If the big fish is to stay in college, he will play next year in Ann Arbor.
Yaxel Lendeborg, the 6-foot-9, 240-pound forward who is widely perceived as the top available player in the transfer portal has pledged to go to Michigan basketball, a source with knowledge of the situation but not permitted to speak publicly given it is not yet official, confirmed to the Free Press on Saturday morning.
This person told the Free Press that Lendeborg, ranked No. 1 on the 247Sports composite transfer rankings, is expected to keep his name in the 2025 NBA draft and test the waters, but there is belief at this time the ultimate destination will be to play for coach Dusty May in Ann Arbor.
Keep an eye on these events on the NBA calendar: April 26 (early entry deadline), May 9-11 (G League Combine), May 11-18 (NBA Combine).
A few sites already have him as a first round pick such as Bleacher Report (No. 26), The Athletic (No. 28) while places like ESPN (No. 53) see him as a late second round flyer.
Lendeborg starred this season at UAB, averaging 17.7 points, 10.5 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game.
The Puerto Rico native was also named American Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year. May is familiar with him first hand, as Lendeborg had 19 points and 21 rebounds in a win over May when he was at FAU in 2023-24.
Earlier this week, the Freep spoke with a separate program source who said the team had no problem prioritizing its “top guys” and Lendeborg was atop the list.
Michigan has also landed five-star North Carolina transfer guard
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