NCAA Basketball: Top 10 remaining 2023 offseason battles to watch

4. Olivier Nkamhoua – Tennessee Volunteers

2022-23 season stats: 10.8 ppg and 5.0 rpg

Recruiting battle: Baylor vs WVU vs Michigan

Nkamhoua entered the transfer portal early this offseason and it was a slow-paced recruitment. For a while, the decision looked to be between Michigan and the pro ranks. The 6’8 two-way power forward then officially returned from the NBA Draft process and that’s when things went into overdrive.

The Big 12 got involved quickly, as Kansas State, West Virginia, and Baylor all went after Nkamhoua. And since they couldn’t get his signature when facing zero opposition, it looked as if the Wolverines were done. The Wildcats needed a forward to replace Keyontae Johnson while the Bears wanted another forward to complement returning combo forward, Jalen Bridges.

But something happened on Tuesday that added new life for Michigan, as they were reportedly back in the mix. It was the rare set of good news, after the Caleb Love saga a few weeks ago and recently missing out on both Rayj Dennis and Zyon Pullin, as well as seeing another offseason target, center Connor Vanover, end up at Missouri.

It’s certainly not a done deal for Michigan and between Baylor’s recent history of success and the Mountaineers’ potential NIL benefits, anything can happen in the Nkamhoua sweepstakes. But after nearly two months, it looks like we’ll finally reach a conclusion.