Michigan is currently sitting at number four nationally in the 2020 team rankings per 247. While it may not be in the cards to lock down the top spot, the Wolverines have a legitimate chance to pull-in their best recruiting class since 2012 and on par with the likes of Duke and Kentucky. We gained a bit more clarity for available scholarships this week as some of the current personnel went public with their decisions and now is a good time to examine where we stand on the recruiting trail.

California Dreaming

Consensus 5star prospect Josh Christopher played with the hearts of many last week when he tweeted an edit of himself in a Missouri jersey………….and followed up minutes later with posted edits of Arizona State, UCLA and Michigan as well. Christopher himself provided everyone a sigh of relief when he essentially said gotcha(!) with this:

Okay next time I make a post about college, it’ll be a commitment. Fr this time trust , no more games

— Josh(ua) Christopher (@Jaygup23) March 25, 2020

Wolverine Nation’s anticipation on this recruitment is at peak levels, with the Michigan edit getting over 1,300 retweets and nearly 10,000 likes. And from what I’m hearing the optimism may be warranted. My sources tell me Michigan sits in good position with Josh, and while it may not be a done deal, the expectation is that he will commit to Michigan as it stands right now. Our 2020 commits are also confident that Christopher will make his way to Ann Arbor.

In news that may not seem relevant at first glance, 2020 4star Cliff Omoruyi committed to Rutgers on Sunday. The interesting note here is that Omoruyi is rumored to be telling folks that Josh Christopher to Michigan is happening. Normally, you take something like that with a grain of salt. The fact that Cliff seemed destined for Arizona State, only to pick Rutgers at the last minute, may lend credence to his alleged claim.

Rivals doubled-down on their Josh is boarding the Wolverine Express projection this morning with Corey Evans’ weekly Twitter Tuesday:

“Christopher has not set a commitment date and it wouldn’t be a surprise if he just randomly announced his decision on social media. There really is no rush on his part, though, but it does feel as if a commitment is imminent and I expect him to pick Michigan.”

Your author was among the first to note that Christopher’s informal top two were Michigan/Arizona State, with many others corroborating the same later on. So I decided to check in on the Arizona State insiders to measure the confidence in Tempe. The ASU folks have been overly confident throughout, so to see the Sun Devil Source temper expectations…

“Dead even with Michigan. [Chances of ASU landing Josh]”

…last week was pleasant.

This is the most optimistic I’ve been with regard to Josh Christopher, I’d peg the chances at 70/30 for the L.A. native suiting up for Juwan Howard next year as of today.

[Hit THE JUMP for Greg Brown news and updates/film for the 2021 offers]

File This Under Not Happening

pic.twitter.com/3CJ2u8pwkJ

— Greg Brown (@gb3elite) March 30, 2020

Texas five-star Greg Brown is set to announce on April 24th among a final five of Texas, Kentucky, Memphis, Auburn and “Michigan.”

In a piece with Rivals from today, Brown claims all the finalists are on equal footing. His comments with respect to Michigan give off a “It was a courtesy visit based on history” vibe:

“First, it was Juwan (Howard) because I came out to Florida to train with the Nightrydas Elite (travel team) whenever I was 13 or 12, and then his son (Jace Howard) came out to tryouts and then that is when my dad and his dad started talking. Just the team, basically, how they move the ball and connect with each other.”

I have word from a very reliable source that Brown won’t be coming to Ann Arbor. You may remember I attempted to subtly cast doubt on hopes of Greg landing at Michigan back in early February after speaking with Brown directly.

Keep in mind that Greg’s father played football for the Longhorns and his uncle suited up for the UT basketball team. I project Texas as the landing spot on April 24th with some degree of confidence. While there is a chance that won’t age well, I’m even more confident the decision won’t be in favor of Michigan.

Move on.

On to 2021

With the 2020 class set to be complete in the near future, this would typically be the time where I’d have a 2021 primer for offerees and targets with serious interest as we head toward the live evaluation period.

With the ongoing pandemic, the April live evaluation periods obviously won’t happen. That said, I put together season highlights of a few in-state prospects that either have offers or visited recently and are likely serious targets.

OFFERS

Jaden Akins (6’3/Combo G/Farmington HS) – anyone that reads MGo Hoops recruiting posts or follows me in any capacity can tell you I’ve been extremely high on Akins for over 2 years. If we get EYBL eventually, he has a real chance to enter the top 50 nationally. He recently shot up to 90ish for 247.

Pierre Brooks (6’6/Wing-Forward/Frederick Douglass HS) – physically developed prospect that projects as an instant impact player at the college level. Versatile kid that can impact the game all over the court and be a mismatch nightmare because of his unique combination of size and skill.

TARGETS

Julian Roper (6’4/Shooting Guard/Orchard Lake St. Mary’s HS) – shotmaking guard that takes pride on the other end of the court with his defense and rebounding. Another prospect that likely projects to be a player that comes in and competes for minutes early on. Undervalued with his 150ish ranking.

The father of 5star PG Kennedy Chandler spoke with Sam Webb recently and it appears a February official visit surpassed expectations for the Tennessee native.

“He enjoyed it,” Mr. Chandler said. “He enjoyed the atmosphere. He enjoyed the campus, he enjoyed the game, and enjoyed the players. The players were nice. He was really shocked (by how much he enjoyed it). He was thinking it was probably something that it wasn’t. And then once he saw the facilities, and the campus, the weight room, just the whole nine, it’s just a great campus. He felt it was a great campus.”

While utilizing an OV signals a certain level of interest, I’m not optimistic that Michigan is a serious contender to actually land Chandler. I’m hearing Duke is out in front as of right now and he’ll eventually commit there at some point.

Top ten overall prospect Jaden Hardy updated his recruitment last week with Rivals and mentioned Michigan as one of the programs contacting him the most and says a visit is likely at some point.

“I think that I am going to take one to Michigan. I want to go back to where I am from so, I will definitely take one back there. Also, probably Arizona, Kentucky and Arizona State.”

The Hardy family is originally from the Detroit area and Jaden explicitly mentions that as part of the Wolverine appeal in the aforementioned Rivals article.

“My mom still lives there so with her being there, that is why I would think about going there and to play in front of my family because they are all still there, too.”

The point worth remembering here is that his brother Amauri, is one of the more coveted grad transfers after spending the last 3 years with UNLV. Michigan is not among the schools that have shown interest in Amauri to date per Jaden.

The younger Hardy is currently a 2021 prospect, but there is a possibility that he reclasses to 2020. If that comes to fruition, its easy to see a package deal for both Amauri and Jaden to suit up at the same school for one season.

Assistant coach Howard Eisley goes way back with Poppa Ramsey, so I’d assume Michigan stays in the hunt for that reason in tandem with being the home-state school. It will be interesting to see if Coach Howard shows interest in Amauri. The situation is very fluid with the potential for attrition in Ann Arbor.

In passing, I’m hearing that neither David DeJulius or Eli Brooks are looking to transfer. Again, things are very fluid, but as of now that’s what sources have indicated to me.