Yaxel Lendeborg has declared his intention to transfer from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) to the University of Michigan, while simultaneously entering the NBA draft evaluation process. This decision, initially reported by various media outlets including ESPN, removes one of the prominent big men from the transfer portal. Lendeborg, standing at 6-foot-9 and weighing 240 pounds, boasted impressive statistics last season with an average of 17.7 points, 11.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.8 blocks, and 1.7 steals per game, leading the Blazers to the NIT quarterfinals. He was also recognized as a two-time first-team All-American Athletic Conference selection and a two-time AAC Defensive Player of the Year.
He plans to participate in the NBA combine in Chicago in mid-May, and will have until May 28 to decide whether to continue with the draft or return to college basketball. If he commits to Michigan, he will help cover the gap left by the departure of the 7-foot Danny Wolf. Meanwhile, Kentucky is poised to welcome point guard Jaland Lowe from Pittsburgh, who recently committed to the Wildcats. Lowe marked his time at Pittsburgh by leading the Panthers with averages of 16.8 points and 5.5 assists per game, while also excelling with an 88.6% average from the free-throw line. He achieved double-digit scores in 26 games, with ten games seeing him exceed 20 points.
Turning to Creighton, the team has made their third recruitment of the week official by announcing Iowa transfer Josh Dix. Dix, who averaged 14.4 points per game and shot 42.2% on 3-pointers, played in all 32 games for the Hawkeyes and hails from Council Bluffs, Iowa, just across the Missouri River from Omaha. Coach Greg McDermott expressed his excitement with the statement, “I am thrilled that Josh is coming home to be a Bluejay. His ability to play on or off the ball is exactly the versatility we were in search of.”
In other transfer news, Kansas has completed the transfer of Jayden Dawson from Loyola-Chicago, where he led the team with 13.9 points per game and shot 36.3% from beyond the arc. Dawson’s highlight performance included a career-high 35 points in a second-round NIT victory over San Francisco. The Jayhawks have also secured a commitment from Tre White, an Illinois player who averaged 10.5 points and 5.5 rebounds. White, who is joining his fourth school, has previously played for Southern California and Louisville.
Illinois will see the Ivisic brothers, Zvonimir and Tomislav, join forces in their frontcourt after Zvonimir announced his transfer from Arkansas. Zvonimir, standing at 7-foot-2, averaged 8.3 points and 4.5 rebounds at Arkansas after moving from Kentucky with Coach John Calipari. His brother Tomislav, 7-foot-1, averaged 13 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks as a freshman at Illinois.
Wisconsin enhances its lineup with West Coast Conference freshman of the year Austin Rapp from Portland, recognized for his impressive averages of 13.8 points, 6.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.5 blocks. In addition, Nebraska has added Ugnius Jarusevicius from Central Michigan. The 6-foot-10, 220-pound Jarusevicius led the Chippewas with 16.2 points and 7.3 rebounds per game.
On the Purdue front, coach Matt Painter announced that Oscar Cluff from South Dakota State has signed on to play for the Boilermakers next season. Cluff, an 11-foot Australian center, joins All-Big Ten pick Trey Kaufman-Renn, marking a duo of players who each maintained at least 17 points, six rebounds, and two assists per game with shooting percentages over 59%.
Furthermore, Drake positively reinforced their team by having Tavion Banks, the Missouri Valley Conference sixth man of the year, transfer to Iowa under Coach Ben McCollum. Banks, along with fellow players Bennett Stirtz, Kael Combs, Cam Manyawu, and Isaia Howard, has moved from Drake under McCollum’s guidance.
On the women’s basketball scene, Rutgers is delighted to welcome one of the Atlantic Coast Conference’s top talents, Kaylah Ivey, as a graduate transfer from Boston College. Ivey led the ACC with an astounding assist-to-turnover ratio and recorded a record of 16 assists without turnovers against Miami, an ACC game record since 2002.
Finally, Iowa State has announced Jada Williams from Arizona will be joining their ranks. Williams, a 2023 McDonald’s All-American, led her team across all seasons with averages of 12.7 points per game overall and 13.4 points in Big 12 games.