Michigan’s basketball picture is coming into focus at the right time, and the latest roster update gives the Wolverines a much-needed boost.
Roddy Gayle is back in the mix for Michigan after winning his trial against the NCAA in the Niagara County Supreme Court, a ruling that should allow him to play this season as long as the NCAA appeal doesn’t change anything. Trey McKenney even posted a video of Gayle in uniform during the team’s photo shoot, which is about as clear a sign as you’ll get for where things stand right now. Michigan also officially added Columbia transfer Kenny Noland, who had already been granted a preliminary injunction for a fifth year this season while he waits for his official trial.
That matters for a Wolverines team that has already taken a hit this offseason, especially with five-star freshman Brandon McCoy tearing his ACL during Michigan’s European exhibitions.
The basketball buzz doesn’t stop there. Michigan is about to have three rookies in the NBA after making history in the 2026 NBA Draft with three players selected in the top 12 picks, and none of them were freshmen. Morez Johnson Jr. followed Dusty May to Dallas as the Mavericks’ first-round pick, Aday Mara landed in Oklahoma City alongside Chet Holmgren, and Yaxel Lendeborg is now in Golden State.
Lendeborg is already making an impression on his new coaches, mostly by being impossible to get out of the gym. Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said during media days that he’s already had multiple conversations with Lendeborg about leaving the gym and enjoying life a little bit before the season starts.
Kerr’s message came through loud and clear: "He just can't stay out of the gym."
Beyond basketball, it’s been a busy stretch across Michigan Athletics. The women’s soccer team, after beating the No. 1 team in the country for the first time in program history and knocking off Michigan State, has now dropped back-to-back games and slid in the Big Ten standings.
Volleyball has hit a rough patch too, opening conference play with losses to No. 14 Penn State and Washington.
Michigan did manage to steal a set at home against the Nittany Lions, but the Huskies handled the Wolverines 3-0. Next up is a trip to California to play USC on Friday.
And hockey is almost here. Michigan opens its season Friday with a two-game set against Bowling Green on Friday and Saturday night. The Wolverines are coming off a Big Ten Championship last season, though their run ended in the Frozen Four, and now they’re set to begin the push to defend that conference title.
In Other News...
Tom Bradys Michigan Years Just Got An Unexpected New Story
A new biography digging into Tom Bradys college years at Michigan is adding a fresh layer to a stretch of his life that has long been overshadowed by everything he did afterward. The book, Brady: An American Story and the Price of Greatness, uses hundreds of interviews to revisit Brady before the NFL, painting a picture of a quarterback who mostly kept to football and rarely showed up around campus with women.
The biography also revisits the kind of dorm-room gossip that followed him at the time, including an anecdote in which a student heard enough from Bradys room to settle speculation among teammates about his sexuality. Its a reminder that even in Ann Arbor, Bradys off-field life drew as much curiosity as his on-field rise, and the book suggests those early years were shaped by a private, tightly controlled focus that carried forward into the high-profile relationships and marriage that came later. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Faces An Early Big Ten Test It Cant Afford To Flunk
Michigan heads into its Big Ten matchup with Minnesota at 3-1, and the stakes already feel a little bigger than a midseason conference game. Kyle Whittingham has pointed to the Wolverines uneven start and the penalties that have disrupted their rhythm, while Minnesota comes in with some momentum after a recent win and the kind of confidence that can make early league games feel especially tricky.
P.J. Fleck has had plenty of respect for Michigans defense, and the matchup also puts a spotlight on two young quarterbacks who have helped shape their offenses, Bryce Underwood for the Wolverines and Drake Lindsey for the Gophers. For a Michigan team trying to steady itself before the Big Ten race tightens, this one offers an early chance to look like a contender rather than a work in progress. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Adds Two Veteran Guards Amid A Major Eligibility Cloud
Michigans backcourt picture for 2026-27 got a lot more experienced with the additions of Roddy Gayle Jr. and Kenny Noland, two veterans who arrive with plenty of college seasoning and immediate role potential. Gayle Jr. has already cleared an important legal hurdle with a preliminary injunction that grants him a fifth year of eligibility, while Noland is in line to play under a temporary restraining order as the broader NCAA eligibility fight continues.
For the Wolverines, the appeal is obvious: both guards are expected to factor into the upcoming season, giving Michigan more maturity and ballhandling as it pieces together the roster. The wrinkle is the legal uncertainty still hanging over the situation, which means the team can plan around proven experience but not quite shut the door on how the eligibility process will ultimately shake out. [Read more 🡒]