There might not be a draft lottery in college basketball, but Michigan basically won it with the addition of Yaxel Lendeborg via the transfer portal this offseason.
After the revelation that was Danny Wolf last season, the big man entered the NBA draft, as expected, and could be a lottery pick next month.
Michigan basketball needed a replacement. Yet, replacing Wolf was going to be difficult. How many first-round talents stick around to play college basketball?
Not many. Yaxel Lendeborg is one. Dusty May used a brilliant, but risky recruiting strategy and despite being projected as a first-round pick, Yaxel will play for the Michigan Wolverines in 2025-26.
Yaxel officially signed with Michigan basketball this week, allowing May to address the addition for the first time.
Dusty May gushes about new Michigan addition Yaxel Lendeborg
May said on the "Defend the Block" podcast that the Wolverines were willing to "gamble" on going after Yaxel because of the way the roster was structured. The Michigan basketball head coach also said Lendeborg, "raises our ceiling exponentially."
You could argue that Michigan doesn't have a ceiling with Lendeborg. If all the pieces gel together, this Michigan team could easily win the national championship.
Potential and production are two different things. However, it's clear that May believes the Wolverines got the best player in the portal.
"You don't really have to change a lot. We'll just simply use him (Yaxel) as a weapon, as a queen on a chessboard, like Derik Queen at Maryland, like Danny Wolf, guys that can create, make plays. Obviously, Vlad had a lot to do with Danny's success, and then our shooting and cutting ability of Nimari and Roddy, and Tre, and those guys."
May also talked up the playmaking of Lendeborg, which will be needed since Wolf was relied on so heavily as a playmaker last season.
"The ball comes out of his hands probably as well as anyone that we've recruited in the last several years, where he has a really good feel for playing team basketball."