Jeff BorzelloFeb 20, 2026, 08:45 AM ETClose Basketball recruiting insider. Joined ESPN in 2014. Graduate of University of Delaware.Follow on XMultiple Authors
play0:19Morez Johnson Jr. denies Northwestern Wildcats with stuffMorez Johnson Jr. elevates for the big-time stuff
Dusty May praises Michigan’s depth after win at Purdue (0:33)Dusty May marvels at how many players can contribute on a game-to-game basis after Michigan takes down Purdue on the road. (0:33)
Morez Johnson Jr. denies Northwestern Wildcats with stuffMorez Johnson Jr. elevates for the big-time stuff
Mark Few looked out over the podium in the press room of the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas in late November, as if he were searching for answers.
With 6-foot-9 Graham Ike and 6-10 Braden Huff anchoring Gonzaga’s frontcourt, Few was accustomed to his Bulldogs overwhelming opponents with their size. They had done it in a 10-point win over Alabama’s high-tempo offense and a 39-point blowout of Maryland to open the Players Era Festival — then the script was flipped. Michigan had just bullied the team that leads the country in points in the paint to win the Feast Week’s tournament title by 40.
“Look, we’re a team that really scores well inside … And we literally couldn’t generate any scoring there at all all night,” Few said of the most lopsided loss since his tenure started in 1999. “That’s something that just doesn’t ordinarily happen to us.”
“We say it before every game when we step onto the court,” Johnson told ESPN. “Everybody truly believes that. We believe we can win a national championship.”
When May asked defensive coordinator Mike Boynton to watch film of Wolf, the newly hired assistant coach was confused.
Goldin was primed to follow May from Florida Atlantic to Michigan, but the new Wolverines coach had a vision: to pair him with another 7-footer.
“Watching Danny, the offensive skill set could translate. But could he really guard Braden Smith and switch in ball-screens? Could he switch onto Dylan Harper?” Boynton asked. “Are we really going to try and fall flat on our face playing two 7-footers?”
Even Wolf couldn’t see May’s vision at first. The Yale transfer hadn’t seen how the former Owls coach had paired Goldin with a backup big during Florida Atlantic’s Cinderella run to the 2023 Final Four. Giancarlo Rosado hadn’t started alongside Goldin the way May envisioned Wolf would, but May had the film to show Wolf what a two-big lineup in his system would look like. They watched high-low actions between the two, pick-and-roll actions involving Rosado.
Wolf was in. He became the fulcrum on the offensive end, creating nightmares for opponents with his ability to initiate as the ball handler in pick-and-roll situations as he developed into a first-round NBA draft pick.
The success Wolf and Goldin unlocked as a duo didn’t come as a surprise to May. He first became intrigued by size as a defensive deterrent when he was an assistant under Mike White at Florida, where the Gators started two 6-foot-8 players at forward in 2016-17, with 6-foot-11 John Egbunu at center for most of the campaign. They won 27 games and reached the Elite Eight as a 4-seed.
“We didn’t overwhelm people defensively [at Florida], but we were big and in decent position. We were top five in the country in defensive efficiency,” May said. “From that point on, I was like, wow, size is how you’re good defensively.”
With Wolf onto the next level and Goldin out of eligibility, Michigan was in need of a frontcourt rebuild, so the staff got to work quickly. Within a two-week span last April, Lendeborg, Johnson and Mara had each committed to the Wolverines.
May was familiar with all three, especially Lendeborg. The former UAB transfer had gone for 17 points and 21 rebounds in an overtime win against May’s Florida Atlantic team, one of two times they faced each other in 2023-24.
A broken wrist kept Johnson out of his former Illinois team’s one matchup against Michigan last season, but his physicality and athleticism had already caught May’s attention. And while Mara had played only nine minutes against the Wolverines when he was with the Bruins, his ceiling and shot blocking stood out to May.
“We wanted to double down,” said Boynton, the team’s defensive coordinator. “But all three [had] to be mobile, and they [had] to be able to pass.”
Lendeborg’s commitment is what really elevated Michigan to potential national championship contender, but it wasn’t a guarantee he would take the floor for the Wolverines. He had also entered the NBA draft with a first-round evaluation even boosting his stock after attending the combine. May waited nearly two months until Lendeborg withdrew from the process.
Even with Lendeborg officially in the fold, it didn’t look like a title-contending combination from day one. Lendeborg going through the entire draft process combined with Johnson representing the United States at the FIBA U-19 World Cup in Switzerland meant the three bigs didn’t spend much time together on campus in the offseason. Throw in preseason injuries to Johnson and Mara, and May said they didn’t really have a chance to play together as a unit until a week before the season started.
There were growing pains early on. Michigan nearly lost to Wake Forest and TCU in the opening weeks of the season, and Lendeborg averaged just 10.5 points and 4.5 rebounds in his first two games — a far cry from the 17.7 points and 11.4 rebounds he put up last season at UAB.
Lendeborg’s assessment was right — three of Michigan’s five worst offensive games of the season came within its first four games. It wasn’t until the Players Era that it really started to click for the Wolverines, who became the first team in the AP poll era with consecutive 30-point wins against ranked opponents.
“We’re the best frontcourt in the nation and we’re going to show everybody,” Lendeborg told TNT after that week’s 102-72 win over Auburn.
The Wolverines attack like they’re much smaller, running the floor, sharing the ball and shooting 3s at a clip rarely seen for a team with this type of size. They are top five nationally in offensive efficiency, play at one of the fastest tempos in the country (13th), have the third-highest assist rates in the country and still shoot better than 36% from 3. The lack of spacing and foot speed most teams face when experimenting with big lineups isn’t an issue in Ann Arbor.
“Pace and tempo, we work on a lot. Every single day, it’s part of what we do. We’re convicted in it,” May said. “If you’re committed to running, you’re going to be in a position to make teams counter what you do.”
While Michigan doesn’t force as many turnovers as teams like Iowa State and Houston, it still ranks inside the top 60 in fast-break points per game. In a way, the Wolverines’ size is what allows them to get out and run in transition.
“If you get behind, like on a long shot or you get behind on a turnover, oh good luck to you,” Matt Painter said after Purdue’s loss to Michigan on Tuesday. “I’d rather teach third grade. Because you’re fouling them. If you’re behind a play and they have numbers, you’re in trouble.”
Having multiple players who can score in the post or step out on the perimeter and shoot it (Lendeborg) or be used as a passer (Mara) — in addition to the shotmaking ability of Cadeau, Burnett, Gayle and Trey McKenney — is what makes Michigan so effective offensively.
“Yaxel being able to stretch the floor is a tremendous help,” one Big Ten coach said. “[Aday] is a guy you can throw the ball in the post and he can score with his back to the basket, but he’s a phenomenal passer, so he creates a dilemma for you, too. Do we guard him one-on-one or do we try to double? And he’s 7-3 so it doesn’t matter, he can pass over you. Morez is an NBA player, he’s as good a big guy as there is in the country.”
Boynton said forcing teams to adjust to Michigan’s personnel as opposed to needing to change their own approach on a game-to-game basis creates leverage that allows Michigan to control the game.
“If they double Morez or Aday in the post, then we love to play advantage basketball,” Boynton said. “If you’re not, then you better be really good at three or four different positions, and most teams don’t have enough players to just line up and say we’re going to guard them straight up.”
Morez Johnson Jr. denies Northwestern Wildcats with stuff
The other end of the floor is where Michigan shines, however. The Wolverines are No. 1 in the country in adjusted defensive efficiency, No. 2 in field goal percentage defense, No. 2 in 2-point defense and No. 4 in block rate.
Much like he didn’t dramatically change his defensive tactics for the Wolf-Goldin duo, May hasn’t gone away from the switching man-to-man defense despite playing with three bigs.
“They have three defensive 5s,” Painter said. “The difference isn’t in their scheme. Their difference is how hard they play, how long they are and how athletic. But that versatility — because Mara can guard a 5, right? And he can cause problems. But you can pick on him, just like people could pick on Zach [Edey]. … but [Lendeborg and Johnson], they’re difference-makers defensively.”
Multiple opposing coaches have said Johnson is the key to Michigan’s defense. And the Wolverines’ staff echoes that.
“The toughness of our team is Morez,” Boynton said. “He’s the biggest difference between this year and last year.”
The Wolverines have earned their first No. 1 ranking in the AP poll since the 2012-13 season thanks to their depth, experience and balance. Cadeau has become one of the most reliable point guards in the country after a couple of inconsistent seasons in Chapel Hill; McKenney has emerged as an offensive weapon over the past month; Burnett and Gayle both bring Sweet 16 starting experience; and guys like L.J. Cason and Will Tschetter are impact players off the bench.
“It started after the Players Era tournament out in Vegas,” Lendeborg said. “[Cadeau] started it off for us before the Gonzaga game. Right before we went out, he said ‘we’re the best team ever assembled’ … and then we won by 40.”