Chesterfield, Va., L.C. Bird shooting guard Kenny Williams (6-3, 165, Rivals.com's No. 97 senior nationally) has asked out of his letter of intent to VCU following head coach Shaka Smart's defection to the same position at Texas. There have been rumblings he's Michigan-bound
here's what we know.
First off, as we noted the other day, U-M doesn't currently have room for him after accepting German four-star Moritz Wagner's commitment. The 6-9 Wagner plans to enroll in June, and barring attrition - whether it's a transfer, junior shooting guard Caris LeVert leaving for the NBA Draft or (some have speculated) freshman Austin Hatch going on medical or to preferred walk-on, etc. - head coach John Beilein has his allotted 13 scholarship players for 2015-16.
Beilein also said he didn't expect further attrition and that Hatch should be back on scholarship next year. He did leave the door open on LeVert, though we continue to hear LeVert is leaning toward returning to Michigan for his senior year.
Marietta, Ga., Wheeler five-star wing Jaylen Brown (6-7, No. 2 nationally) visited and was offered, but we still believe he's a long shot. UCLA, Kentucky, Cal and Kansas are all heavily involved. As for Williams, he has asked to get out of his letter of intent to VCU, but he hasn't been released yet. That's expected to happen after he speaks to VCU's athletic director.
"I don't want to answer any questions until everything's official," Williams said when asked if Michigan was courting him.
We spoke to L.C. Bird head coach Troy Manns and Rivals.com's Eric Bossi, as well. Bossi said Williams was a major homebody, which is why he chose VCU over North Carolina in the first place. An elite shooter, Williams scored 50 points in a game this year and Carolina, Georgetown and Indiana had all offered.
All of them are still involved, Manns told us.
"Until he's released, we can't really discuss [transferring] with them yet," Mann said. "Some schools still try, and have [reached out]."
Michigan hasn't, he said, but he expects the Wolverines will, and it appears there would be interest if they did.
"He's an elite shooter. That's what he does," Manns said. "But he can put the ball on the floor a bit, too. He's 6-4 now, too."
Smart could choose to recruit him to Texas, but Manns said, "that might be too far from home. We'll have to see."
We'll continue to monitor this one throughout the weekend.
Kenny Williams
First off, as we noted the other day, U-M doesn't currently have room for him after accepting German four-star Moritz Wagner's commitment. The 6-9 Wagner plans to enroll in June, and barring attrition - whether it's a transfer, junior shooting guard Caris LeVert leaving for the NBA Draft or (some have speculated) freshman Austin Hatch going on medical or to preferred walk-on, etc. - head coach John Beilein has his allotted 13 scholarship players for 2015-16.
Beilein also said he didn't expect further attrition and that Hatch should be back on scholarship next year. He did leave the door open on LeVert, though we continue to hear LeVert is leaning toward returning to Michigan for his senior year.
Marietta, Ga., Wheeler five-star wing Jaylen Brown (6-7, No. 2 nationally) visited and was offered, but we still believe he's a long shot. UCLA, Kentucky, Cal and Kansas are all heavily involved. As for Williams, he has asked to get out of his letter of intent to VCU, but he hasn't been released yet. That's expected to happen after he speaks to VCU's athletic director.
"I don't want to answer any questions until everything's official," Williams said when asked if Michigan was courting him.
We spoke to L.C. Bird head coach Troy Manns and Rivals.com's Eric Bossi, as well. Bossi said Williams was a major homebody, which is why he chose VCU over North Carolina in the first place. An elite shooter, Williams scored 50 points in a game this year and Carolina, Georgetown and Indiana had all offered.
All of them are still involved, Manns told us.
"Until he's released, we can't really discuss [transferring] with them yet," Mann said. "Some schools still try, and have [reached out]."
Michigan hasn't, he said, but he expects the Wolverines will, and it appears there would be interest if they did.
"He's an elite shooter. That's what he does," Manns said. "But he can put the ball on the floor a bit, too. He's 6-4 now, too."
Smart could choose to recruit him to Texas, but Manns said, "that might be too far from home. We'll have to see."
We'll continue to monitor this one throughout the weekend.
Kenny Williams
