The Transfer Portal has been the focal point of many a college basketball conversation this

offseason and a few off seasons passed. And that's especially true this spring and summer

for Michigan basketball fans. The Wolfrene's suffered some key losses in the portal

and added some important pieces for this season in the same way. So I'm sure there are some days,

you and many fan bases curse the

portal and some days that you're giddy about its existence. But the only thing that truly matters

is that last word, existence. It exists. Its reality in the programs that utilize it best

will have a huge advantage in college basketball and any college sport

for years to come. So how do you adjust, or maybe a better question, how do you leverage the

positives of your program to maximize that existence of the transfer portal? I think that better

question, how do you leverage it all, does help to illuminate the winding journey to

Ann Arbor for Namari Burnett. So many times in the aftermath of a recruiting win for Michigan,

you hear about the relationship formed between player and program. Of course, the program portion,

a big piece to it, is head coach Juan Howard, but it is the entire program. It is the culture established,

the other key components, assistant coaches, players, other staff members. The list goes on and on.

Now, that does not mean that the only time Michigan makes that type of impression on players

is when that individual decides to attend the University of Michigan.

For Namari Burnett, he clearly felt like Michigan could be a fit for him out of high school.

Michigan was on his short list.

It just wasn't the best fit, Texas Tech was.

If you recruit like that with the creation of strong bonds of care for the student

athlete considering your school,

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