Michigan has already landed Princeton guard Jaelin Llewellyn through the transfer portal this offseason in the midst of losing freshman guard Frankie Collins and possibly sophomore forward Terrance Williams II.
With Moussa Diabate and Caleb Houstan electing to test the waters of the upcoming NBA Draft as well, there’s room on Juwan Howard‘s roster to add arguably one of the more high profile athletes in the portal right now.
Former Memphis wing and consensus five-star talent Emoni Bates announced his top six on Monday, which included Michigan, Arkansas, Seton Hall, DePaul and Eastern Michigan. Bates spent one year with Penny Hardaway and the Tigers and left after a tumultuous campaign down south.
“I’ve been knowing Juwan since I was in the eighth or ninth grade,” Bates said. “That’s when I really met him. He’s always been a cool person. He’s cool with some of my family on my dad’s side. I’ve been knowing of him since he won the championship in Miami. Just watching him play at Michigan, go on to the NBA, it was special.”
Bates, who elected to reclassify to the 2021 class after being named the top-ranked recruit for the 2022 cycle, finished last season averaging 9.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game. Bates led Memphis to a Round of 32 appearance of the NCAA Tournament.
Reading more into this recruitment, it appears that Michigan is not actively pursuing Bates, according to Matt Norlander of CBS Sports. There may have been a relationship in the past with Michigan and the Bates family but it’s looking like the road has ended for this saga.
Bates was a former verbal commit to Michigan State for close to a year before pledging to Memphis. He also missed 12 total games last season, including the AAC tournament, before returning for two games in the NCAA Tournament.
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