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Michigan basketball cracks top 10 in early 2025-26 rankings

Originally posted on Michigan Wolverines on SI
By Trent Knoop | Last updated May 14, 2025 10:48 AM ET

After a Sweet 16 run in Year 1 of the Dusty May era, Michigan men's basketball appears to be back. In the last season of Juwan Howard, the Wolverines had their worst year, winning just eight games, but May utilized the transfer portal to get Michigan back to where fans expect it to be: winning the Big Ten Tournament and making a run in the NCAA Tournament.

Although Michigan lost key players such as Danny Wolf, Tre Donaldson, and Vlad Goldin, most analysts are higher on the Wolverines in Year 2 of May. His utilization of the transfer portal is a major reason why. Michigan has the top transfer class after landing four highly sought-after players.

College basketball analyst Andy Katz is one of those believers in the Wolverines. In his latest way-too-early Power 37 rankings, he has Michigan ranked No. 8 heading into next season. Purdue is the top-ranked team, according to Katz, and the Boilermakers are the only team ranked higher than the Wolverines in the Big Ten.

NEW #Power37 from @TheAndyKatz

1. Purdue
2. Houston
3. St. John's
4. UConn
5. Duke
6. Kentucky
7. Texas Tech
8. Michigan
9. Florida
10. Louisville pic.twitter.com/pbLH0nFjD9
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) May 12, 2025

But Michigan's ranking is contingent on what the top-ranked transfer decides to do. The Wolverines landed UAB transfer Yaxel Lendeborg, who is currently going through the NBA Draft process. Lendeborg is considered a late first or second-round pick, and if he doesn't secure a guaranteed first-round pick, he is going to play for May in Ann Arbor. But losing Lendeborg to the NBA would be a major loss for the Wolverines.

Michigan should be a contender in the Big Ten either way, but keeping Lendeborg in the fold could make the Wolverines a national title contender.

This article first appeared on Michigan Wolverines on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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