at least two triples in seven games, as well as having five games with three or more 3-point makes.

Last season, he averaged about 18 minutes a game. This year, I’d expect that to be around 30. He’s too vital to be on the bench and Michigan basketball doesn’t have another elite guard defender on the roster right now.

If the Wolverines want to make the NCAA tournament again, they need to hit on their transfer portal additions, and in my eyes, they did with Nimari Burnett.